“The climbers swept up in the events of August 2000 are people little different from the rest of us. Though their climbing skills taught them a thing or two about survival, it was their individual characters and their compassion for one another that kept them alive. Like anyone who has witnessed warfare and death, they feel pain over the memories that they recount in this story. It is their hope that others may learn from their experience.” —from the Introduction Before dawn on August 12, 2000, four of America’s best young rock climbers, the oldest of them only twenty-five, were sleeping in their portaledges high on the Yellow Wall, in the Pamir-Alai mountain range of Kyrgyzstan, in central Asia. By daybreak, they would be taken at gunpoint by fanatical militants of the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan (IMU), which operates out of secret bases in Tajikistan and Afghanistan, and which is linked to Osama bin Laden’s Al Qaeda network. The desperadoes—themselves barely out of their teens—intended to use their hostages as human shields and for ransom as they moved across Kyrgyzstan. They hid the climbers by day and marched them by night through freezing, treacherous mountains, with little food, no clean water, and the constant threat of execution. The four would see a fellow hostage, a Kyrgyz soldier, executed before their eyes. And in a remarkable life-and-death crucible over six terrifying days, they would be forced to choose between saving their own lives and committing an act none of them thought they ever could. In Over the Edge, the four climbers—Jason “Singer” Smith, John Dickey, Tommy Caldwell, and Beth Rodden—finally tell the complete story of their nightmarish ordeal. In riveting detail, author Greg Child re-creates the entire hour-by-hour drama, from the first ricocheting bullets to the climactic and agonizing decision the climbers had to make in order to gain their freedom and survival. Set in a powder-keg region of narcotics trafficking and terrorism, this is a deeply compelling book about loyalty and the unshakeable human will to survive.

Over the Edge: The True Story of Four American Climbers' Kidnap and Escape in the Mountains of Central Asia

History

Child, Greg

Asia

Villard

Above an eerie realm of endless snow covered spires . . . Each step appears increasingly impossible. Disorientation and fatigue make the climber's head swim and the body threaten to collapse. For Greg Child it happened at 8,000 meters on an all-out alpine-style climb marked by tragic loss.In this spellbinding chronicle, Greg Child takes us step by nerve-shattering step through the world's most remote regions - as he cracks the "death zone" above 26,000 feet, and attacks "by fair means" the world's most perilous pinnacles.From Child's assault on Gasherbrum IV to a season of tragedy and carnage on K2, "Thin Air" is more than one man's story - it is an intimate portrait of mountains and those who climb them: what bonds clients together and what separates them, and what the mountains teach us all about life -- and death . . .

Thin Air

Travel

Travel Writing

Laurel

“The climbers swept up in the events of August 2000 are people little different from the rest of us. Though their climbing skills taught them a thing or two about survival, it was their individual characters and their compassion for one another that kept them alive. Like anyone who has witnessed warfare and death, they feel pain over the memories that they recount in this story. It is their hope that others may learn from their experience.” —from the IntroductionBefore dawn on August 12, 2000, four of America’s best young rock climbers, the oldest of them only twenty-five, were sleeping in their portaledges high on the Yellow Wall, in the Pamir-Alai mountain range of Kyrgyzstan, in central Asia. By daybreak, they would be taken at gunpoint by fanatical militants of the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan (IMU), which operates out of secret bases in Tajikistan and Afghanistan, and which is linked to Osama bin Laden’s Al Qaeda network. The desperadoes—themselves barely out of their teens—intended to use their hostages as human shields and for ransom as they moved across Kyrgyzstan. They hid the climbers by day and marched them by night through freezing, treacherous mountains, with little food, no clean water, and the constant threat of execution. The four would see a fellow hostage, a Kyrgyz soldier, executed before their eyes. And in a remarkable life-and-death crucible over six terrifying days, they would be forced to choose between saving their own lives and committing an act none of them thought they ever could. In Over the Edge, the four climbers—Jason “Singer” Smith, John Dickey, Tommy Caldwell, and Beth Rodden—finally tell the complete story of their nightmarish ordeal. In riveting detail, author Greg Child re-creates the entire hour-by-hour drama, from the first ricocheting bullets to the climactic and agonizing decision the climbers had to make in order to gain their freedom and survival. Set in a powder-keg region of narcotics trafficking and terrorism, this is a deeply compelling book about loyalty and the unshakeable human will to survive.From the Hardcover edition.

Sports & Outdoors

Mountaineering

Random House Audio |

Thin Air: Encounters in the Himalayas

Above an eerie realm of endless snow covered spires . . . Each step appears increasingly impossible. Disorientation and fatigue make the climber's head swim and the body threaten to collapse. For Greg Child it happened at 8,000 meters on an all-out alpine-style climb marked by tragic loss.
In this spellbinding chronicle, Greg Child takes us step by nerve-shattering step through the world's most remote regions - as he cracks the "death zone" above 26,000 feet, and attacks "by fair means" the world's most perilous pinnacles.From Child's assault on Gasherbrum IV to a season of tragedy and carnage on K2, "Thin Air" is more than one man's story - it is an intimate portrait of mountains and those who climb them: what bonds clients together and what separates them, and what the mountains teach us all about life -- and death . . .

Food, Lodging & Transportation

Gibbs-Smith

* Includes five previously unpublished essays * Powerful prose sparked with Child's unique wit Well-known for his Himalayan expeditions and first ascents on rock walls in Australia and the United States, Greg Child freely admits his mixed feelings about climbing. Overwhelming are the loss of friends, the thrill of achievement, and the soul-shattering moments of risk and survival; but it is precisely these experiences that compel him to write and to continue climbing. In Mixed Emotions, Child remembers the mountains, the people, and the episodes that have made him feel his life acutely, including the 1986 K2 tragedy that killed 13 climbers; a near-fatal snakebite in his native Australia; and the loss of climbing partner Pete Thexton. He recalls his associations with world-renowned mountaineers Doug Scott, John Roskelley, Voytek Kurtyka, and Don Whillans. Child also narrates fascinating off-mountain journeys to a secluded Hindu shrine, and the remote, harsh landscape of the Baltoro Glacier, where progress has left its indelible mark. Finally, Child comments on some less tangible aspects of climbing, such as the ghostly presence that accompanies climbers under duress, and the meanings of and inevitable meetings with death.

Mixed Emotions: Mountaineering Writings of Greg Child

MOUNTAINEERS BOOKS+

The author recounts his experiences climbing a variety of mountains

Postcards from the Ledge: Collected Mountaineering Writings of Greg Child

Simpson,Joe

Miscellaneous

* This classic established Child as one of the great mountaineering writers of our time * Describes Child's apprenticeship to such climbing legends as Doug Scott, Don Whillans, and Alan Rouse * Written with a keen eye for detail, a firm sense of drama and, of course, wit Climbing a Himalayan peak was the stuff of Greg Child's wildest dreams. Then in the late 1970s came a surprise berth on an expedition that was to define his career as a high-altitude mountaineer and transform him personally. A chronicle of his apprenticeship, Thin Air established Child as one of the great mountaineering writers of our time. Thin Air is about the intensity of climbing on the edge day after day. It is about friendships and tragedies and the memories that linger for decades. Filled with humor, irony, and pathos, Thin Air touches us with the beauty of the Baltoro Glacier's landscape and encounters with the local people. It also paints portraits of legendary mountaineers Doug Scott, Don Whillans, Alan Rouse, and others.

Before dawn on August 12, 2000, four of America’s best young rock climbers―Tommy Caldwell, Beth Rodden, Jason “Singer” Smith, and John Dickey―were asleep in their portaledges high on the Yellow Wall in the Pamir-Alai mountain range of Kyrgyzstan. At daybreak, they would be kidnapped at gunpoint by fanatical militants of the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan (IMU), which operates out of secret bases in Tajikistan and Afghanistan and is linked to Al Qaeda. The kidnappers, themselves barely out of their teens, intended to use their hostages as human shields and for ransom money as they moved across Kyrgyzstan. They hid the climbers by day and marched them by night through freezing, treacherous mountain terrain, with little food, no clean water, and the constant threat of execution. The four climbers -- the oldest of them only 25 -- would see a fellow hostage, a Kyrgyz soldier, executed before their eyes. And in a remarkable life-and-death crucible over six terrifying days, they would be forced to choose between saving their own lives and committing an act none of them thought they ever could. In Over the Edge, the climbers reveal the complete story of their nightmarish ordeal to journalist and climber Greg Child. With riveting details, Child re-creates the entire hour-by-hour drama, from the first ricocheting bullets to the climatic decision that gains them their freedom. Set in a region rife with narcotics and terrorism, this is a compelling story about loyalty and the will to survive. What continues to make it relevant today, 15 years after the events took place, is the geopolitical context -- the incident happened, eerily, on the eve of 9–/11; the fact that at least two of the four climbers continue to be prominent in the sport; and the details incorporated into the story around the media hype and controversy regarding the climbers and their story.

Over the Edge: The True Story of the Kidnap and Escape of Four Climbers in Central Asia

Arts & Photography

Photography & Video

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Child, Greg. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Books by Child, Greg

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Child, Greg. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Over the Edge: The True Story of Four American Climbers' Kidnap and Escape in the Mountains of Central Asia

Thin Air

Over the Edge: The True Story of Four American Climbers' Kidnap and Escape in the Mountains of Central Asia

Over the Edge: The True Story of Four American Climbers' Kidnap and Escape in the Mountains of Central Asia

Thin Air: Encounters in the Himalayas

Mixed Emotions: Mountaineering Writings of Greg Child

Postcards from the Ledge: Collected Mountaineering Writings of Greg Child

Thin Air: Encounters in the Himalayas

Over the Edge: The True Story of the Kidnap and Escape of Four Climbers in Central Asia