AFTER TRAVELING OCEANS, CONTINENTS, MOUNTAINS, VALLEYS,
RIVERS AND SUCH, OUR INTREPIDS SUFFER LASSITUDES OF
EVERY MAGNITUDE AND OVERCOMING ALL, CELEBRATING EVERY
VICTORY IN GRAND STYLE, COME HOME WITHOUT A SINGLE
PHOTOGRAPH? VIVE'RUM DOODLE. BEWARE LEST YOU FALL OUT
OF YOUR FAVORITE READING CHAISE LOUNGE.
HAIL, RUM DOODLE! ALAS NO SINGLE HARDBACK IS TO BE
FOUND...THOSE TO WHOM I LOANED IT HAVE PASSED ON AND
HEIRS FAIL TO RECOGNIZE ITS VALUE. AS TO THE TITLE OF
THIS REVIEW, YOU WILL FIND THE LINE IN THE TEXT...
DON'T MISS THIS BOOK...AT ANY PRICE.

THE FISH...WELL, I ADMIT...I NEVER READ IT. TOO
EXHAUSED FROM, 'THE ASCENT...'

Mount Everest is a mere planetary pimple compared to Rum Doodle, the fictional 40,000 1/2 foot mountain in "The Ascent of Rum Doodle," a hilarious spoof of mountain climbing expeditions. Perhaps the reason why Rum Doodle was not previously conquered was "because it is there"--way out "there"--in the remote Central Asian Kingdom of Yogistan. The Yogistani language alone crippled many expeditions. The language, a branch of the aneroid-megalithic tongue, contains no verbs and is spoken entirely through the stomach. Over 95% of Yogistanis understandably suffer from gastritis. Altitude deafness often compounds the problem. The ascent begins inauspiciously enough with two great circles until Jungle, the route-finder, releases the safety catch on his compass. Risibility rises with altitude as the intrepid six Rum Doodle dandies and their 3,000 porters overcome one embarrassment after another in their quest for mountaineering immortality. No praise is too high for the men who could go no higher. Or could they have? Why are there no photographs at the top? What about the Atrocious Snowman? And then there's the question inquiring minds most want to know: "Can I see my house from there?" Read this book at your own risk--of laughing aloud! But "The Cruise of the Talking Fish" was a mediocre book at best.

TO ALL THOSE LOOKING FOR COPIES OF THIS MASTERPIECE!....I had the distinct opportunity to read all 40,000 1/2 feet of the book while in Nepal at THE Rum Doodle Restaurant! We'll be heading back in the near future and can likely get more copies. Space in my pack is very limited but I may be able to slip in an extra copy or two...let me know if you'd like one.

Richard has access to places most people do not. Take, for example, His Holiness the Dalai Lama. His Holiness is not accessable to you and I on the level that Richard has. Richard shares private photos, such as plate 63 where His Holiness is in meditation. The photo alone portrays a depth of intensity that the experience offers. Richard also has a true sense of the tragedy of the Tibetan people and can deliver that in a light that few people can ever grasp, even after several trips to the region. Richard is the Pilgrim and we are fortunate to be able to see things in a way he does. Very few photographers can say that of their work. Perhaps it is due to his experience in film, perhaps as a result of his practice as a buddhist, maybe just because the openness of his sharing is felt in his work, regardless of the medium. Thank you my friend for sharing your life with us and a wonderful book.

This is a fantastic book! The photographs stir a number of emotions in you. Only a true artist like Mr. Gere could convey these feelings and capture them in his shutter. The book also features excellent text and was a very nice present. I think everyone should peek at this book. A great book for religious souls and open minds.

This book was exactly what I expected from such a sensitive and intelligent man. Thank you, Mr. Gere. We need our hearts broken now and then.

Larry Swan was a born naturalist, an original thinker, and an inspiring teacher. He was also a fascinating character and a raconteur of the first order. When I was an undergraduate in the 1960s, his courses at San Francisco State College were legendary. His lectures were like savory curries. He served up meaty ideas in a rich masala of entertaining and sometimes bawdy stories. "Tales of the Himalaya" is a collection of Swan's adventures and the discoveries and ideas that emanated from them. The chapters stand by themselves. There are chapters on debunking the yeti, his discovery of the Aeolian Biome, a theory of high altitude bird migration, an amusing exploration of leeches and lice, and a wonderful chapter about his beloved Sherpas. (All who took his course in Zoogeography ended up loving Sherpas.) And there is much more. Like Doc Ricketts of Cannery Row, Larry Swan was the kind of person who turned John Steinbeck on to biologists, and made his students want to climb mountains. This is a book about science, exploration and travel, imbued with an infectious personality. If you have ever looked up at a lofty range of mountains and wondered, then this is a book worth reading.

I am currently a Peace Corps Volunteer serving in the Northwestern corner of Bangladesh. Although my job keeps me busy I still seem to have large amounts of free time for reading. As there are not many outlets for books in English where we are, my fellow PCV's and I have learned to read almost anything. In a rare and exciting care package from home, my father sent me this fantastic book. Dr.Swan's adventures are so full of excitment and humor that you wish they were your own. They can compel even the most diehard homebody to think of packing a bag and heading to the mountians. Dr.Swan writes of the Himalaya and it's people with respect and admiration that could only come from someone who knew and loved them well. I highly recommend this book for anyone looking for a little adventure or some very truthful information. As soon as i finished it I sent it off to a friend in the neighboring town. I have yet to see it show up back at the Peace Corps library, which means it is still floating around somewhere amongst the PCV's of Bangladesh.

I am one of the lucky ones who actually knew Prof. Larry Swan, the author of this remarkable book, and I was privileged to have heard all of these stories recounted by the man himself in the classroom and at his home. Although I miss his voice and grand gestures, I am delighted to report that the stories in his book, from his boyhood in Darjeeling, to high altitude spiders, Yetis and the great Indian monsoon, are as engrossing on the printed page as they were to hear! Professor Swan was a remarkable biologist, a master teacher and a creative, gifted man who lived a full and amazing life. This excellent volume of his adventures and thoughts is a reminder to us that great lives can be led, and great mentors can be found. It is a must for all inquiring minds and adventurous spirits!!

"Thin air" is one of the greatest books I every read. It's full of compelling, offbeat tales about alpine style climbing of Himalayan Mountains. Greg Child is an amazing writer and an even more amazing climber. K2 and Board Peak alpine style, bagging unclimbed routes, tents on fire; all make for interesting stories way up high. I recommend this book to anyone but especially climbers.

This is a superb set of essays which describes the transfiguration of a gifted technical rock climber into a high- altitude mountaineer. In addition, it is a well-written, absorbing chronicle of high adventure in one of the most spectacular regions on earth (replete with dozens of stunning photographs).

For me, the chapters on Broad Peak in the Karakoram were the highlight of this collection . Child describes the geography, people and culture of Pakistan as well as the logistics of the expedition with such clarity and force that it is not hard to begin imagining you are there with him before too long.

But it is his deep respect for all the people he encounters and climbs with that makes this narrative so rich and special. In this regard readers will be moved indeed when Child looses his friend and climbing partner Peter Thexton to pulmonary edema after turning back from the summit on Broad Peak (without getting quite to the top). This tragedy is related with such pathos and power. And it makes Child reconsider the entire enterprise to which he has devoted his life, a process that one rarely reads about in the writings of high altitude mountaineers who so often maintain a stoic attitude reflexively. One's life, Child ultimately decides, takes precedence over the conquest of 8,000 meter peaks; no matter how compelling and significant such a goal may seem.

One of the best books I have ever read or given to family/friends (I have bought 10+ copies since it was first published...too bad the original hard copy version is no longer available...mine is now in rough shape). My favorite climbing book of all time. Inspired. Be humbled with Child, then grab your gear... After this read, 'Deborah & Mountain of my Fear'.

It's a shame this book was published by a university press that gave it such a dull academic-sounding title. The story you'll find within its pages is a wonderful eye-opening memoir that takes you deep into daily life in a tiny village in Nepal back in the 1970s--when the traditional way of life had not yet succumbed to the forces of globalization.

The author does what the best authors of memoirs do--she allows herself to become almost a transparent vehicle for you, the reader. You experience at a strange and exotic world peering through her eyes and reading her vivid descriptions. She keeps her analysis to a minimum but shows you enough that you can draw your own conclusions.

When I was done reading this book, the people she had described seemed so real to me it was hard to believe I hadn't met them myself.

Honest, authentic, and completely without the pretentious literary tone that ruins so many current memoirs. A great book!

If you have been to Nepal, were a Peace Corps Volunteer, or lived in another culture, you will love this book. The people in this Nepali village came alive for me, and the writer was honest about the pleasure and the pain of living in another culture.

'Love and Honor in the Himalayas' will appeal to anyone who has ever desired to travel to distant lands and lose (or find) him- or herself in the invigorating freshness of new experiences, cultures, and friendships. Living as the daughter of a Gurung family in a remote Himalayan village in Nepal, McHugh experiences the incredible richness and immediacy of everyday high mountain life. Hers is a perspective unimagined by the casual tourist, and through her wonderfully rendered observations, we are challenged to look beyond our own comfortable Western lives at a culture that deserves our respect and admiration.

Must read.

Experience the flow of energy, as soon as I undestand the False as stated in the book, from the crown chakra to the coxalgie.
(A book you may have to read over & over& over.........again.)

Understanding the False is the Key. Once the False is understood, the Creator & You are One is a Reality for you, In you, fully Expereince by you, just like what the book said.

Read on about the False....... a must Know for All Seekers.

If you are a seeker in spiritual awareness, then this book, as well as other books by MacDonald-Bayne (The Yoga of the Christ, etc.), is a must read.

The photos in this book are simply extraordinary. The composition of each shot is lyrically beautiful. The images of great masters are radiant and inspiring. The quality of the reproductions is wonderful and unusual (I think) in a book at this price. Anyone with a love of
Tibetan Buddhism should surely have this book. (By the way, I bought this in a bookstore and paid about twenty dollars more)

This book has the most beautiful photographs of the Himalayas that I've ever seen. The photographers captured the essence of this region in perfect, minute detail. Interspersed between the photos are articles written by prominent buddhist lamas and scholars, including HH the Dalai Lama. It demands its own book stand and place for display in your home. The book is very large. The photos are borderless and some span both pages. This is truly something to have to pass down in your family. For lovers of Buddhist thought and for those who just appreciate great photography.

wonderful simple poems of such incredible elegance. softer than his later poems, he is as likely to speak of the southwestern desert as of kashmir. his poems are like water, a necessity. i am really glad i searched this little volume of poems out, his ability to say so much in so few words always impresses me.

I cannot forget the feel of these poems; they have taken on a life of their own in my mind. What a beautiful, empathy-filled voice! Ali renders in elegant, modest verse the complexities and, strangely, the beauty of an exilic, postcolonial existence. An arrow through the heart of modern cosmopolitanism.

Very simply, I would recommend this book to anyone interested in adventure travel. I picked it up and didn't stop reading until I'd finished the last page.

The next day I read it again.

Brilliant

This book is a must for anyone who likes exciting travel literature. Two cousins decide to undertake a cycling journey to the "Centre of the Earth" - the furthest place on the earth from the sea, which happens to be in a remote part of Western China. Starting at the coast in Bangladesh, they go on a journey which carries them across the Himalayas into China, experiencing almost every kind of weather imaginable. The journey is made even more incredible by the fact that they travel with no support, carrying all their gear. My favourite travel literature book - nothing I've read in the 8 years since I first picked it up gives the same sense of adventure . Mark Ness