“Into Thin Air” is a fantastic ride from start to finish. I guarantee that you will not want to put this book down at any moment. The author really paints a picture in your head of what he witnessed. He tells you the story of the 1996 Mount Everest disaster that he had to endure. He puts in graphic and terrifying details during his and his group’s journey up the tallest mountain in the world. Not only is John Krakauer an amazing mountain climber, but he is also an amazing storyteller that will keep you captivated throughout the entire novel.

While John Krakauer and his climbing group were on their expedition up the mountain, they were upon the deadliest event in the history of Mount Everest. The date was May 10, 1996 and there were three expeditions that were making their way up the mountain. The deadly storm trapped some climbers and took the lives of eight including two well-known guides; Rob Hall and Scott Fischer. John Krakauer climbed the mountain to do a report for his work. He worked for Outside magazine and the company wanted a report on the guided expeditions up the mountain. The company wanted John to stay at Base Camp, but John held onto his dream of climbing Mount Everest.

John feels that his actions played a role in the death of Andy Harris. He criticizes his own actions and takes responsibility for some things that happened on the mountain. The thing that I enjoyed mostly was how descriptive he was and how me as the reader could really visualize what was going on. I also liked learning about how the climbers prepared to make their descents. The month long process that climbers had to do was very interesting. I enjoyed reading about the Khumbu Icefall and how that is a giant, fast-moving, glacier that climbers must scale in order to get to the summit.

I really had a good time reading this novel. I felt like I was there hiking Mount Everest with everybody else. I felt like I was going through the storm with the rest of the climbers. The description that the author used painted pictures in my mind and that eventually became one big production. This is by far my favorite story about adventure. It is also a true story, so that makes me like it even more. This was a book that I really enjoyed and I recommend it to anybody.