The High Lonesome: Epic Solo Climbing Stories

Rating:
Summary: Excellent stories of climbing fear and extreme desire
Review: I am an avid novice rock climber and this book is a great series of short vignettes that explore the many different facets of the most extreme side of climbing: the free solo. Hard to imagine, this is true "working without a net" extreme sport, that is really not so extreme when you hear it told from the perspective of folks with lots of ability and desire, and the fortitude to constantly battle the fear that creeps into such attempts. I enjoyed this book and found the first person perspectives were fresh and insightful without getting metaphysical.

Rating:
Summary: Solo climbing is the ultimate high stakes high-wire act.
Review: No rope and no partner means no safety net, and a fall means almost certain death. This gripping collection of 22 stories takes you from the frozen flanks of Mount Everest to the sheer rock walls of Yosemite with the men and women who risk it all on the most extreme climbs in the world--alone. Photos too!

Rating:
Summary: Well worth the price
Review: This anthology is well selected and well edited. I read it cover to cover, over two days, and had trouble putting it down even when I had finished it. Each contribution is a real "cliffhanger." (Sorry...I couldn't resist...)

Rating:
Summary: Damn Good Book
Review: This Book was awesome. It kept me on the edge of my feet. John Long is a great climbing author and I haven't read a bad book from him yet. If you want to be on your feet and like to be excited, this is the one for you.

Rating:
Summary: Good reasons to not climb alone
Review: This is an easy, quick read that will entertain if you like climbing stories. While I enjoyed reading this book as I have all of Long's climbing stories, I just can't see the thrill of tackling mountains alone. The element of danger is raised exponentially. Therefore, I didn't identify with the climbers and why they take this risk. It does detail these climbers and why so many feel the desire to climb alone in dangerous conditions. Personally, it just made me more comfortable on an indoor rock wall. Climbers will still enjoy the read however.

Rating:
Summary: Very good collection
Review: This is an excellent anthology of writing about solo climbing. Highlights include Croft's Minarets trip report and Twight's (perhaps inadvertently) hilarious The Abattoir.