Rating: 
Summary: Window to Tibet and a great real life experience.
Review: I am a Tibetan, born in Tibet, I grew up India and now I live in Boston.I read Seven years in Tibet when I was in school in India some 24 years ago.I immensely liked the book and the sense of adventure,hope and uncertainty that Heinrich Harrer and his companion Peter were facing or about to face then.When my family escaped the communist Chinese invasion of our Country,our home and our way of life, I was then very little.I knew then something very bad was happening, because my family members were packing and getting ready to go somewhere. I did not know then where we were headed.Seven years in Tibet opened my eyes about my country, my religon, my family,my leader His Holiness the Dalai Lama, my identity and above all the great adventure and hardship the author and his friend were going through. After I read Seven years in Tibet, I recommended the book to my friends and was telling them the story.When I heard last year that Seven years in Tibet was being made a Hollywood film, I was thrilled.I thought if the film maker did a good job then the film would be a hit.The Film would portray Tibetan culture,way of life,Buddism in Tibet and the political situation in Tibet before and after the Chinese communist's PLA invasion. I saw the film couple times but it was not as good as I expected. Never the less, I am still recommending the book and film to my friends, who are curious, want to know more about Tibet,Tibetans and Tibetan Buddhism.The book and the film will do a lot of good for the Tibetan cause.It will publicise the plight of Tibetan and Tibet.The film has some shortcomings but then something is better than nothing at least.
Rating:
Summary: Really Captivating
Review: I myself am not a good reader, particularly since I hated reading at an early age. I have never read a book for any reason other than homework, and even then skipped pages. However I decided to give this book a try (I remembered the title as a movie). So I started reading the book in the library and decided to buy it the very next day. I'm a slow reader but the story was so interesting it didn't matter how long I spent reading it.
The first few chapters are very similar; sometimes you might get the feeling that you already read a completely new page, but it's still very interesting. Later when Harrer writes about the villages and culture of Tibet, the reader (at least I did) feels like they could be there in the mountains and see these sites. The description of the palaces, monasteries, and common households make you want to visit that remote corner of the world.
The most interesting parts of the book described future telling oracles who's spirits could escape their body, the Dalai Lama, and the hospitality that Harrer and his friend, Aufcshnaiter, received entering as fugitives. At the end of the book I felt a lot of sympathy for Tibet (reading in the Epilogue about how many monasteries were destroyed by China).
This book was really moving. The way a fugitive from the West is kindly accepted and moves up in society on the "Roof of the World" is unbelievable and it makes a great, true, story. I'm going to read it again soon. It is a true epic.
Rating: 
Summary: Seven Years in Tibet
Review: I was very surprised by this book becuase it is almost nothing like the Hollywood movie staring Brad Pitt. It was much better. The writting stlye was easy to read and involving and the candor of the books author about the people he lived with for years implies that he had a true love and respect for them, and had spent alot of time seriously observing them, this book was not written lightly or in a joking tone!! It' a wonderful story - read it!!
Rating:
Summary: The incredible adventure and spiritual odyssey in Tibet
Review: I first read Seven Years in Tibet 12 years ago. That it is as popular now as it was then and has been ever since it was first published in the 1950'speaks to its timelessness as a true adventure classic. But it is more than just an adventure story and Harrer, more than just an adventurer. As the story unfolds the reader's attention is drawn to the many layers of the author's odyssey across the "Roof of The World". The descriptions of the physical and cultural landscapes and the people of the Himalaya provide a wonderful geography to this high, remote and troubled corner of the globe. I am certain that a Buddhist would consider it Karma that the book was written in the first place and Karma that it has enjoyed such longetivity, especially in context of the apparent growing awareness by the global community of the Tibetan people's plight at the hands of the expansionist Chinese. The recently released movie of the same title is a reasonably accurate adaptation of the book. The book, however, should be a must read for anyone with an adventurous spirit, a romantic imagination, and an empathetic soul for a peace-loving and persecuted people.
Rating:
Summary: Seven Year in Tibet - Top Notch.
Review: The story of a dramatic escape by Heinrich Harrer and his climbing associate Peter Aufschnaiter from and Indian internment camp after their arrest by the British when they were attempting to climb Nanga Parbat, at the outbreak of World War II. The book details their journey across Tibet including their near demise with the Khampas, before reaching Lhasa and in my view, discovering a way of looking at life very different to our own. The book then goes on to cover Heinrich Harrer's relationship with the Young Dalai Lama and the Dalai Lama's enthusiasm to learn more about the world he lived in. The book also provides an insight into life in Lhasa before the coming of the Chinese. Finishing with the onset of the Chinese occupation and the flight of the Dalai Lama, I found this to be a very well written book and it can be seen throughout the book how the very personality of the author changes from how I would describe as something not to far short of arrogance at the beginning to someone who cared very much about a people who just wanted to be able to get on with a way of live that had lasted for centuries and which to a great degree they were content with, but due to circumstances beyond their control, they were unable to do. I read this book after visiting Tibet myself in 1998 and the contrast between the Tibet described in the book and that which I saw was a sharp one. Heinrich Harrer himself returned to Tibet in 1982 and observed the changes himself (detailed in 'Return to Tibet', more of a thesis than a story, but nevertheless essential reading after 'Seven Years in Tibet'), noting the loss of much he had held dear when he was there in the 1940's. If you Heinrich Harrer's true story of Tibet, read the book - the film adaptation does not fit the storyline of the book and Heinrich Harrer himself is portrayed in a much poorer light early in the film than the book, which I feel is not fair. Another glaring error is that the film shows Heinrich Harrer in Lhasa after the Chinese arrive - Heinrich Harrer and the inaugerated Dalai Lama had already left Lhasa before the Chinese arrival.
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Summary: Fantastic book, Amazing Detail and Information, Too Much Ego
Review: I read this book for the first time when I was only 13. I was absolutely captivated by Harrer's stunning descriptions of pre-occupation Tibet, and specifically Lhasa. Harrer portrays life in a world forbidden to foreigners and that no longer exists. His memoir begins with his attempt to summit Nanga Parbat in the himalayas and continues through his captivity in a British POW camp through his many escape attempts to reach Tibet. Harrer continues through his exhausting trek through the unwelcoming plains of Tibet, even encountering the infamous Khampa bandits. Harrer then goes into his stay in Lhasa, emphasizing his time tutoring the young 14th Dalai Lama. He also discusses his time working as a public servant for Lhasa alongside fellow escapee, Peter Aufschnaiter, mapping Lhasa, building dykes along the river et cetera. Finally Harrer discusses the downfall off Tibet due to the Chinese invasion from an insider's standpoint, even up to Harrer's escape from Tibet. His writing makes old Tibet so real, and his final words (which I will not reveal) speaks to our hearts as humans, not as Americans, Chinese, Tibetans, Germans, Austrians, or whatever we may be. The only flaw that I can think of for this book is Harrer's ego shows through his writing. While it is not a major flaw, it is annoying. I highly reccomend this book.
Rating:
Summary: A great story
Review: This book is first of all a great story about a daring escape from a POW camp in Northern India followed by a fugitive's trek across some of the worlds most inhospitable territory. It seems impossible that anyone could have survived trekking over the Himalayas in winter with no equipment other than a few rags for clothing. The rest of the book is a remarkable eyewittness account of Tibet and especially Lhasa just before the time of the Chinese invasion. Harrer paints a vivid picture of a lively and colourful Forbidden City (Lhasa), and his great love of the country and its charming people shines brightly through. Towards the end Harrer becomes a personal tutor of H.H. the 14th Dalai Lama and his account of his relationship with the only 14 year old leader of Tibet is endearing and touching. I enjoyed the book very much not only because of the topic matter but also because of Harrer's honest, tough, and yet deeply respectful and caring attitude toward Tibet and its people.
Rating:
Summary: Across the Himalayas
Review: Heinrich Harrer was a member of the Austrian Olympic skiing team in 1936, and a capable mountain climber. When World War II broke out he was in northern India, with a climbing expedition; and was interned by the British before he could make it back to the Europe to join up. He and several companions made several attempts to escape, finally succeeding and making it across the border and into Tibet. At that time Tibet was extremely difficult to enter. For a wonderful history of western attempts to reach Lhasa, I recommend Peter Hopkirk's "Trespassers on the Roof of the World". The Tibetans had adopted a policy of complete isolation, and it was only after an appallingly difficult journey and many hazards, along with much trouble with local officials and bureaucracy, that Harrer and his companions finally reached Lhasa. Much of the story deals with the journey itself; the chapter "The Worst Trek of All" ends with them within reach of Lhasa itself. A chapter or two later, they are granted asylum there -- a very rare event -- and they find useful employment in civil engineering works around the city. Harrer includes a great deal of observation of Tibetan private and public life. Harrer was also fortunate enough to meet and make good friends with the Dalai Lama. Unfortunately Harrer is a bit vague on dates, but it appears he was the Dalai Lama's tutor for a bit less than a year. In that time he got to know him well, and was clearly a strong influence on the boy, although the Dalai Lama was a powerful character in his own right, knowing clearly what he wanted and what he thought was right. Harrer built a cinema for him and shot movie film for him around Lhasa, and talked to him about Western technology. Finally, in November 1950, Harrer, the Dalai Lama and many other Tibetans fled as the Chinese invaded. Among the photographs in the book is one of the Dalai Lama's caravan escaping through the Himalayas. The book was published in 1953, but there is an epilogue, written in 1966, covering events in Tibet since then; a sad story. Harrer is no great stylist, but this is a famous travelogue for good reason. Recommended.
Rating: 
Summary: A Nazi's view of Tibet
Review: Heinrich Harrer was a devoted Nazi. He joined the Austrian chapter of the Nazi party in 1933 when it was still illegal to do so in Austria. In 1949 when the Dalai Lama was the absolute ruler of Tibet most Tibetans were illiterate. 5% of the people in Tibet were slaves and 90% were serfs. Tibet has been a part of China for 2,000 years.
Rating:
Summary: Penetrating Insight or Indiana Jones
Review: No doubt that 'Seven Years in Tibet' is an intimate portrait. A careful re-read will show an almost Indiana Jones quality to the book. Despite the objections to the contrary, Heinrich Harrer is a storyteller -- and a good one. I have to admit to an almost subjective experience with the book. I found my original copy (which I gave away as a gift) in a small store in Dharamsala in India. It was a close companion and source of solace at a time and in a place that was alien to me. I am certain that Harrer felt the same way when he was interned in India in 1939. Harrer escaped only to find himself in Tibet. The narrative of the escape is the stuff of legend is revisited in detail in the book and in the movie with Brad Pitt (also available on Amazon.com). However, I do have to caution the reader -- it is a European perspective and almost flirts with a benign sense of condescension. In an odd sort of way, Harrer is almost neo-imperialist. He is a mountain climber so he is no stranger to survival and unique cultures. It is a rounded account of the Tibetans and could only be told by one who lived among them. Was he able to penetrate the veil? Only you the reader will be able to ascertain that one. Harrer has interesting impressions of both His Holiness the Dalai Lama and the Oracle. If you asked them, I am certain the story would be different. Tibetans as a people have as much right to a sense of self determination as anyone. Their cause will not be furthered by infusing a sense of noble subject or a sense of idealized Shangri-La. Thanks goodness Harrer does fall into this trap and I need to give him props for that. It is a read that I never tire of even a second or a third time. Miguel Llora
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