The Next Everest by Jim Davidson

 

First line:  We climbed the deadliest section of Everest at night.

From the blurb:

 "On April 25, 2015, Jim Davidson was climbing Mount Everest when a 7.8 magnitude earthquake released avalanches all around him and his team, destroying their only escape route and trapping them at nearly 20,000 feet. It was the largest earthquake in Nepal in eighty-one years and killed about 8,900 people. That day also became the deadliest in the history of Everest, with eighteen people losing their lives on the mountain.

"After spending two unsettling days stranded on Everest, Davidson's team was rescued by helicopter. The experience left him shaken, and despite his thirty-three years of climbing and serving as an expedition leader, he wasn't sure that he would ever go back. But in the face of risk and uncertainty, he returned in 2017 and finally achieved his dream of reaching the summit."

My thoughts:  I read Jim Davidson's previous climbing memoir, The Ledge, several years ago and have never forgotten it. It's a gut-wrenching and emotionally powerful read. His chronicle of climbing Mt. Everest is equally compelling. I love reading these kinds of books. And this one is richly detailed and descriptive, and honest, too. Davidson weaves in moments from his past that taught him valuable lessons that helped him on this difficult adventure. He writes about the importance of patience and persistence, hard work, inner resilience, dealing with grief and loss, choosing confidence over fear, and "focusing on the climb, not the drop". I highly recommend it. 

My rating:  ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Happy Reading!