Rising

Becoming the First North American Woman on Everest

  • 272 pages
  • Mountaineers Books
  • 978-1-68051-262-5
  • Sep 26, 2019

Hardback
$24.95
Add to cart

Mountaineers Members Discount

Log in to access the promo code and receive 20% off your order.

Description
2019 Banff Mountain Book Competition Category Finalist in Mountain Literature

On May 20, 1986, high on Mount Everest, Sharon Wood was ready to give up. Snow plumes swirled off the summit ridge and spilled down the North Face, engulfing her. A four-hundred-foot high rock wall, the crux of the Hornbein Couloir, loomed above—impossible. Then Wood’s partner, Dwayne Congdon, handed her the end of the rope and said, “your lead.” Hours later, at the far too late hour of 9:00 p.m., Wood became the first North American woman to reach the summit, and the first woman in the world to do so via the difficult West Ridge. Their ascent of the West Ridge by a new variation, without Sherpa assistance, is an accomplishment that has never been repeated.

In Rising, Wood reflects on the seventy days she spent on the mountain and on the pivotal experiences and influences that brought her to that staggeringly beautiful and austere corner of the world. Beyond the physical hardships, she faced personal challenges as an outlier in the male bastion of Himalayan climbing. These were compounded by the vexing presence of her past mentor and lover with his new girlfriend on the American team climbing on the same side of the mountain. It didn’t help that the media pitched the two women as rivals, both vying to become the first North American woman to reach the summit of the highest mountain in the world. Wood rose to all these challenges, finding camaraderie and inspiration among her teammates, particularly in the expedition cook, a strong woman whose perspectives were essential to the team’s remarkable esprit de corps, as well as with “the other woman,” her so-called American rival.

Rising is both a gripping, adrenalin-filled mountain story and a reflective memoir that reaches beyond the summit to explore a life lived in Everest’s long shadow: unexpected acclaim, outrageous expectations, and personal struggles. As Wood tells her story today, her perspective is steeped in six decades of life experience rich with adventure, change, growth, and humility. It is a tale that feels poignantly relevant—a testament to the strength of the human spirit to overcome all obstacles, whether mountain peaks, social expectations, or self-imposed barriers.

Contributors

Details
  • 272 pages
  • Mountaineers Books
  • 978-1-68051-262-5
  • Sep 26, 2019
Reviews
  • Rising is a gripping book—Wood openly shares her experience as a woman in climbing, and has a knack for writing compelling scenes that draw the reader in.
    Sarah Boon, Alpinist
  • Riveting.... [Wood] beautifully articulates the simplicity and euphoria of mountaineering that has addicted so many adventurers to the pursuit. And she captures the mythology of Everest, whose awe-inspiring capabilities, even after its commercialization in recent years, remain undiminished still.
    Cassidy Randall, Forbes
  • A simply riveting read that is a 'must' for all dedicated mountain climbing enthusiasts, ‘Rising: Becoming the First North American Woman on Everest’ is an extraordinary life story of an extraordinary woman.
    Julie Summers, Midwest Book Review
  • Wood’s writing [is] both technically descriptive and personally revealing, a mix that sets it apart.... Her memoir is a spirited, perceptive account that’s been well worth the wait.
    Irene Wanner, The Seattle Times
  • Wood’s Rising is a top-tier memoir. Her every sentence is precisely constructed, but with sureness and competence and never stiff or forced, just as her every foot and hand placement had to be on her solo climb of Tocllaraju in the Peruvian Andes via the steep, technical West Face.
    — Rocky Mountain Outlook
  • Rising is a most welcome addition to the swaths of mountain literature about Himalayan exploration and exploits on Everest. Emotional, poetic and heartfelt, Rising proves that not only is Wood skilled when summiting peaks, her words on the page shine with integrity proving she is a force to be reckoned with as she sets a new bar for literature in conveying the truth of the mountaineering world.
    Joanna Croston, Banff Mountain Film and Book Festival Director
  • Written lyrically about the harsh natural environment and with unflinching candor about personal growth, Rising illustrates how social connections and support systems--essentially relationships of all kinds--can have lingering effects and shape the path to success.
    BrocheAroe Fabian, Shelf Awareness
  • Wood strives to answer tough questions—about risk, reward, and her motivation to climb mountains—with vulnerability and integrity.... Wood’s fiercely honest prose is finest when she’s narrating interactions between herself and her teammates on the mountain.... Wood innately understands that these intimate details provide the truest account of expedition life.
    Jayme Moye, Outside
  • More than a superb, nail-biting account of her ascent of Mount Everest, Rising is Sharon Wood's deeply personal reflection on loyalty, gratitude and the unbreakable bonds formed on the mountain.
    Bernadette McDonald, award-winning author of Art of Freedom
  • Rising, by climber and guide Sharon Wood, captures a major breakthrough for women in high-stakes mountaineering. Her exploration not only of the climb itself but also of relationships, her passion for the mountains, and her own uncertainties make Rising an inspiring read for anyone pursuing their own sense of place on this lumpy planet.
    Tom Hornbein, author of Everest: The West Ridge