The White Spider: The Classic Account of the Ascent of the Eiger

I love this book, and I love all of the writings of Mr. Harrer. The two Tibet books and this are must reading if you love Mountain books, and if you are interested in Tibet. Another fantastic book to read about the Eiger is The Climb Up To Hell, by Olsen. Mr. Harrer was on the team that made the first successful ascent of the North Face of the Eiger. It is an incredible event, truly one of the most fantastic in the history of mountaineering. I have to laugh sometimes when I see and hear about all the "extreme" sports and athletes, letting us all know how radical they are, using their thousands of dollars of equipment and guides to do these things. Just wait until we can get helicopters to fly higher in thin air, then we'll ALL be able to get to the summits of these mountains and have a beer and a bratwurst. Until then, do yourself a favor and read Mr. Harrer's books.

If you want to get drawn in by an incredible story, and at the same time get a history lesson about the world's most infamous North Face, this is the book for you.Harrer's ability to put you on the mountain and suffer with bold climbers is incredible. Several attempts and a glorious first ascent make for a superb climax early in the book.

The White Spider is the classic mountaineering story. It's sad that many of the old classics are gone. Terray, Bonnati, Buhl... the kids don't know what they are missing. Imagine thinking that Jon Krakauer is a good writer. Only the vacuum created by the absence of books by authors like Harrer could have accomplished that. Hopefully this version of the 'Spider will live up to the original and that they haven't mangled it too much in the reprint process.

I find it hard to believe this book is out of print considering Harrer's coming back into the vogue with "Seven Years in Tibet" on film. So many people are reading "Into Thin Air" and the latest mountain climbing spectaculars. I urge you to go back to the basics and read this book which is the best of them all. "Harrowing" best describes this history of the North Wall of the Eiger.