No Shortcuts to the Top: Climbing the Worlds 14 Highest Peaks by Ed Viesturs

No Shortcuts to the Top: Climbing the Worlds 14 Highest Peaks Reviews

• 
  Petra time heals but a week isnt quite long enough

  Although there is no official series of the Everest disaster of 1996 where 8 people died in a blizzard, This book, Krakauer's
  Into Thin Air, Boukreev's
  The Climb: Tragic Ambitions on Everest, Kropp's
  Ultimate High: My Everest Odysseyand Clint Willis's
  Climb: Stories of Survival from Rock, Snow and Ice, plus a couple more I've delved into, all read like a series. All of them reference the same people and the events of that tragic climb on Everest. It's very odd reading about the same cast and catastrophe from different points of view and all of them accusing others of negligence at best and putting self-ambition first at worst.
  
  It is impossible to know if they are all true and just seen from different angles, much as witnesses do in a court case, or if one or more of them are covering up for themselves or friends.
  
  
  Finally reviewed 21st May 2019 after comment 11, original non-review 7 May 2015
• 
  Judd

  I got the opportunity to climb with Ed Viesturs on Rainier in July 2010. It was by accident and only for half an hour. I didn't know who he was at the time, but as he welcomed me onto his rope halfway up Cathedral Gap, I was struck by his charisma and positivity as I struggled with the thin air and the fat kid spilling his last two meals on the rocks behind me. As we climbed, he continually called out encouragements to the middle-aged man just behind on the rope. I didn't know who he was, but I recognized him as someone special on the mountain.
  
  After returning to Utah, I looked him up and found this book. I am now stunned that I was lucky enough to climb with someone this great - and a bit disappointed I didn't get his autograph while I ate pizza at the next table after the climb...
  
  Without a doubt one of the best books about determination and the love for mountaineering. An honest recounting of a decade long journey to climb all 8000 meter mountains without supplement oxygen.
• 
  Maria V. Snyder

  I am an armchair adventurer - I love reading these stories about hardship, freezing cold temperatures, dangerous conditions and general misery while I'm wrapped up in a blanket, cozy warm and with a steaming cup of tea nearby (The Deadliest Catch was one of my favorite TV shows). I'm also so very impressed by the author's accomplishment to summit the world's 14 highest peaks - without supplemental oxygen!
  
  This book is not just a blow by blow of his successes and failures on the mountains, but about his life's journey to that point, from being inspired at age 14 to finally reaching his goal at age 46. It's about despite becoming a veterinarian, he was strong enough to walk away because climbing was his true passion - instead of earning a good living working with animals, he spent his time building houses and scrounging for sponsors to pay for his trips to the Himalaya.
  
  One of the best parts was learning what mountaineers do when they're camped on this tiny ledge at 24,000 feet and nature calls, what they wear and eat and how a five pound tent can be the difference between life and death. I've always been curious about that!
  
  For those who enjoyed "Into Thin Air" by Jon Krakauer you'll like this as well. He has a chapter on the 1996 Everest disaster and gives you another perspective on what went wrong.
  
  Here's my favorite passage from the book: "Look, it took me eighteen years to complete a very difficult endeavor. Viewed as a whole, climbing all fourteen 8000ers (referring to peaks that are 8000 meters or higher) would have seemed almost impossible, but I took it one day at a time, one step at a time. I was passionate about what I did, and I never gave up.
  "Whatever challenge you have before you can be accomplished in the same fashion--whether it takes a week, two months, or a year. If you look at the challenge as a whole, it may seem insuperable, but if you break it down into tangible steps, it can seem more reasonable, and ultimately achievable."
  
  He's right - I've used that same persistence for my writing career - when I sit down to write, I don't think "I'm going to write a novel." That would scare the adverbs out of me! No, I think, I'm going to write 1000 words - that's my goal and if I get more done then I'm happy.
• 
  Becky

  While I absolutely respect Ed Viesturs not just for his accomplishments in mountaineering but also for his efforts to maximize safety, to rescue stranded climbers, tohelp scientists understand HACE and HAPE, and for his many MANY donations to wonderful charities... this book was just sort of ho-hum. His compartmentalization on mountains, while necessary, does not necessarily make for great narration in a story. Not that I want to capitalize on the heartache and terror he has seen, but it all felt so distant in the narration, and it left it a bit dry. I think Ed would be a very engaging speaker, but this book left me wanting more. Also, the first half jumped around quite a bit in its story telling, it was very jarring and off putting. I grew bored quickly with the repetitive simple sentence structure, and it became increasingly hard for me to pick the book up and continue reading.
  
  Now, this book is still a great read for those interested in mountaineering. There is a lot of good philosophy and tactics for mountaineering in here, but I just wouldnt expect to be riveted like you can be reading Into Thin Air.
• 
  Lori

  While I found reading about all the mountain expeditions interesting, I had a problem connecting with the author. I think he reminded the reader too many times about how great he was at making decisions, what an incredible athlete he was, how attractive he was to the ladies. . . He very well may be all of these things, and he has accomplished incredible feats, but I found his propensity to brag exhausting at times. I think a friend of mine who also enjoys mountaineering books warned me away from this one, but I didn't realize this was the same book until now.
• 
  Cory verner

  It's impossible not to respect Ed Viesturs accomplishments. That does not mean you need to love his writing. I found the book interesting, primarily because I am passionate about climbing mountains myself. There is a lot of back story here that, although interesting and possibly even necessary for a book like this, is a bit tiresome. I would have preferred to have had the climbs described in more detail. I'm not sure that would have pleased other, though. You can't win with a book like this.
  
  I will say I'm glad I read it.
• 
  Dannie

  The stories jumped all over the place, both in chronology and in length. And although the message is about getting down the mountain safely, the theme isn't interesting enough to play through the whole book. The author isn't arrogant, but he does appear to be self-centered, which seems to be pretty common for serious mountaineers or elite athletes.
• 
  Vanessa

  BookRiot 2018 Read Harder Challenge #6: A book about nature
  
  I read the reviews, so I know there is a whole cult of people, myself included, who can't get enough of mountain climbing books ever since they read
  Into Thin Air: A Personal Account of the Mount Everest Disaster. Hey! Here's another one.
  
  Actually, if you've read Krakauer's book, Ed Viesturs' name should be familiar to you. He was at Everest in 1996 making the IMAX film (called, surprisingly, Everest) with David Breashears, and participated in the rescue effort after the killer storm that killed eight people. So, the guy is a hero.
  
  He's also one of the few people in the world who has climbed all 14 8000 meter peaks (that works out to 26,000 feet and some change, basically all of the mountains in the Death Zone and all located either in the Himalayas or the Karakoram.) And he climbed them all without supplemental oxygen.
  
  You should know this also serves as Viesturs' memoir, so while there are plenty of mountain-climbing stories, there are also stories about his life. Some of that is still interesting: Viesturs' infatuation with climbing began when he read Maurice Herzog's account of being the first team to successfully summit Annapurna (called, surprisingly,
  Annapurna), he completed veterinary school and then barely worked as a vet at all because it got in the way of his climbing obsession, he was friends and had climbed with both Rob Hall and Scott Fischer (who both died on Everest in '96.) He also has a chapter about the Everest story, including his opinion on what happened. If you've read and liked Into Thin Air, I'd say this part in particular is a must-read.
  
  But he also does talk some about his wife and kids. Which, I don't begrudge the guy his happiness; I'm not a complete dick. It's just that I bought a ticket for a mountain-climbing ride, and that's what I wanted to take. I might have skimmed some of the family parts.
  
  I did want to add that a few reviewers thought Viesturs was conceited or seemed full of himself. I didn't find that to be true at all. He's just very confident and a ridiculous over-achiever, so I think those attributes are getting misread. It's kind of a shame, because he seems like a nice guy who would be genuinely surprised and a little hurt to hear that (He's been a public figure for years though, he's probably used to it.)
  
  This is more worthy grist for your mountain-climbing book obsession. I might pick up his other books on K2 and/or Annapurna. Those peaks, Annapurna in particular, are considerably more statistically dangerous to climb than Everest, and therefore much more fascinating.
• 
  Vyla

  2.5 stars
  
  I really do wish I could say I liked this book more. Ed saved my dad's life on Everest in the '90s (this story chronicled starting on page 185 of the book) so technically speaking I would literally not be alive if not for Ed and him giving my dad the Heimlich maneuver for hours on end.
  
  Ok first, what the book is about: Basically, it a memoir on Ed's life, focusing on his journey of reaching the summit of all the world's mountains over 8000 meters (there are 14) without supplemental oxygen. He explains how he got into mountaineering and worked his way up to the tallest peaks. He also interweaves in his personal life- stuff about his life growing up, college, but most prominently his wife and family.
  
  I know Ed is a humble guy, but this book really came across as if he was just gloating and explaining why he was better than everyone else. It seemed like he was always explaining why he is right, etc. His opinions on others mentioned in the book sometimes comes across very judgmental and even demeaning. I don't think this was the intention at all, but it was hard to not read it that way.
  
  One example of this that I had a hard time getting past, comes near the start of the book. He tells the story of rescuing a female mountaineer on one of the peaks. There seems to be some sort of resentment to her, like obviously she went past her limits and she shouldn't have kept going... basically Ed seems upset with her. But then she climbs into his tent at basecamp and everything is fine. He mentions her and their affair several times and it just seems so unnecessary and demeaning. It makes it so much worse that this women died in the mountain years ago.
  
  Going along with this, there are a lot of instances where he mentions someone once or twice and gives his opinion on them. I don't know why it bothered me, but it did. Just didn't seem necessary.
  
  There were some gripping stories told in this book, but the bad overrides the good for me in this case.
  
  Obviously Ed is not a natural born writer, but since it has a co author, I expected this book to be better than it was. I found many things repetitive and I even noticed some typos. Just little things, but sometimes when you're not already enjoying a book it only takes the little things. It just was not written in an engaging way. I believe Ed's story was meant to be told, but it should have been written by someone else.
  
  I wouldn't recommend this book to many people, only if you are dead set on learning about Ed's personal endeavors. Honestly, I could only get through it because of the personal connection I have. Many parts of it don't just talk about mountaineering so if you are looking for that, I would look elsewhere.
• 
  Alexa

  Go figure I read Ed's mountaineering canon completely out of order and this ends up being one of my favorites--first written, last read! More than any of the other three, this one is straight up a memoir, and it's an excellent one. It takes you through Ed's climbing career and Endeavor 8,000 not-quite-chronologically, expertly structured/plotted/rendered by David Roberts.
  
  Ed's just plain likable here and the story is compelling. Mind, Ed's always likeable, but something about the tone/approach here feels the most natural of the four collaborations between Viesturs and Roberts--I do wonder if Roberts did less heavy lifting on the writing on this one which is why it feels so much more conversational/memoir-ish? That's not a criticism of Roberts' possible more heavy lifting on the other books--it makes No Shortcuts to the Top and then the K2 and Annapurna books that much better because they stand apart. Those two are brilliant, balanced works of non-fiction as they go much deeper into the history of climbing those mountains (since Ed has less specific personal experience with them). I like this one as a straight up memoir of an incredible feat.
  
  So I definitely recommend this of among the best of the mountaineering memoirs I've read--it balances deft and well-paced action/storytelling with an affable main character who never feels too narcissistic.
• 
  Amar Pai

  Ed Viesturs is kind of a dweeb, but I have to admit he's a workhorse superman. One foot in front of the other, repeat, repeat, repeat. He said at the top of some summits you have to take 15 breaths for every step. Damn
• 
  Zinta

  I was handed this book by a colleague, saying, "Hey, you're Latvian, too, aren't you?" Indeed, I am, and if perhaps my first spark of interest in this book came from that - Ed Viesturs' father, Elmars Viesturs, came to the U.S. very much by the same route as my own parents, refugees from the Soviet occupation of Latvia - then it soon enough veered far more to his achievements in mountainclimbing. I'd heard of Viesturs before. I'd seen a few film clips of his remarkable feat in summiting the world's 14 highest mountains over a span of 18 years. If his Latvian name caught my attention (my own father's name is Viestarts, a variation of the same, and the name is, in fact, rooted fittingly in folklore based on a Latvian warrior), it was his life and how he lived it that sustained my attention.
  
  Yes, his life and how he lived it, because the story of Ed Viesturs is not just about climbing mountains. It is very much about HOW he climbs those mountains, and not only how he climbs them, but also how he descends. Viesturs continually reminds his readers that his secret to his mountainclimbing success - "Reaching the summit is optional. Getting down is mandatory." - is to never allow ego to get in the way of reaching the summit, to keep passion for one's pursuit aligned equally with sound sense, and that even the most desired outcome for a personal dream must sometimes be put on hold, perhaps numerous times, when the wisdom of experience-honed instinct dictates: this is not your time.
  
  Viesturs tells his story (with the help of writer, David Roberts) from its logical beginning. The boy reads a book. It is a book about a mountainclimber who is doing battle with one of the most difficult, if not quite the highest, mountains: Annapurna. Although his childhood unfolds in the flattest parts of the Midwest, his imagination soars with his reading. (Do books still so inspire our youth? one has to wonder ... ) To climb all of the fourteen 8,000-meter peaks in the world (8,000 meters above sea level) becomes his life's pursuit.
  
  Dreams are often not practical. Viesturs realizes he must pursue also some more practical career, and so he earns a degree in veterinary science. Alongside the practical, however, he never stops pushing the dream. He eventually ends up abandoning the "sensible" career, subsists on a meager salary as a climbing guide, takes on odd jobs to allow for the needed time off to travel across the world and climb. We can already see the needed fiber and hardy character of the man in these early climbing days, in how he approaches his goal with just the right mix of sensible and dream-crazy. He has the discipline to train, he has the persistance to continue when others fall away, he has the character to not give in to numerous rejections or obstacles that would close the door on so many others. He has what it takes to be a winner in whatever arena.
  
  This is a gripping adventure story. It even has its element of mature romance, as Viesturs eventually meets his wife, Paula, who is his source of support and encouragment, his best friend, his companion dreamer. There is also history alongside his accomplishments to give the reader perspective. Many die. Very many. What Viesturs accomplishes only five others can claim to have done. And while Mount Everest is the mountain most know, it is not at all the most dangerous. Viesturs' story nears grand conclusion as he ends where he begins, with his last climb, the same mountain that inspired him as a boy: Annapurna. As the circle closes, the reader, too, feels a deep satisfaction.
  
  If we ever wonder, as Viesturs does at one point, if living such a life makes sense, he ties it up nicely as he talks about how he was able to become a professional mountainclimber, financed by sponsors. He has a debate with a reporter about the statistics he faces, life or death. While the reporter uses the metaphor of Russian roullette, Viesturs argues that his odds actually improve with each summit, even as his experience accumulates. What he does, he says in his speaking tours, can be an approach well transposed to any pursuit in life. Know when and how to chase your dream; know when to turn back; know what should be sacrificed along the way and what should never be left behind; know when to trust your instincts; know how to celebrate an accomplishment without letting it get overmuch to your head; know how not to give up on what truly matters; know how to go home again and appreciate the source of your strength.
  
  Indeed, there are no shortcuts to the top. And that, perhaps, in this time of instant gratification, of superficial and short-lived pleasures, of quick and easy fixes that somehow never last, of climbing on the backs of others to reach a higher level, is the best part of this grand adventure story. Viesturs never forgets his values. He never loses a solid sense of personal integrity. He never loses sight of his motivation. He does what he does because he wishes to know what his personal best can be. And yet, when he summits, he never quite forgets he is not alone. Family at home, fellow climbers, the ghosts of climbers that didn't make it ... the reader realizes by end of this story that mountain peaks were not his only, or even his greatest accomplishments. This is much more about the journey than the destination, and it is a journey taken with a rare kind of wisdom and integrity.
  
  To learn more about Ed Viesturs and his summits and current journeys to explore the effects of global warming at the earth's poles, I encourage a long visit to his stunning Web site at
  http://www.edviesturs.com/
• 
  Ivana

  Príbeh muža, ktorý zdolal všetkých 14 osemtisícoviek.
  A zároveň s tým aj príbeh všetkých ostatných.
  
  Ed Viesturs píše o svojich lezeckých začiatkoch, o prvých výpravách, o sprievodcovaní, kde sa naučil odhadnúť riziko a postupne o všetkých himalájských expedíciách, až kým nedosiahol Endeavor 8000 - zdolať vrcholy všetkých 14 vrchov nad 8000 metrov.
  Bola to cesta dláždená i mnohými neúspechmi, ako sám píše - z 30 expedícií stál na vrchole 20x, čiže 10x sa musel otočiť. Nikdy to nebolo preto, že by nevydržalo jeho telo, vyhli sa mu všetky ťažkosti, ktoré vysokohorskí horolezci mávajú - nepostihla ho ani výšková choroba, ani opuch pľúc či mozgu z hypoxie. Vždy šiel dolu, lebo podmienky nespĺňali jeho kritériá prijateľného rizika (alebo šiel zachrániť iného horolezca).
  Počas 25 rokov stratil mnoho priateľov v horách, ale nikdy neprišiel o lezeckého partnera a nikdy sa nenechal strhnúť k nejakým pretekom. Dosiahnuť "štrnástku" mu trvalo 18 rokov, ale nestálo ho to ani život ani omrzliny či iné doživotné následky.
  
  Nerozumiem horolezectvu a motivácii ľudí, ktorí dobrovoľne riskujú život v takých podmienkach, ale keď už, tak mi Viestursov "model" príde najprijateľnejší.
  
  Čítalo sa to výborne, nedalo sa mi od knižky odtrhnúť, zase mi to doplnilo mozaiku o niektorých veciach a výpravách, o ktorých som už mala nejaké vedomosti a celé sa to nieslo v mne veľmi prijateľnom duchu čestnosti a správnej morálky.
  
  edit 12/21: Vždy, keď túto knihu otvorím a chcem si v nej nájsť nejakú pasáž, nakoniec ju prečítam prakticky celú.
• 
  Agnese

  The life of a mountaineer and his pursuit of the fourteen 8000ers. A very engaging book that succeeds in depicting the passion, determination, and emotional waves that animate Viesturs and lead him repeatedly to the top of the world and from there with the same intensity back home. The last chapter is an unnecessary reiteration of the meaning of mountaineering, in which the author feels the need to explain - maybe first of all to himself - the significance of a life spent in the accomplishment of extreme enterprises, which may look like the selfish choice of an ambitious individual. But being true to oneself whatever it takes, honest and generous as Viesturs appears from this account, is a meaningful way of life. I also feel that the references to his private life at the end of the book are superfluous: they are too few to depict it properly and they sound forced, as if the author thought it necessary to give a tribute to his family. The anecdotes about his family that are scattered in the book are enough to give an idea of the strong bonds and mutual understanding within his family: no need for any explanations.
• 
  Katherine Coble

  At this point I'm prepared to say "if you've read one Ed Viesturs book, you've read them all." Because, honestly, you more or less HAVE.
  
  I started with _K2_, simply because I'd watched the documentary _The Summit_ and this was the book available from the library. I enjoyed it, having gone into it knowing zip about alpinists, 8000-meter peaks and all the rest. That book--much like Viesturs' _The Mountain: My Time on Everest_ interleaves accounts of his climbs with the tales of historic adventures. It's a good way to learn the basics. But it means that by the time you get to THIS book you've already heard much of the stuff he has to say. There IS more biographical detail ("I was born a poor Midwestern child") and that was interesting. But really, I have now read all of his books within a span of 9 days and I'm starting to feel like I've heard it all before.
  
  
  I'm glad for the books because they've been a solid education. But I have to say I'd advise others to read this one only if they're interested in the minutiae of his private life outside of his climbs. The rest is covered pretty well in other books he's coauthored.
• 
  Somer

  While Ed Viestur's is as an incredibly accomplished mountaineer who deserves all the accolades for his climbs to the world's 14 highest peaks without supplemental oxygen, the fractured storyline, repeated redundancy and teenager like prose, in No Shortcuts to the Top left me wanting to fall into the deepest crevasse.
• 
  Koeeoaddi

  4.5
  
  Engaging book by an amazing climber. Interesting to read his even and respectful account of the 1996 disaster as well as his other mountain experiences. One half point deducted for when I briefly ran out of bottled oxygen at Camp 3, reading about the minutiae of his corporate sponsorships. Otherwise a riveting book.
• 
  NicholeReadsWithCats

  If you enjoy true story adventure books you will like this book. You journey with Ed throughout his life but the main focus is on his challenge of climbing all 14 peaks that are over 8,000 meters.
  
  He was on Everest during the infamous 1996 disaster, so he also recounts the events from his groups experience during that time.
  
  There was more than one emotional moment; excitement, fear, sadness, awe, and joy are all present during this book. There's a nifty glossary in the back for those unfamiliar with mountaineering terms as well as a photo section towards the middle.
• 
  David Edall

  Can't get enough of Ed!, 4.5 stars
• 
  Olivia

  good but I wanted more climbing mountains and less Ed (too bad it's his memoir I guess)
• 
  Isabelle

  “I’ve learned in climbing that you don’t ‘conquer’ anything. Mountains are not conquered and should be treated with respect and humility. If we take what the mountain gives, have patience and desire, and are prepared, then the mountains will permit us to reach their highest peaks. I believe a lot of things are like that in life.”
• 
  Tarik Adnan

  Ed Viesturs is probably the best American high altitude climbers in the history of Himalayan climbing. His climbing stories taught me so much about risk management and climbing safely! I think his advice is practical for not only climbing but also for any risk management situation in life.
  
  But the quote that I will take with me as long as I climb is 'Getting to the top is optional. Getting down is mandatory.'
• 
  Sai Vignesh Krishnamoorthy

  Ed took me to places I’ll possibly never go in this lifetime. I read his book the way he traverses through the death zone. I just couldn’t stop.
• 
  Randee

  One (of many) of my idiosyncrasies is that I enjoy reading about mountain climbing, especially Mt. Everest. Not because I would like to climb mountains, I won't even sleep outside in a tent set up in my backyard. I have often thought the thrill is the horror of it all. If someone put a gun to my head and demanded that I climb a mountain, my response would be "Pull the trigger."
  My very favorite is Jon Krakauer's "Into Thin Air." "No Shortcuts" is less literary but filled with interesting information and exciting action. After all, the author has climbed the 14 highest mountains in the world and made me feel like I struggled with him through the cold. and often
  heartless, mountains.
  My best friend texted me on Valentine's Day, telling me to look on my porch. Behind my statue of The Mad Hatter was an envelope. Inside the envelope was this book and a note telling me he thought I would enjoy it and that he had seen Ed Viesturs at a company seminar give a motivational speech. He said he was very inspiring. Chris was correct in assuming I would love the read.
  For anyone who enjoys books about mountain climbing, memoirs of interesting people or just true tales of action and adventure, this book will make you glad you read it.
• 
  Kandice

  DNF @ 42% (Pg. 155)
  
  I have zero desire to listen to this book anymore, it’s funny because I just got to the part about the 96 disaster on Everest but I just can’t do it. This book is not storytelling, it’s just boastful, it’s like the entire synopsis of the book can be “look at all the wonderful choices that I made, aren’t I amazing”... to add to that there’s no coherent timeline, the story starts with him climbing K2 (and his “relations” with another climber) and then it jumps to him in his adolescent years. It feels like he was just spitballing the entire time. For me there was no sense, no real nitty gritty details of the climbing expeditions which I expected from a book about climbing mountains, and ultimately this is what made me put it down. Part of me also didn’t want to hear about all the great decisions that he made during the Everest disaster, because that’s definitely not an event to boast about your own greatness.
• 
  Beth666ann

  Ed Viesturs is one of the few people in the world to have climbed all of the 8,000-meter-high mountains: there are fourteen total. This book surveys each of his climbs. He was on Everest in 1996 when the disaster Krakauer wrote about in Into Thin Air happened and provides an interesting perspective on that. He says he is viewed as a cautious, conservative climber--he believes it is equally important to get down the mountain as it is to get up--and attributes this in part to his connection to his family. He tries to explain how stressful his climbing has been for his wife and children as well, and to detail how his attention to safety on the mountains in some ways mitigates the risks one takes when attempting to climb at such high altitudes without supplemental oxygen. Very interesting.