Rating: 
Summary: A story about a man's failing marriage
Review: I was extremely disappointed with this book. In my keen interest in the story of the 1996 disaster on Everest I was eager to find out the turn of events according to Beck. Instead I got a book which gave us an insight to a man's dull and failing marriage besides other personal problems. What a waste of money. Hey we've all got personal problems and people have suffered a lot more than the Weathers family. I admire the man for his determination for striving and reaching his goals but he sounds more like a big wimp than a man who attempted to climb everest.
Rating: 
Summary: Lazarus Speaks
Review: A man left for dead on the side of Mt. Everest in the 1996 tragedy speaks at last.....about his depressions, his disintegrating marriage, and his personal problems.The Everest material takes up very little of the book, and the reader will have to read other authors to find out what really happened, but the psychological study of an egotist presented here is fascinating in its own right. The author's wife and others speak to the reader, too, providing an odd contrapuntal chorus which is strangely affecting, covering mountain climbing as an obsession, the climbing fraternity, and how, as the author's wife put it, a man who "only knows how to go from goal to goal" falls apart. Weathers is an excellent writer, in the brief passages about his experience on Mt. Everest, he manages to make the reader understand things the other books don't, too bad he didn't continue....Lazarus needs a sequel.
Rating:
Summary: Left for Dead
Review: There was nothing compelling about this book. I expected much more writing about the actual climb and less about Beck Weathers personal family history. I don't care to know about such intimate details regarding Beck's marriage or what his children think of him. Also, I was amazed at some of the medical references he made such as not knowing you don't necessarly feel thirsty when you are dehydrated....isn't he a doctor??? Honeslty, If I was climbing Everest, I would not want a person like this on my expedition...the eyesight, the lining under his clothing...some of this is common sense.
Rating: 
Summary: Left For Dead
Review: "Our climb began in earnest on May 9. By then we'd successfully negotiated the Khumbu Icefall, surmounted the Western Cwm, and now were halfway up a moderately steep, four-thousand foot wall of blue ice called the Lhotse Face, which the prudent climber will traverse very carefully. This extreme care is a function of the physics involved. With hard ice such as that found on th Lhotse Face, there is no coefficient of friction; you are traction free. Fall into an uncontrolled slide, and your chances of stopping are nil. You're history. A Taiwanese climber named Chen Yu-Nan would discover the truth of this, to his horror, on the morning of May 9." I first picked up this book knowing very little about the 1996 Everest tragedy, except that it left nine people dead, when it probably should have been ten. When I first saw the book, the photo of Beck Weathers, with a frostbitten face, reminded me instantly of news footage and magazine articles of the so-called miracle at the time. I decided to pick this book over others which I had heard about simply because it was written from the point-of-view of the man that survived the impossible. The book is easily divided into three parts: Part 1- The Climb and Rescue, Part 2- Beck's Recovery, and Part 3- What Was Learned From the Near-Death Experience. Part 1 was easily the most interesting piece of the book. It told of how Beck had gotten addicted to climbing as a way to escape the depression that had haunted him since college, and how this addiction affected his family, particularly his wife and children. It then goes on to talk about the climb, with Beck giving such specific details about his surroundings that you feel as if you are there with him. The latter half of Part 1 goes on to describe the rescue of Beck, after being left for dead, exposed on the mountain for eighteen hours in subzero weather. This part, although one of the most interesting chapters, became hard to follow simply because of the fact that Beck could not remember much, and the majority of the rescue was written through the eyes of Peach. Part 2 was a dull, slow read talking about Beck's recovery through reconstructive surgery and physical therapy. It seems to go on forever, which may have been how Beck wanted it since that is how it probably seemed for him; however, it almost makes you want to put the book down and not pick it back up. Part 3 made me glad I decided to stick with the book. It tells of what Beck learned from his experience, and how it took a near-death tragedy for him to realize he had a family and friends who truly cared for him. In addition, it makes you wonder if Beck will ever get over his feelings of depression and inadequacy. Pros: The book tells the story of a tragedy-turned-miracle through the eyes of the man who lived it. The description of the climb, and Beck's like before the climb are incredible. Beck Weathers tells the story exactly how he remembers it, and you can feel the tension he has with other people on the mountain. It makes you feel torn up one page, and has you laughing on the next; such as when he got the rescuers to sing the song "Chain of Fools" while carrying him down the mountain. The story is told like no other. Cons: Parts of the book are extremely dull and dry. The story of his recovery is agonizing reading. In some parts Beck puts in quotes from friends and fellow climbers that seem to have nothing to do with the story at the time. I wish the book had been written mostly about the climb and rescue, with his recovery and family life on the side, not the other way around. Although parts of the book are difficult to read, I would recommend it to anyone who wants to read a good book on a man's brush with death on Everest. It tells the story the way no other book could tell it, through the eyes of the man who survived death.
Rating: 
Summary: A waste of money, there are to many other good books!
Review: I'm a 16 year old beginning climber. I became interested in mountaineering because of the Everest 96 tragidy. I read as many books on that disaster as I can get my hands on. When I saw this book in a book store I couldn't wait to read it. I thought it would be great to read from Beck's point of view. There was very little about what happened on Everest in 1996 in this book. There was to much of Mr. Weathers personal life and not enough about Everest. The reader can tell that Mr. Weathers does not like Anatoli Boukreev, the only person who tried to rescue him. I found that Mr. Weathers was to boring and his wife was to cocky. I like for a climbing book to tell little about the family and much about the climb. After I read this book I thought maybe it was just me and it was really a good book. I let my uncle, who is also a climber, read the book. He said it was so boring that he could only read one page at a time. Don't waste your money on this book. I belive that, like other reveiwers said that Mr. Weathers just wanted to make some money so he wrote this book. Leave out everything written by his wife and family and you might have a three star book. I admire Mr. Weathers courage, that's why I gave this book two stars. If you really want to read a good book on the Everest 1996 tragidy read the "The Climb," by Anatoli Boukreev. If you want to read just a good climbing book read, "Within Reach-My Everest Story," by Mark Pfetzer. If you have some money you want to blow you can read this one or just some extra time on your hands you can read this one!
Rating:
Summary: Peruse before you buy..
Review: I read this after reading Jon K's book. Almost right off the bat we discover Beck was having some issues with depression....this trip was either going to be a wakeup call or a deathwish. His writings I didn't mind...this trip humbled him. The parts from his wife could have gone....what an arrogant angry woman. As far as how this relates to the rest of us...if it was me on that mountain, I would be dead. The governor wouldn't even have picked up the phone. Save your $$. Check it out at the library, or read Jon Krakauer's book.
Rating:
Summary: another "96 Everest tragedy" book ?
Review: Yet another book on the 96 Everest tragedy....while an account by a well known (and good writer) Krakauer might be of interest, the story somehow looses any pigment when related for the 15th times by someone who should never have been there in the first place. Here is an account by someone who actually shares a responsibility in the so called "tragedy", someone who should be ashamed of his endangering many lives, and who managed to make a fool of himself on Everest. Instead of disappearing from the public eye in the wake of his pathetic performance on Everest, he decides to write a book and join the "let's cash on it" club. Sad.....
Rating:
Summary: Use the library for this read, not your wallet
Review: After reading Krakauer's and Boukreev's accounts of the '96 tragedy, I eagerly snatched this title when I saw it on the "New Releases" shelf from the library. As I stayed up late plodding through the novel, I could not help but think how I could not relate to a single word this guy wrote. I mean, his wife just HAPPEN to have the governor's home phone number to call for help? And the Weathers family knew the state reps well enough to have the State Department in Kathmandu shop around for the best helicopter pilot available?! And Beck used to have a CHANCE to bump into the governor of Massachusetts on his way to work?!?! Let's get real here, Ladies & Gentlemen. Although Beck partially learned his lesson (his naivety still shows in his resume-like writing style), "poor" Beck is NOT the typical climber. I bet if Rob Hall had made it down to where Beck was, he still would have died because his family likely doesn't know friends of the State Department. As a taxpayer, I was fairly outraged (moreso than usual) to learn that the people who I elect will only make themselves & their friends accessible to government resources. I'm sure my paycheck helped fund the fuel required to rescue Beck Weathers off Mount Everest. By the way, Mr. Weathers, you're welcome.
Rating:
Summary: I Sometimes Felt Numb
Review: I have read several accounts about the 1996 disaster on Everest, and was eager to read Beck weather's version. I think the book can be divided into three parts: an account of his climb (Part I), the story of his recovery (Part II), and how the event has changed his life and given him new perspective (Part III). Part I was enthralling, although I was somewhat disappointed that it did not contain more detail as seen through his eyes. Part II was very slow and agonizing reading. I am glad that I stuck with it as I found Part III somewhat redeeming. The organization of the book is frustrating. Certainly, it was worthwhile to hear other perspectives from Beck's family and friends, but there could have been a better way to incorporate this information other than sticking quotes in places that often times seemed not to make sense. If you a a true Everest addict, this is a must read. But if you are looking for something as well written as Krakauer's INTO THIN AIR, then this is not the book for you.
Rating:
Summary: Left for Dead-the Making of Beck Weathers, the Man
Review: After reading Into Thin Air by Jon Krakauer, I wanted to read more about the disaster on Mt. Everest. I found this book, although not what I expected, to be a very telling book about Beck Weathers. He was a very selfish, self-absorbed man who had to go through near death to appreciate what was around him, a.k.a., a family who loved him, a good medical practice and friends who liked and cared for him. Is it an exciting read from the perspective of an adventure enthusiast? Somewhat. Is it an exciting read from the perspective of a man reclaiming his life and learning to appreciate the simple things? Absolutely. I enjoyed it.
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