Beyond the Mountain

A pretty difficult book to judge. On one hand the writing is far from perfect. The author goes describing one climb after another. At some point gets very dry and keeps writing the same thing with a kinda machine style. However, and that is what makes this book great, the book is a story of a person who gave everything in a pursuit to reach the elusive rock and ice mastery. Straightforwardly and without any shame he talks about him struggling with the life in the valleys, his inability to bond with people who didn't share the extreme alpine experiences with him. It all is a pabth and mostly driven by few groundbreaking moments which shaped him. The search to once again feel that magical moment of a different self. The proof of existence. ‘Meaning is born from struggle, and each of us has our own unique battles' is the phrase which in my eyes defines what this book is about.