UK, 1990. 250 pp, color photos. Stokes climbed Everest in 1976 and made a 1984 attempt on the unclimbed Northeast Ridge. A lively story by a great climber. The book also describes climbs on Mount McKinley, the Andes, Nuptse, Guiana, and adventures with the SAS. Paperback, Fine.
Brummie Stokes follows in the great tradition of English adventurers, men who have braved the elements to snatch triumph from the jaws of almost inevitable disaster. Now, for the first time, Brummie Stokes tells the full and frank story of an extraordinary life, ranging from poverty-stricken childhood through military campaigns all over the globe to the ultimate challenge - the assault on Everest.
Aged seventeen, John Henry 'Brummie' Stokes enlisted in the Green Jackets and subsequently realised his dream of joining the SAS, the British Army's toughest and most elite regiment. Over the next nineteen years Brummie saw action in many campaigns, including the Falkland Islands, and was decorated several times for bravery. But mountaineering is his real passion. Together with fellow SAS climber Bronco Lane, he has climbed many of the world's most demanding peaks, including the mountaineers' greatest prize, Everest.
Defying death, severe frostbite and many other hazards (not least the climbing establishment), Brummie made several expeditions to Everest and the high Himalayas.
In fascinating detail, he talks us through the various stages of preparation for a big climb, revealing the psychological and physical stress it entails, and relives the dangers and the thirll of conquering a summit. Brummie is one of the world's most daring and determined mountaineers.
Born in 1945 in the mining village of Hamstead near Birmingham, he lived in a colliery owned terrace house with his sister and three brothers. He joined the Green Jackets in 1963, and in 1966 the SAS.
In 1976 he reached the summit of Everest via the South Col route with fellow SAS climber Bronco Lane. He made his first attempt on Everest's north east ridge in 1986 with Mo Anthoine and Joe Brown. Brummie now lives in Hereford with his wife and two sons.
Soldiers and Sherpas is a dramatic, funny and intensely moving, story which is as full of life as the man himself. Soldiers and Sherpas has a foreword by Colonel Sir David Stirling, founder of the SAS.
