Rating: 
Summary: Excellent Photos
Review: I have done 5 of the 50 state summits. I can't imagine the logistics of knocking off all 50. What I liked about this book is that you can skip around and read about different climbs or just flip through and look at the photos (which are awesome). Something to throw out on the coffee table. And the stories are pretty darn funny.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent Photos
Review: I have done 5 of the 50 state summits. I can't imagine the logistics of knocking off all 50. What I liked about this book is that you can skip around and read about different climbs or just flip through and look at the photos (which are awesome). Something to throw out on the coffee table. And the stories are pretty darn funny.
Rating:
Summary: A Philosopher with a Light Touch
Review: Joe - I'm reading this book - finally, and I have to apologize for waiting so long. It's really quite wonderful and I'm enjoying it immensely. You write so well. Not only that but along with the humor, omnipresently threaded through your writing, there is real wisdom and insight into the nature of life. You are a philosopher with a light touch my friend. I'm learning some good stuff from you. What I feel about the book is the writing is just so good now, such a pleasure to read and so much of it has come from the fact that you've seen value in taking risks, pushing yourself and in adventure. Besides being a general good read, the experience offered to the reader is of a deeper significance than may be apparent on the surface and I appreciate you for that. Nel's photos are a profound visual treat - a fine compliment to your writing.
Rating:
Summary: A Philosopher with a Light Touch
Review: Joe - I'm reading this book - finally, and I have to apologize for waiting so long. It's really quite wonderful and I'm enjoying it immensely. You write so well. Not only that but along with the humor, omnipresently threaded through your writing, there is real wisdom and insight into the nature of life. You are a philosopher with a light touch my friend. I'm learning some good stuff from you. What I feel about the book is the writing is just so good now, such a pleasure to read and so much of it has come from the fact that you've seen value in taking risks, pushing yourself and in adventure. Besides being a general good read, the experience offered to the reader is of a deeper significance than may be apparent on the surface and I appreciate you for that. Nel's photos are a profound visual treat - a fine compliment to your writing.
Rating: 
Summary: entertaining and informative, too
Review: Joe's writing style is hilarious and down-to-earth. I found the narratives of two guys spending countless hours driving around the country dealing with each others petty annoyances as well as their successes familiar to me. It churned up fond memories of my own friends and the similar times I've spent with them. The narratives of the highpoints from a "normal person's" perspective, that is, someone who is not particularly experienced, has given me lots of information about what to expect in my own aspirations to the 50 summits. And since it is not a guidebook but more of a travelogue, the emotional nature of their personal experiences really has had a profound effect on me. Guidebooks are useful for the logistical information needed, but a book like this helps with the mental preparation.The photographs are stunning, and my only complaint about this book is that there are not enough of them. I would gladly have paid an extra $10-$15 for a book twice the size in order to accomodate more photos, especially of the spectacular western peaks.
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