A Life on the Edge: Memoirs of Everest and Beyond

One of the truly great climbing books! The work describes this American Hero's life philosophy of learning and truly living. It describes how to take on an acceptable amount of risk and gain from the experience. I found valuable Jim's philosophy (who I met and idolized as a kid) translated into a world well beyond the mountain - into his political friendship with the Kennedy's, his professional life at REI and Magellan GPS; as well as his efforts to foster nothing short of world peace. I kept finding myself wondering if there was anything Jim had not taken on! The writing is considerably less melodramatic than a great number of climbing/travel logs, which is refreshing. Straightforward and clear, even when discussing the inevitable loss of life involved in mountaineering. A memorable quote follows: "It's about making the most of every moment, about stretching your own boundaries, about being willing to learn constantly, and putting your self in situations where learning is possible - sometimes even critical to your survival. Being out on the edge, with every-thing at risk, is where you learn-and grow-the most.

I'm a 20 year old guy about to graduate from college, and have thus been thinking a lot about the future and how I want to live my life.. I just finished reading the book and wrote in my journal about it, which will sum up how I feel about it pretty well:Wow... I just finished reading a really good book, a book that has brought together and solidified a lot of the things I've been thinking about the past few weeks. The name of the book was "Life on the Edge" by Jim Whittaker, the first american to reach the summit of Everest. When Chris and I went to the bookstore for our weekly visit, I was looking for an true-life adventure book, but I also wanted something that had a sense of "living" to it as well. I read "Into Thin Air" and it was like a drama novel, seeming almost like fiction. "Life on the Edge" hits much closer to home, describing the realities of a life well lived.

This book is great! I picked up the book at a Wilderness Club meeting where Jim Whittaker was the guest speaker. I was amazed with his good health and zeal for life at the age of 71. Jim's book is an inspiration to us all to seek out our dreams and explore the unknown. I couldn't put it down. His honesty and sincerity were remarkable. His description of the expeditions to K2, Everest and Mt. Ranier were vivid and thrilling. What an amazing life he leads!

Jim Whittaker's book, A Life of the Edge, is an entertaining autobiography of the first American to summit Mount Everest. In it, Jim Whittaker talks about the highlights of his life with a great sense of humor. Unlike other autobiographies which tend to be dry to read, Mr. Whittaker sprinkles his tale with interesting facts and light hearted descriptions of events. Especially interesting is his account of his first ascent to the summit of Everest, in the midst of an incredible snow storm and the interesting problem he faced on his way down. His accounts are vividly described and would interest any mountain climber or outdoors person.This is a great book to read and enjoy. With the sudden re-surgence of interest in Mount Everest, this is not a book to be missed. Especially when it is written by the first American to summit Everest. A great book to include in any autobiography library!

Jim Whittaker is famous as the first American to summit Mount Everest. This book provides intriguing insights into the motivation and character of Jim, who has taken full advantage of the prominence that he acquired through his Everest accomplishments to pursue many causes important to him, including the environment, progressive politics and world peace. In addition to an extraordinary career as a mountaineer (first American on Everest; leader of expedition which put first Americans on top of K2; leader of Russo-Sino-American Peace and Environment Expedition to Mount Everest which put teams of Chinese, Russians, and Americans together on summit of Mt. Everest), Jim has been successful in business (CEO of Recreational Equipment during its period of exponential growth), has been actively involved in politics (as manager of Robert Kennedy's Washington and Oregon campaigns and other activities), has known well fascinating people from many venues in life (such as the Kennedy family), and has had to deal with failure and betrayal as well as success in life (divorce, bankruptcy caused by a dishonest business partner). This book is illuminating because it focuses on larger issues, such as the challenges of facing unexpected adversity and the challenge of making a difference with your life. This is much more than the story of a mountaineer. I seldom read the biographies of mountaineers and climbers because they are much less interesting than descriptions of individual adventures. This book, however, is an exception. I could not put it down.