Escape Routes

This is a fine book, full of very real, very touching stories. As usual, Roberts brings them to life as only a great writer can. Read this book!

I chose this book because the cover was as black and smooth as my mood, hoping it would be a diversion from the freakish post traumatic stress I was experiencing after a back country mishap. People who climb and push their physical limits with minimum risk in high risk situations are the luckiest people in the world in my mind. This most beautiful book brought me back to the life I love from a very scary place of fear where my internal self mimicked the grey cold climate, sinking darkness of winter in sedentary depression. It cracked me wide open and helped me think, live and breathe the essence of what adventure really is. I love to read it out loud. I love to give it as a gift. This beautifully written book, I will keep for the rest of my life. Roberts is brilliant and the book reminds us to seek and treasure our own brilliance.

They don't come any better than Dave Roberts. His writing is crisp, clean, a little sardonic at times, and hard-edged. Roberts originally made a name for himself as a top flight rock climber. As a writer, he is equally skilled. He knows what it's like to risk his life for something he wants, but has enough perspective on himself to question his motives. What I like most about Roberts however, is that he has never stopped growing. Read "Moments of Doubt" and you'll get an inside look at the all consuming nature of rock climbing. Read "Rambling Through the Winds," and you'll learn how the personality quirks of llamas can endanger your life on the trail. Almost anything is fair game for Robert's pen, including old explorers who faked their accomplishments (see the book, "Great Exploration Hoaxes). Escape Routes is an eclectic mix of vintage Roberts. You'll find hair raising rock climbing, descents into caves, a discourse on Outward Bound, and yes the cantankerous llamas. If you really love good adventure writing then this is a must.