Title of the Book: Author: # of Pages: Star Rating: ☆☆☆ ☆☆

Wyatt Ritz 

Literacy Nonfiction Review

Title of the Book: K2: Triumph and Tragedy
Author: Jim Curran
# of Pages: 206
Star Rating: ☆☆☆☆
Review: 

Most people have heard of many climbers attempting to climb Mount Everest, and how difficult of a mountain that can be to successfully summit.  The mountain that most people have not heard about is K2, a mountain that is the second highest mountain in the world, known in the climbing world as “Savage Mountain”.  Jim Curran, the author of K2: Triumph and Tragedy, was a cameraman that recounts the heroic events that occurred during the summer of 1986 while he was accompanying a British expedition.  It has been known as the one of the greatest tragedies and triumphs in climbing history, where 27 climbers (men and women) reached the summit, but 13 tragically died.  Curran recorded all the events in such a way that he draws the reader to feel what the character is experiencing using visual descriptions, which creates hope in the reader. 

Throughout the book, I became engrossed with each climber’s treacherous journey and decisions they made, like when one climber had to leave their partner behind or else he would die on the mountain.  The parts when they could hear their own breathing as they slowly climbed up the mountain, not making much progress, the lonely feeling one gets when one is exhausted from lack of energy, burning legs and water.  I connected with this book in so many ways, and one moment stands out so clearly, it happened during our last backpacking trip down the Grand Canyon. My sister was walking ahead of us all, when we noticed that she was we walking like the “walking dead” and I ran to help her.  She was in a state of daze and completely red and hot in the face.  We were being so careful in drinking lots of water, but just like the author states in the book, “the margin of error is so slender” when you are climbing up or down, one misguided step could lead to tragedy.

One climber on K2 was so overcome from exhaustion she actually stopped and fell asleep and then proceeded erratically up the mountain. Curran describes these moments so vividly, you can almost feel the cold chill of the wind, and the pain the climbers endure in their tents as they wait out the storm.  The theme of man vs nature is what Curran, repeatedly engages the reader one tragedy and triumph after another. 

If you enjoy the challenge of feeling that you have beaten the odds, this book is for you.