2005. 266 pp, 60+ photos, maps. This is the official 50th anniversary book of Everest, written a member of the first ascent team. He questions why another Everest book is needed, and then shows that a lively, well researched and profusely illustrated book can certainly add to what we know.
With unique access to the living members who shared unpublished anecdotes, and the photo archives of the Royal Geographical Society, Mount Everest Foundation plus private collections, this is an essential book to read and savor for Everest enthusiasts. I especially enjoyed Band's dry wit. New Paperback.
Published in association with the Royal Geographic Society, Alpine Club and Mount Everest Foundation, this history, brings you all the dangers and triumphs of the attempts to conquer Everest. Published in association with the Royal Geographic Society, Alpine Club and Mount Everest Foundation, this totally engrossing history, brings you all the dangers and triumphs of the attempts to conquer Everest. The book puts the first successful ascent into context -- detailing the adventures and deaths on the north face pre World War II, and the planning after the war that was nearly curtailed by a Swiss expedition in 1952.
Written by a member of the original Hunt team -- George Band (who went on to climb the lower but much harder peak Kangchenjunga and has been more closely associated with mountaineering than any other team member) -- the book contains details, photographs and material donated by team members and the RGS, much of which has remained unpublished. Illustrated with a 32-page colour plate section and fully supported by the Alpine Club, RGS and Mount Everest Foundation.