The Mountaineers Books Climbing & Mountaineering:

Joe Simpson, author of four thoughtful and highly praised mountaineering books returns to print, older and mindful of the effects mountaineering has had on himself and his friends. At the beginning of the book he is soberly considering giving up the sport given the personal cost (multiple serious injuries) and the cost to others (losing an average of one friend per year killed on the mountains). As Simpson himself points out it you keep putting your head in the lion's mouth, however good or skilled or lucky you believe yourself to be, sooner or later he will shut it. Simpson's tales from past climbs (including the tragedy of a friend who gave up mountaineering only to be killed after taking up paragliding) his agonising over the rising death toll, the camaradie and resourcefulness of mountaineers and the personal considerations of what he will do next, form the first half of the book.

The second half tells the tale of an attempt on the North Face of the Eiger, a nearly 2 mile height of sheer rock and ice, doing this classic alpine route is to be Simpson's valedectory to climbing. In this he tells superbly the story of the mountain and the many (often tragic) stories of previous attempts followed by his own attempt. The sheer terror of the storm that breaks during the ascent and the tragedy that ensues when two (possibly three) other climbers are killed is evoked in moving but clear and gripping prose.

Simpson writes wonderfully about mountains and those who seek to conquer them. Even if (like me) you have never climbed a mountain in your life and don't intend to, read Joe Simpson for his marvellous descriptions, his superb prose and his evocation of life at the literal edge - physically and psychologically.

I enjoyed this book almost as much as "Touching the Void", although for different reasons. "The Beckoning Silence" has a more psychological approach, is more reflective, and describes many other expeditions and events, including historic ones, unlike the earlier book which centred on a particular excursion of Joe Simpson`s.
This book describes his thoughts, feelings and reactions to many different events; there is a particular emphasis on his struggle with the possible beginning of the end of his passion for climbing. It includes a chapter on paragliding, and one on a climb up the Bridalveil Falls in Colorado. I had not realised that people climbed frozen waterfalls, and I was happy, though incredulous, to see the photographs accompanying the text.
Most of the second half of the book concerns an attempt by Simpson and his colleague to climb the north face of the Eiger, and the events surrounding this.
It is well written, clear, and has the detail, intricacy, and emotional expressiveness which are characteristic of this author. I liked the photographs very much, especially the black and white section. This includes a beautiful and fascinating portrait photo of George Mallory and his wife.
As much about introspection and emotions as about mountaineering, the book is excellent and I highly recommend it.

"I often wondered if these heroes of mine ever climbed with quite such a baggage of fears and dark terrors as I did."

Joe Simpson is the writer who let out the secret - all your climbing heroes get scared. Fear can make a climber turn back well before they have even reached the mountain, let alone half-way up a crumbling ice climb. But there are real dangers, of falls, storms and avalanche, that each year seem to kill more of Simpson's friends. Here, the fear and the deaths have almost stopped him mountaineering, but there's one last climb he has to do - the North Face of the Eiger.

It's a book that won't satisfy everyone, as Simpson often seems to spend far more time thinking about climbing that actually doing it, and in the first half he gets nowhere near that north face, instead taking us through another few years of an autobiography that started with "This Game of Ghosts". But really, no one does do climbing books as well as Joe Simpson with his black humour, honesty and insight, and this is something of a masterclass. He can even sneak in a pretty good history of climbing on the Eiger, while psyching himself up for the climb, that quickly dismisses any worry that he might just be doing a little padding out. Of course, the original and best book on the Eiger is Heinrich Harrer's "The White Spider", and Joe Simpson has already had a pretty good go at writing the best climbing book of all time in "Touching the Void". This one is never going to quite match up, but that doesn't stop it being thought-provoking, gripping, compulsory reading for anyone interested in the mountains.