Left for Dead: My Journey Home from Everest

Mount Everest and its tragedies is a quiet obsession of mine so I was interested to get Beck’s take on the 1996 season after already having read Krakauer’s “Into Thin Air”. Beck is an interesting character, at one moment charming and self deprecating and the next annoying and arrogant. I enjoyed all the parts of the book that detailed his trip up and down Everest and most of his recollections of earlier mountaineering. He lost me in his ancestry and family history and input from relatives which took up half the book. “I recall” became my least favorite expression while reading this memoir. If you want to know more about Beck Weathers and what led him to Everest you might enjoy this book. If, like me, your interest lies purely in the tragic 1996 season you’ll only need to read half this book.

I really enjoyed this book by Beck Weathers about climbing Mt Everest in 1996. I have read Jon Krakaurer’s book, Into Thin Air, about his climbing experience at the same time, even though these two men were on two different teams. Left for Dead was very suspenseful and I had a hard time putting it down. The author not only describes his obsession for mounteneering but also how it effected his marriage and family. The book describes his injuries and years of recovery. I discovered another climber wrote a book called “Climb” that I’ve got to read to get another perspective of that fateful day. I recommend this book to readers who enjoy reading true life adventure. Addendum: I just read a review of this book by another reader and was floored by it. In it the reviewer said Beck is a privileged wealthy man who had no business climbing Mt Everest. Truth is he was an accomplished climber who got caught in an unforseeable situation. Very stern words from someone who probably doesn’t understand mindsets of adventurers.

It's a very easy and quite fast read. I wasn't sure how the whole book was going to focus on one thing (Everest and the accident) but I was happily surprised that both Beck and Peach delve into cause and effect of basically everything in their relationship and how/why Beck was driven to keep putting himself in crazy situations. Peach is very matter of fact and straightforward and I appreciate that.

7 years ago , I was diagnosed with non hodgkins lymphoma, and not curable, I read this book 5 years ago in the peak of my mental struggle, it was a turning point for me, I empathized with Beck, am I going to die?, or walk down that Mountain, even when he walked into the camp he was written off, only he knew he would survive, after reading this book my fear went away of my own mortality. That is what this book did for me, I am happy to report I remain in remmission.

I've read a lot of books about Everest. I've read books about that specific Everest disaster, including Into Thin Air and The Climb. While both of those books were fascinating, they don't touch Left For Dead for one main reason: Beck Weathers was changed by what happened. He didn't just go "wow, that was close" and go onto the next mountain. Nor did he decide that it was a little too close, and put his energy into figuring out who was to blame for the deaths on Everest. Beck Weathers did something that took a lot more guts: he looked into his soul. The book's main story is his life, how and why he had chosen that life, and how it affected his wife and children. The climb on Everest brackets that story. The first part is an honest and chilling account of the disaster; the latter part documents his recovery, and the lifelong effects it had on him. Beck Weathers writes his story (and lives his life) with real insight and an incredible humor. He wasn't some tough, fantasy climber; he was just a man, and a deeply-flawed man, at that. But he took what happened and made it a catalyst to more than just survive, but to excel, and to change. He also puts a lot of the credit on the human support system that made this miracle possible, from the courageous pilot who rescued him, to the hurt and angry wife who found the will to stay by his side. If you want a "he should have tightened this rope, she should have carried her own bags" story of Everest, this isn't it. If you are looking for something a lot deeper, don't miss reading Left For Dead.

To date, the books about the 1996 tragedy on Everest have told this story from the perspective of other climbers. At last, Beck Weathers tells us what happened to him as HE remembers it. If you've read other books on this subject and thought that anyone who does this sort of climbing must be a bit crazy, this book is for you. With the perspective of time, pain, and recovery, he analyzes his own reasons for climbing high and shares very personally what this addiction did to his personal life. I developed a keen interest in this story because our daughter has worked with Beck's brother at Medical City Dallas for many years. She filled us in on Beck's progress through recovery and reconstructive surgery. Also, we lost a friend on K2 about the same time. Wanting to understand what drives a person to expend the money and energy to make so dangerous a climb and to go where a human cannot exist, I began to read every book I could find about this subject. Now I've conquered Everest seven times-vicariously! However, Beck Weathers descriptions of the geographical features and meteorological quirks of the mountain refined my mental pictures. His experience is a miracle, and it will convince you that the human spirit can rise above most anything! Happy reading!

I enjoyed this book immensely. I have read all the books I can get my hands on about the 1996 Everest tragedy - enjoying mostly what I've read - but this book has been different. It has a more human appeal than the other books. We get the "behind the scenes" look at what it takes to go through something like Beck did. Beck takes us through the tragedy, the aftermath, and his life before. This is truly an amazing account from an amazing man who puts the whole tragedy into perspective. Thanks!

This, next to into Thin Air, is the best book about the May '97 Everest Disaster. The book is full of insights, openly thoughtful opinions, and some clear factual author's conclusions heretofore not told. I loved the format, the synergy of the text, and the means by which Dr, Beck and his wife told their tale of the climb and the aftermath. His life and times are as about changed as is possible. His attitudes, and adjustments are remarkable. I LOVE THIS BOOK, and while moved by it, I felt changed myself. Congradulations.