Touching the void
by Joe Simpson · first published 1988
69% recommend31% neutral
Why HN recommends it
A first-person account of a mountaineering accident and a climber's escape from a crevasse-ridden peak in the Andes. The writing is vivid and the suspense sustained, suited to fans of climbing and survival stories.
Summarised by Claude from recommending comments
Touching the Void is a 1988 book by Joe Simpson, recounting his and Simon Yates's disastrous and nearly fatal climb of the 6,344-metre (20,813 foot) Siula Grande in the Peruvian Andes in 1985.
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…extreme conditions. His decision-making with regard to batteries (his headlamp never worked when it mattered) and rope (he died when the second-hand 6mm rope he was leading on cut) was not so good. Touching the Void is a great story and Joe Simpson is an entertaining writer, but he's also notoriously accident-prone and has some peculiar risk analysis judging from his writing about places that I have climbed. Sure,…
on “Everest is littered with dead, exposed bodies” ↗…Run Judgement of Paris Siddhartha Killing Pablo The Victorian Internet Lone Survivor I Hope They Serve Beer in Hell Surely You're Joking Mr. Feynman Papillon Into Thin Air Born on a Blue Day Touching the Void Got Fight The Conquest of Happiness --- FICTION --- Switch Bitch Lost Horizon The Cuckoo's Egg The Simlarillion The Time Traveler's Wife The Alchemist The Count of Monte Cristo A Canticle for…
on “Ask HN: Good books?” ↗1.The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time 2.Looking for Alaska 3.Blindness 4.Touching the Void: The True Story of One Man's Miraculous Survival 5.The Martian 6.Never Let Me Go
on “Ask HN: Best books you read in the past decade?” ↗…Boardman (one of my favorite of all books, two pretty normal guys doing something absolutely epic) - Everest: The Cruel Way by Joe Tasker (maybe history's single greatest suffer-fest, incredible). - Touching The Void by Joe Simpson (I avoided reading this for such a long time, because it's something of a cliche, but it's actually great). - Seven Years in Tibet in Heinrich Harrer (It's hard to know how reliable this…
on “How Mount Everest killed George Mallory” ↗…many unknowable, uncontrollable factors that make the difference between life and death, to the extent that you play Russian Roulette with each climb, the only reward being a spectacular view. I saw Touching the Void (recommended) a few months ago and it described how on one occasion two climbers basically climbed onto a snow overhang and when it broke it was too late to do anything about it. There was no way to know…
on “Everest is littered with dead, exposed bodies” ↗I'd like to recommmend Touching the Void, an amazing mountaineering/survival story. Was also made into a movie that the author of the book seems to have favorable opinion of.
on “Mt Everest in 3D: Everest Avalanche Tragedy” ↗If you enjoyed Into Thin Air, you must also read Touching the Void.
on “How Chris McCandless Died: An Update” ↗"Touching the Void" is another great climbing/mountaineering book that is well worth the read. I have not seen the movie adaptation yet, so I cannot comment on its quality.
on “Czech climber Adam Ondra has conquered the Dawn Wall in record time” ↗…Conquest of an 8000-meter Peak many years ago I was blown away by the story which was both a huge victory in that era of mountaineering but also a personal tragedy for Herzog. This book together with Touching the Void and Eiger Dreams by Jon Krakauer are very captivating books even if you are not so much into mountaineering. However, I have later read True Summit: What Really Happened on the Legendary Ascent of Annapurna…
on “Into Thin Error: Mountaineer Ed Viesturs on Making Mistakes (2010)” ↗If you enjoyed that you've probably also read "Touching The Void". IMHO the ultimate tale of high mountain survival: http://books.google.com.au/books?id=KnRdFe5TXVkC
on “Everest is littered with dead, exposed bodies” ↗…relevant now. "Dark Shadows Falling" by Joe Simpson is another commentary on the state of mountaineering on Everest in 1997. Simpson was famously left for dead on a high altitude climb (described in "Touching The Void"), so he brings a keen insight into the morals of high-altitude climbing from the point of view of the "one that was left behind".
on “Nepal bans solo climbers from Mount Everest” ↗From my notes file about "decisions": "You've got to keep making decisions, even if they're wrong decisions. If you don't make decisions you're stuffed" - Joe Simpson, (Touching the Void) Making a good decision quickly is often better than any other option -- waiting too long may make all options worse. Make decisions based on clear goals, and attempt to record the reason for making…
on “Ask HN: What are your “brain hacks” that help you manage everyday situations?” ↗…pile up. From TFA: "These high-altitude mountains are one of the few places on the planet where there is literally no help. If you screw up and break a leg, it’s up to your partner to get you down." Touching the Void recounts an accident in which this was exactly the case. The author broke his leg on the way down at altitude, and things got (much) worse from there. Spoiler alert, he survived to write the book. Pick…
on “Into Thin Error: Mountaineer Ed Viesturs on Making Mistakes (2010)” ↗…year were both non-fiction: * Endurance: Shackleton's Incredible Voyage - If you enjoy books about persistence in the face of adversity, this has it in spades. When I was in my 20's I saw the movie "Touching the Void" and remember being in total awe at a human's ability to persevere in seemingly impossible situations. Shackleton and his crew bring this power of determination to another level. * On Writing: A Memoir…
on “Ask HN: Best books read in 2022” ↗