post #3 (chapter 15- the end of the book)

Jillian Maher
Esprit/Soul/Shake
3-19-14

Into Thin Air has a very dark, dull, and sad tone, climbing a treacherous mountain isn't at all fun and games. At the end of each day, surviving the climb is a victory in itself. The words suffering, concern,  and worrying were frequently used in the last third of the book and throughout the whole book. "It was a pathetic sight: we were all so debilitated that it took the group an incredibly long time just to the few hundred feet to the snow slope immediately below" (271). The diction of this section from the book is very sullen and dark. Being on a cold mountain for so long I wouldn't have the most positive and optimistic attitude all the time either. Even though all of the climbers have experience and are all qualified to do it, I can imagine it wouldn't be a very fun adventure. It seems more like a life-threatening journey you want to do because its a another challenge. None of the trekkers seem to enjoy the lack of oxygen they have once they go further and further up the mountain. Because of the tone of this book, it creates a more realistic picture of what it is like to climb such a dangerous mountain. "The next thing I knew I was sitting in the ice with my face in my hands and tears streaking down my cheeks, weeping like I had wept since I was a small boy.Safe now , the crushing strain of the preceding  days lifted from my shoulders, I cried for my lost companions, I cried because I was grateful to be alive, I cried because I felt terrible for having survived while others had died" (279). Climbing Mt.Everest if one hell of an achievement, but it's an achievement that doesn't always bring happiness with it. Knowing that your peers died while trying accomplish the same thing you want would be a little heart wrenching. They are not only just your peers, climbing a mountain like that you have to be close and like the people around you because I have learned in this book climbing Everest is not all individual, it's a team effort.

I enjoyed some parts of Into Thin Air. The book was very fascinating and I learned a lot, but at the same time it was a little bit too slow for me and at times I got bored reading this. Although I think it's a slow paced book, I also think it's worth reading. Because it's slow and there's not a lot going on all the time, it makes it even more exiting when something does happen. I also enjoying the fact that the author climbed Mt.Everest and you hear what it's actually like climbing a mountain. None of the book is sugar coated, everything is real and to the point, which I find very nice in books. I do not think a child would enjoy this book, but I do recommend high schoolers to read it.