Ascent Into Hell: Mount Everest

Fergus writes so that I could feel his adventure vicariously! Riveting story. Made me wonder why so many people try this summit but his account answers the question for him anyway. He's a really good storyteller!

I was unable to put it down after reaching roughly halfway. This is a great book! Best one I have read about climbing Everest. Thank you!

Having trekked to Basecamp with my daughter this year it was wonderful to read this account of a guy who didn’t feel qualified to keep climbing beyond EBC but kept going anyway. Fergus is an approachable ambassador for the rest of us and does not pull punches about how difficult his journey was to the top of the world and how close he came to failure. It’s a great account. Well worth the read.

I have read a lot of books on outdoor adventures. This one is amazing in describing the climbing adventure both physically and emotionally. It was so good, I had hard time giving breaks. I salute Angel for his professionalism and selflessness.

Awesome book on the complexities of extreme mountaineering. 10/10 would recommend to anyone curious about daily life on an summit attempt.

What a great read. I have a fascination with why people climb Everest, what they do to accomplish it, and what they go through to achieve their goal. Fergus White narrates his story from what I consider the start of his climb, but not necessarily the beginning of his story. He details the trek from Katmandu and then every camp, every acclimatize trip, every problem, every single thing that happens on his climb. I devoured this book and wow, what I wouldn't give to chat to him in person. No, I would not ask how he went to the bathroom or if he say dead people; my questions are more like, did he feel lonely, did he feel afraid, did he feel content. Highly recommended.

I don’t really know why this book has such high praises from many. I’m not a climber, but I’ve read many other books about mountaineering (into think air- because who hasn’t? Also the “no shortcut to the top”, a very well written personal account by a true professional.)I’m not a native English speaker but I gotta say I agree with the comments that say an editor would’ve helped.I personally don’t find anything that exciting in the whole book, perhaps the highlights are the photos. At times the tone the author talks about the sherpas are really…I don’t know, unappreciative? I suggest the book “buried in the sky” for stone who actually believes that sherpas are also humans with stories. Yea sure you paid them, but you don’t really worth as much as their lives. This is the part that bothers me the most.

Some achievement. It took guts that I do not have. resilience hope and toughnance. You did it. Congratulations., slan leat

I've read the best book on climbing Everest (Into Thin Air) and since being gripped by that classic, not many climbing books have lived up to it. This one came very close. I liked the fact that the author wasn't an experienced climber and constantly reminds the reader of how grateful he is to the climbers and sherpas around him for helping him achieve his ambition. Despite the help he receives along the way, he still has to do the climbing, a massive undertaking that he does with a certain humility. The author comes across as a real 'nice guy' and I felt really happy for him when he reaches his personal goal. Having said this, I was astounded to read a few reviews of the book trying to denigrate the authors massive achievement with nonsensical macho twaddle (such as relying on the sherpas to fix the ropes, something that virtually every Everest climber relies on) almost implying that this somehow disqualifies the author from claiming he summitted Everest. Another idiotic 'review' even lapsed into blatant racism, accusing him of being 'white'! What a terrible 'crime'. Ignore the macho posturing of some of the more idiotic reviews and just enjoy what is a well written, engrossing account of one ordinary man's personal achievement.

I mostly quite enjoyed this book, as it is refreshing to read an honest account of an Everest summit that doesn't work out. However, I was shocked and extremely disappointed towards the end of the book by White's description of a mule that he was riding to come down. He states, "I am ashamed to sit on this stationary animal that's fit for the knackers yard." Well Mr White you should be ashamed of the fact that you do not care about the exploitation of these animals and that you are probably unaware of the work done by organistations such as PETA, SPANA, Animals Asia and WAP (to name a few) that rescue and attempt to rehabilitate animals that have been exposed to harsh working conditions, and have suffered external and internal injuries as a result. You also state that the owner of the animal threatened it with violence, and you are completely at home with that. If you take the time to look Mr White you will educate yourself with the slogan 'Animals are not ours.' Fergus White you chose to go up that mountain. That animal did not and the least you could do is show some respect.

I reckon over the years I've read pretty much every book on Everest....some focus on the technical side of the challenge, others on the personal experience, some even appear to be created to grind an axe over a previous expedition (1996) and can be very biased and omit some relevant facts etc.Ascent into Hell, manages to tick all the boxes you'd expect in an account of climbing the highest mountain in the world. Fergus, isn't a technically gifted climber, he hasn't completed numerous successful expeditions, he's one of us, just an every day guy who wanted the ultimate challenge.I loved the writing style and he gives an honest account from start to finish, including his own doubts about his mental and physical abilities. You really feel that you are making the journey alongside him and then when the going gets tough, are glad you are in the comfort of your armchair.It's a brilliant book, it flows perfectly and has the reader gripped by the whole Everest experience. I liked the fact that he includes the acclimatisation walk in to Base Camp and the relationships he makes with fellow climbers.I'd put this in the top 3 of Everest books and I was really at a loss when I'd finished the book and hope Fergus will attempt some new challenge and write about it, although I'm not so sure that is on the radar after this! Great work Fergus and highly recommended!

I don’t know why I read books about climbing mountains. I don’t like heights and I don’t like the cold. But I do. This is one of several I’ve read about Everest and it’s better than most because it seems more personal and lacks the politics that seem to dominate some books regarding this special mountain. It beggars questions re the ethics involved. Is this really climbing? It’s more of a tourist attraction at times. The Sherpas do the work laying ropes up to the summit, carrying the loads and oxygen of the “climbers” and basically shepherding a load of pretty fit (and wealthy) people up to the summit and back to tick another one off the “must do list”. Don’t get me wrong.....I couldn’t do it. But it made me wonder how on earth Hillary and Tsensing managed to conquer the mountain in the first place. That was Real climbing. Having got that off my chest I still enjoyed this book because it brought home the feeling of what it takes to get up to the highest point in the world.....even as a tourist.

I'd hovered over this book for a while. Something didn't look right about it. The lack of a decent cover (albeit authentic and possible a deeply personal) picture was one thing. Another was the description on the back. Before buying it and after buying it for some reason I wasn't sure if this was a Fiction book or not. And finally I couldn;t find anything really else about the author on Social Media etc. which is a little unusual in this field. So it stayed on the shelf as I tore through a dozen other Everest books before picking this one up. What I found this to be was a really detailed, genuine account without the histrionics of other books. If really want to understand the planning and preparation side of an Everest ascent, how to deal with hydration, the assaults on the body then this is a great account. Into Thin Air still ranks #1 though.