Jon Krakauer''s Into Thin Air is the true story of a 24-hour period on Everest, when members of three separate expeditions were caught in a storm and faced a battle against hurricane-force winds, exposure, and the effects of altitude, which ended in the worst single-season death toll in the peak''s history.

In March 1996, Outside magazine sent veteran journalist and seasoned climber Jon Krakauer on an expedition led by celebrated Everest guide Rob Hall. Despite the expertise of Hall and the other leaders, by the end of summit day, eight people were dead. Krakauer''s book is at once the story of the ill-fated adventure and an analysis of the factors leading up to its tragic end. Written within months of the events it chronicles, Into Thin Air clearly evokes the majestic Everest landscape.

As the journey up the mountain progresses, Krakauer puts it in context by recalling the triumphs and perils of other Everest trips throughout history. The author''s own anguish over what happened on the mountain is palpable as he leads readers to ponder timeless questions.

One of the inspirations for the major motion picture Everest, starring Jake Gyllenhaal and Keira Knightley.

''Into Thin Air ranks among the great adventure books of all time.'' - Wall Street Journal ''A harrowing tale of the perils of high-altitude climbing, a story of bad luck and worse judgment and of heartbreaking heroism.'' - People Lire la suite Fermer

B>Jon Krakauer's Into Thin Air is the true story of a 24-hour period on Everest, when members of three separate expeditions were caught in a storm and faced a battle against hurricane-force winds, exposure, and the effects of altitude, which ended in the worst single-season death toll in the peak's history./b> In March 1996, Outside magazine sent veteran journalist and seasoned climber Jon Krakauer on an expedition led by celebrated Everest guide Rob Hall. Despite the expertise of Hall and the other leaders, by the end of summit day, eight people were dead. Krakauer's book is at once the story of the ill-fated adventure and an analysis of the factors leading up to its tragic end. Written within months of the events it chronicles, Into Thin Air clearly evokes the majestic Everest landscape. As the journey up the mountain progresses, Krakauer puts it in context by recalling the triumphs and perils of other Everest trips throughout history. The author's own anguish over what happened on the mountain is palpable as he leads readers to ponder timeless questions.b>One of the inspirations for the major motion picture Everest, starring Jake Gyllenhaal and Keira Knightley./b> Lire la suite Fermer

Greg Mortenson, l'auteur du bestseller Trois tasses de thé, s'est bâti une réputation mondiale d'humanitaire désintéressé et de combattant de la cause des enfants et pour cela a été nominé pour le prix Nobel de la paix.

Mais comme Jon Krakauer le démontre dans ce livre avec perspicacité et après une enquête approfondie, Greg Mortenson n'est pas du tout celui qu'il prétend être.

Basé sur de nombreux entretiens avec d'anciens employés, des membres du conseil d'administration et d'autres personnes qui ont une connaissance intime de Mortenson et de son organisation caritative, « The Central Asia Institute », Trois tasses de mensonges dévoile les multiples mystifications derrière l'image publique de Mortenson.

Sa croisade a-t-elle vraiment été inspirée par le désir de rendre leur bonté aux villageois qui l'avaient soigné et guéri lorsqu'il se perdit en descendant du K2 ? A-t-il été enlevé et retenu prisonnier pendant huit jours par les Talibans ? Son organisation caritative a-t-elle construite toutes les écoles qu'il prétend ?

Ce livre est un plaidoyer pour la vérité, argumenté avec passion, et l'histoire tragique de bonnes intentions qui ont très mal tournées.
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Now a major TV miniseries starring Andrew Garfield ''A provocative look at the twisted roots of American fundamentalism.'' Will Self, Evening Standard Books of the Year ''Excellent . . . a lucid, judicious, even sympathetic account not just of Mormon Fundamentalism but of the seductive power of fanaticism in general.'' Daily Telegraph ''Remarkable . . . for anyone interested in the wilder frontiers of spiritual conviction, this book is a must.'' Independent Brothers Ron and Dan Lafferty insist they were commanded to kill by God. In Under The Banner of Heaven , Jon Krakauer''s investigation is a meticulously researched, bone-chilling narrative of polygamy, savage violence and unyielding faith: an incisive look inside isolated Mormon Fundamentalist communities in America, this gripping work of non-fiction illuminates an otherwise confounding realm of human behaviour. Lire la suite Fermer

With an introduction by novelist David Vann In April 1992, Chris McCandless set off alone into the Alaskan wild. He had given his savings to charity, abandoned his car and his possessions, and burnt the money in his wallet, determined to live a life of independence. Just four months later, Chris was found dead. An SOS note was taped to his makeshift home, an abandoned bus. In piecing together the final travels of this extraordinary young man''s life, Jon Krakauer writes about the heart of the wilderness, its terribly beauty and its relentless harshness. Into the Wild is a modern classic of travel writing, and a riveting exploration of what drives some of us to risk more than we can afford to lose.
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The definitive biography of Everett Ruess, the artist, writer, and eloquent celebrator of the wilderness whose bold solo explorations of the American West and mysterious disappearance in the Utah desert at age 20 have earned him a large and devoted cult following. Wandering alone with burros and pack horses through California and the Southwest for five years in the early 1930s, on voyages lasting as long as ten months, Ruess became friends with photographers Edward Weston and Dorothea Lange, swapped prints with Ansel Adams, took part in a Hopi ceremony, learned to speak Navajo, and was among the first "outsiders" to venture deeply into what was then (and to some extent still is) largely a little-known wilderness. When he vanished without a trace in November 1934, Ruess left behind thousands of pages of journals, letters, and poems, as well as more than a hundred watercolor paintings and blockprint engravings. Everett Ruess is hailed as a paragon of solo exploration, while the mystery of his death remains one of the greatest riddles in the annals of American adventure. David Roberts began probing the life and death of Everett Ruess for National Geographic Adventure magazine in 1998. Finding Everett Ruess is the result of his personal journeys into the remote areas explored by Ruess, his interviews with oldtimers who encountered the young vagabond and with Ruesss closest living relatives, and his deep immersion in Ruesss writings and artwork. More than 75 years after his vanishing, Ruess stirs the kinds of passion and speculation accorded such legendary doomed American adventurers as Into the Wilds Chris McCandless and Amelia Earhart. Lire la suite Fermer

Le plus incroyable des récits de montagne, une histoire vécue sur le toit du monde.
Mai 1996. Huit personnes vont trouver la mort, englouties par la tempête au sommet de la plus haute montagne du monde. Le bilan le plus brutal jamais enregistré.
Que s'est-il passé ? Comment les hommes engagŽs ne virent-ils pas la mer de nuages qui se formait sur les satellites de l'Everest ? Pourquoi les sherpas n'ont-ils pas équipé le sommet de "cordes fixes", pourquoi les deux grands guides, vétérans de l'Himalaya, se laissèrent-ils prendre au piège du sommet comme des papillons attirés par la lumiàre ? La météo, l'ambition, la faiblesse des hommes... Tout va jouer en faveur du drame.

Le mot de l'éditeur Pour illustrer ce texte unique, Jon Krakauer a tenu à nous réserver les photos inédites de sa collection personnelle, prises sur le vif, ces photos de l'auteur ajoutent encore à l'authenticité du récit, à l'émotion de la lecture et donnent à ce livre une valeur de collection.
Quoi de plus parlant qu'une photo, une carte, un schéma ?
Les lieux exacts des péripéties repérés sur l'itinéraire, le frèle visage de la petite japonaise ou le regard pathétique de Beck Weathers mutilé...
Derrière les images se dessine une vérité essentielle, la vérité des hommes.
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