The Calling A Life Rocked by Mountains (Audible Audio Edition) Barry Blanchard Random House Audio Books
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With heart-pounding descriptions of avalanches and treacherous ascents, Barry Blanchard chronicles his transformation from a poor Native American/white kid from the wrong side of the tracks to one of the most respected alpinists in the world. At 13 he learned to rappel when he joined the 1292 Lord Strathcone's Horse Army Cadets. Soon kicked out for insubordination, he was already hooked on climbing and saw alpinism as a way to make his single mother proud and end his family's cycle of poverty. He describes early climbs attempted with nothing to guide him but written trail descriptions and the cajones of youth. He slowly acquired the skills, equipment and partners necessary to tackle more and more difficult climbs, farther and farther afield throughout the Canadian Rockies, into Alaska and the French Alps and on to Everest, Peru, and the challenging mountains in Pakistan. From each he learned lessons that only nature and extreme endeavor can teach. This is the story of the culture of climbing in the days of punk rock, spurred on by the rhythm of adrenaline and the arrogance of youth. It is also a portrait of the power of the mountains to lift us.
The Calling A Life Rocked by Mountains (Audible Audio Edition) Barry Blanchard Random House Audio Books
Barry Blanchard has written his autobiography and it is a great read!What make a great autobiography? Its when an author has the courage to present an "unedited version" of their life and when they do not hide from showing their foolish or incompetent pasts. The last time I have enjoyed an autobiography as much as this book is Andre Agassi's "Open" and while "Open" may be better written with a professional ghost writer, Barry Blanchard's life is just as interesting, maybe more interesting as his alpine climbs often took him to over the edge where death was a real possibility.
I especially enjoyed the accounts of Barry's early climbing career when it seemed every outing he almost killed himself. Some of the dialogue he has written about the desperate alpine climbs and his partners made me snort with uncontrollable laughter. Reading this book, I felt connected to the desperate struggle's Barry faced in his amazing alpine climbs. Thankfully, the author was not afraid to explore his emotions writing this book. Wow!
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The Calling A Life Rocked by Mountains (Audible Audio Edition) Barry Blanchard Random House Audio Books Reviews
Excellent read for my 20 year old who has found a passion in rock climbing.
Not easy to read - not my style of writing.
I've read hundreds of mountaineering books and very much enjoyed this one. Barry's style and the format of the book is different enough to be refreshing. Barry is the real deal.
I got this for my husband. He's a VERY picky reader and usually just likes "intellectual" books. But, he has a love for climbing and I thought he'd enjoy this. I am not exaggerating when I say he was CRACKING UP every single night--not just a little chuckle, but full-blown belly laughing. He loved it.
I was sincerely blown away by this book. Having read far too many mountaineering books, The Calling left me not only with a sense of Barry's struggles in the mountains, but also his struggles with life. I don't know Barry personally, but am familiar with many of his climbs and certainly some of the more publicized attempts. It seems to me as though he put aside much of the macho-ego that typically permeates the genre to give the reader a true sense of the person. And while the style may leave a sour taste in some readers mouths, I found it fun, quick and very much in the style of the climbing of his day. It's so refreshing to hear about his early naïveté in the mountains...and his drive to succeed with little more than stories and old gear. Kudos to Mr. Blanchard for the honesty and candor!
If you didn't know, Barry Blanchard is a legend, one of the best climbers around. "The Calling" is the memoir of his younger years. The book has the rough, spontaneous authenticity of the Beats, kind of Kerouac gone climbing (unlikely). It is nerve-racking at times, often funny, sometimes lyrical, and hard to put down. It reads as if it was written by a young man, which isn't the case. All the passion is there, Barry and his friends (climbing partners) are young, reckless, and almost immortal. And in fact he writes more about his friends than about himself, and appreciates their climbing abilities way more often than he mentions his own skills. Yet he is never shy to share his immense joy of climbing when it felt perfect, almost effortless, like flying, when it was a flow. Obviously extreme climbing isn't always like that, sometimes (quite often, it seems) it's more an "art of suffering". Yet "it don't gotta be fun to be fun", as one of his friends said.
Barry's book is fun to read. He wrote one of the best books in the genre, an instant classic. And a truly Canadian one, despite the altitudes being given in feet rather than in meters.
A well written account of an interesting sport that's finally gaining major attention. Blanchard gives readers a candid view into his world and adventures, regarding both the triumphs and the tragedies. But Blanchard's climbing quest is not limited to physicality and despite his love for the sport, he always searches for its deeper meaning. The book's only downside is the occasional feeling of, "I climbed this and that," but overall it's a great read with some deeper thinking.
Barry Blanchard has written his autobiography and it is a great read!
What make a great autobiography? Its when an author has the courage to present an "unedited version" of their life and when they do not hide from showing their foolish or incompetent pasts. The last time I have enjoyed an autobiography as much as this book is Andre Agassi's "Open" and while "Open" may be better written with a professional ghost writer, Barry Blanchard's life is just as interesting, maybe more interesting as his alpine climbs often took him to over the edge where death was a real possibility.
I especially enjoyed the accounts of Barry's early climbing career when it seemed every outing he almost killed himself. Some of the dialogue he has written about the desperate alpine climbs and his partners made me snort with uncontrollable laughter. Reading this book, I felt connected to the desperate struggle's Barry faced in his amazing alpine climbs. Thankfully, the author was not afraid to explore his emotions writing this book. Wow!
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