Up: My Life's Journey to the Top of Everest by Ben Fogle

From Goodreads

My eyes lifted to the horizon and the unmistakable snowy outline of Everest.

Everest, the mountain of my childhood dreams. A mountain that has haunted me my whole life. A mountain I have seen hundreds of times in photographs and films but never in real life.

In April 2018, seasoned adventurer Ben Fogle and Olympic cycling gold medallist Victoria Pendleton, along with mountaineer Kenton Cool, took on their most exhausting challenge yet – climbing Everest for the British Red Cross to highlight the environmental challenges mountains face. It would be harrowing and exhilarating in equal measure as they walked the fine line between life and death 8,000 metres above sea level.

For Ben, the seven-week expedition into the death zone was to become the adventure of a lifetime, as well as a humbling and enlightening journey. For his wife Marina, holding the family together at home, it was an agonising wait for news. Together, they dedicated the experience to their son, Willem Fogle, stillborn at eight months.

Cradling little Willem to say goodbye, Ben and Marina made a promise to live brightly. To embrace every day. To always smile. To be positive and to inspire. And from the depths of their grief and dedication, Ben’s Everest dream was born.

Up, from here the only way was Up.

Part memoir, part thrilling adventure, Ben and Marina's account of his ascent to the roof of the world is told with their signature humour and warmth, as well as with profound compassion.


My thoughts

I gave this a 3.5 stars or 7/10.

This is a reading group read as chosen by the members of the group. This is a factual account of Ben Fogle's experience while climbing Everest and the impact that it had on him, his family and his fellow climbers including Victoria Pendleton. Mostly told from Ben's point of view, but with passages from Marina too.

I enjoyed the book and the account of the journey to the top of Everest. It's not a journey open to all of us and it takes someone with guts and determination to attempt it. With lots of planning beforehand, it's a journey that begins long before you reach Base camp and finishes long after your return.

The following is an extract that I felt was quite poignant: 'Look Up', I heard a voice in my head. The heavy, menacing clouds had started to clear. A gap had appeared through which the sun projected long tentacles of light, through which the wind-blown snow was illuminated like confetti. It was so beautiful and ethereal. I felt a sense of belonging. They say that mountains have a way of capturing our soul and spirit, that once you are within their bosom you will be forever lost within their towering snowy peaks. I felt such a deep connection. It was like a peaceful resolution, like a battle had ended in a truce. I wasn't there yet, but it felt empowering nonetheless.

My final thought: One thing that I will take away from this book, is the fact that both Ben Fogle and Victoria Pendleton felt that they had left something of themselves behind on Everest.