Rating: 
Summary: No Title of Mine is Adequate
Review: I read this book the first time back in the 70s, shortly after it was published. I've re-read it every two years or so since then. As in reading any number of times lines from Shakespeare, I never tire of their inherent beauty; my heart soars again and again re-reading Mattheissen's lines of ice-like clarity.
The book on one level is a extraordinary travel documentary, describing brilliantly one man's experiences during a trip into a recently opened area in Himilayan Nepal. On a profoundly different level, the book also is a diary of his journey into his own heart and soul, one, perhaps, calling for more true bravery than any mere physical experience.
There are many moments of exquisite beauty and intimacy that have left me sobbing, longing to be on the journey with Matthiessen and his travel companions.
Matthiessen is an Everyman, seeking he really knows not what, searching for what may only be the quest itself. Perhaps he and his fellow Buddhists have the answer: their goal is ultimate acceptance of what each moment brings us, not wanting or desiring anything but what is now.
In closing, if one is looking for some answers to how to live a good life, without being told what to do and not to do, I find that this book is a far more useful guide to being a human being than any religious text that I know.
By all means, even if you think you have all the answers, buy this book.
Wayne Robinson
Rating:
Summary: A "Nature Classic"--how about a "Classic Classic"?
Review: I'm not really sure about dubbing this book a "nature classic", because as much as it will please nature lovers, this book possesses a universal value that merits it being considered a regular old classic--a "classic classic" if you will, like the ones kids read in school.
Although I am extremely critical of many so-called spiritual authors such as Hubbard, Deepak Chopra, Yogananda, Prabhupada..., I felt immediately after finishing this book that reading it was one of the most profoundly moving experiences I've ever gotten from literature, and a year later, that feeling remains as powerful as when I read the final page. I've given this book to many of my friends and family in the hopes that it will move them in a similar way it did me. Not all have finished it, and I suppose you can gather from the other reviews that this is not a book for everyone, but those who have managed to finish the journey share a sense of the serene bliss I found in it.
What I think makes this book so effective is the way the writing style perfectly captures the tone of the philosophy he is trying to portray. He uses crisp imagery without much romantic overindulgence, and his observations are often very face value. For example when he arrives at the monastary, he spends many pages describing the sheep he has travelled these months to see. These sheep turn out not to be symbolic pawns for any deep hidden message, but rather just animals that engage in some sheeplike behavior which is far from conveying the meaning of life! This is not a book in which a snow leopard leaps into the path before Matthiessen in a moment of transfiguring ecstasy, but rather a solemn reflection on life.
In a way, it is kind of sad that some people are dissapointed by the lack of action in a book about Zen Buddhism. The journey described is plenty adventurous, but it's not exactly the kind of book that will be turned into a blockbuster action movie (at least I sincerely hope not!) I do have sympathy for those who get mired in the abstract discussions of Buddhism to be found here, and I suppose I had an advantage reading this book already knowing something about the philosophy he expounds. Yet I learned from the Snow Leopard that reading about Buddhism is one thing--experiencing it is very different. I share the sentiment of other reviewers who say that reading this book changed their lives, and as for myself, I don't think I really understood important parts of Buddhism before reading this book. I hope readers see that an action-packed epiphany would defeat the purpose of this book; this is a book about real life, and life doesn't happen that way. Some may see wisdom and spiritual development as a result of life-changing events that happen to them, but I see it more as a result of careful observation, awareness, and connectedness with the simple world around oneself. That's what this book is getting at.
Rating:
Summary: The Hush of Snow
Review: A meditative journey into a lost land, in search of an elusive creature. Peter Matthiessen travels into Tibet, and into his own heart and mind. One of my favourite books. I wanted it to go on forever. So dear to my heart, I could not explain.
Rating:
Summary: ...in the footprints of the Himalayan leopard
Review: A naturalist & Buddhist and adventurer extraordinaire Matthiessen met his traveling companion in 1969 on the Serengeti plain in East Africa. This newfound friend, George Schaller, later asks him if he wants to join him on his next trip to Nepal to study the bharal or Himalayan blue sheep. So late in 1973 the two set out on a journey to the Crystal Mountain that takes them west under Annapurna and north around the Dhaulagiri peaks and across the Kanjiroba to the land of Dolpo, on the Tibetan Plateau.
This is a very literate and philosophic quest ripe with quotes from Lamas and Rilke and Ovid:
Just as a white summer cloud, in harmony with heaven and earth freely floats in the blue sky from horizon to horizon following the breath of the atmosphere-in the same way the pilgrim abandons himself to the breath of the greater life that...leads him beyond the farthest horizons to an aim which is already present within him, though yet hidden from his sight.-Lama Govinda
Spiritual but in an earthy way, an approprate response to Nepal. The Tibetan culture is fascinating to seeker and secular journeyman alike. The country itself comes to life in this book and that is to be expected from Matthiessen who is a world renowned naturalist. What makes the book stand apart form all others like it is Matthiessen who is a much more nuanced character than your average adventurer and the resulting narrative is a many layered and often exalted one. I suppose as a writer he reminds me of that other great American naturalist Henry David Thoreau whose work also operates on many planes at once not the least of which is the earthen one. Matthiessen comes alive once he is beyond the reach of his own temporal civilization and among the timeless elements of the earth under skies where no planes ever appear and no rescue is forthcoming should anything go wrong. A book that continues to enthrall with its stunning imagery and insight and it shines even more on repeat readings, a shrine to the mountainous east.
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Summary: Virtual reality, an oral kaleidoscope of one man's thought
Review: A visual journey of a personal search that asks questions that perhaps have no answers. His writing is a pictorial expression of adventure, spirtualism, and wonderment. After reading this book four times perhaps I'm closer to understanding who I am.
Rating: 
Summary: 4th times the charm
Review: After 4 tries I finally finished this book. I have to agree with the 3 other reviewers- there are just too many references to Budhism that left me befuddled. If I wasn't in a foriegn country without other reading material I don't think I would of finished it this time either. My reccomendation is to read it fast and don't even try to make sense of about 20% of the book. Despite this I did enjoy the book but only 3 stars worth.
Rating:
Summary: Still Enlightening
Review: After all these years, rereading Peter M's classic is still enlightening. No one's written better about Buddhism and this ultimate journey into the Himalayas on a quest for personal redemption. Top recommendation.
Rating:
Summary: A glipse at the snow leopard...
Review: An excellent book - what can I say. When I read it, I spent quiet evenings absorbing the captivating words and envisioning myself hiking along his side during this dangerous climb. The book is written in journal form, and adds to its character. The moving text will bring you closer to the native cultures and nature he encounted and sink you deeper into your own spiritual quest.
Rating:
Summary: Vertigo with a great heart
Review: As a present from a dear friend, this was a marvellous read.The author heads for the Himalayan heights to seek out the elusive and precious mountain cat with the eminent mammalogist Schaller. Matthiessen writes of the mountains there and the grand hospitality from Nepal and hermits on their mountain retreats and the book harks back to elements of his wife's death and explorations of what life involves. He analyses the lives and manners of the people he encounters and describes the ruggedness of mountain climbing marrying together endurance with views, storms and tails of blue sheep and the mythical Yeti. This is for a discerning reader wishing to pause from the rat race to really take in a big picture and to weep silently.
Rating:
Summary: Changed my life forever
Review: As a result of reading this book, at the age of 22 12 years ago, I began the practice of Zen Buddhism and lived for years in Nepal. It is a spare and piercingly beautiful account of what is most true, meaningful, and liberating in this fleeting world. Nine bows, Muryo Roshi! - Scott Ruplin
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