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One Man’s Everest
One Man’s Everest
Nov 6, 2024 7:42 AM

Author:Kenton Cool

One Man’s Everest

Kenton Cool is the finest alpine climber of this generation. His accomplishments are staggering. He has summited Everest twelve times. He is the first person in history to climb the three Everest peaks, the so-called Triple Crown, in one climb, a feat previously thought impossible. He was nominated for the prestigious piolet d'Or in 2004 for climbing a previously unclimbed route on Annapurna III. In 2012 he fulfilled the Olympic Games pledge of placing a 1924 gold medal on the Everest summit. He is the only Briton to have skied down two 8000-metre mountains, and in 2009 he guided Sir Ranulph Fiennes to the summit of Everest, helping to raise over £3 million for Marie Curie Cancer Care.

His accomplishments are all the more extraordinary considering an incident in the summer of 1996 which tore Kenton's world apart. Whilst climbing in Wales, he broke a handhold on a route aptly called 'Major Headstress' and fell to the ground with such force that he shattered both his heel bones. Initially told he would never walk unaided again, Kenton spent four weeks in hospital, had three operations, three and a half months in a wheelchair and months of rehab. Today he is still in pain and after a long day in the mountains it's not uncommon to see him struggling to walk or moving around on his hands and knees. Yet he still climbs.

'Why do you do it?' people ask him. This book tells why.

Reviews

One of Britain's finest mountaineers, One Man’s Everest is Kenton Cool at his best: honest and true, enthusiastic and exuberant. He brings these marvellous mountaineering stories to life as he does in his captivating lectures.

—— Doug Scott

Eleven times on the Everest summit. Kenton Cool is without doubt the most formidable mountaineer of his generation.

—— Sir Ranulph Fiennes

I have seen a compassionate and gentle side to Kenton that others with equal drive and commitment don’t have. His record in the world’s mighty mountains is remarkable. I hope he is admired as much for the man he is, as his achievements.

—— His Royal Highness Prince Jigyel Ugyen Wangchuck, First Crown Prince of Bhutan

I’ve watched Kenton’s development over the last decade into one of the world’s pre-eminent climbers. The time he has spent at 8000m is almost unparalleled, and his ability to succeed in the Death Zone where others fail stands testament to his ability as a mountaineer as well as his personal drive and ambition.

—— Sir Chris Bonington

One Man’s Everest is told with great honesty. It is a tale of immense enthusiasm and remarkable determination. The writing makes you feel as if you are eating your way through a stick of Blackpool rock – every page has Kenton Cool written right through it.

—— Climber Magazine

Kenton Cool, king of Everest

—— The Telegraph

Revelatory ... Unflinchingly charts his personal evolution ... He is not at all easy on himself

—— Keith Duggan , Irish Times

It is pure O'Connell ... Players and coaches from all sports will have the pencil out, finding nuggets

—— Kieran Shannon , Irish Examiner

Absorbing and compelling ... The O'Connell who dominates this book is the one who becomes fixated on the mentality of champions

—— Diarmaid Ferriter , Irish Times

O'Connell has emptied the tank here. ... What has come out ... is a psychological profile that is almost shocking at times in what it reveals about the bloody single-mindedness of the competitive gene

—— Irish Independent

A fantastic book

—— Sean O'Rourke , RTE Radio One

He is a standard-bearer for the country and someone whose principles, moral compass, ideals and heroic virtue make us wish our children would aspire to be someone like him

—— Neil Francis , Sunday Independent

An exceptional book ... tremendously honest

—— Matt Cooper , Today FM

Engaging, honest and insightful. Terrific

—— Ryle Nugent

Honest, fair and devoid of self-pity ... reflects on his life without a shred of hypocrisy or recrimination

—— Paul Rees , Observer

A stunning achievement

—— Irish Mail on Sunday

p.p1 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 15.0px Calibri; -webkit-text-stroke: #000000} span.s1 {font-kerning: none} Provides many revealing insights into the mind of a born winner

—— Sunday Business Post

Brilliant, bruising

—— Donal Ryan , Sunday Independent

This is so much more than the story of their journey – it’s a superbly written, endlessly fascinating book encompassing history, geology, landscape, family memories, wars experienced and lives well lived.

—— Choice Magazine

One of the most unexpected and enjoyable reads of 2016… The book fizzes erudition and is delightfully leavened by the companionship of his aged and doughty father.

—— Guardian, Readers' Book of the Year

A very funny book - not jovial in the post-Wodehouse Boris mode but something more taught and Caledonian... The politician in Stewart never had a chance against the writer, a reliable adversary of consensus and cant.

—— Minoo Dinshaw , Oldie

Beautiful, evocative, and wise.

—— Malcolm Forbes , Star Tribune

The Marches is a transporting work from a powerful and original writer.

—— Harvard Press

This beautifully written account is a moving memoir of tales from along the route but also reflections on life and relationships – father and son on this their last journey together.

—— Prospect

Rory Stewart is one of the most talented men of our era. The Marches takes us from Rory’s constituency to his family house is an attempt to understand the bloody history of the Scottish borders… The quest is fascinating even if the answers are elusive.

—— Bruce Anderson , Spectator

As the book unfurls, the march along the marches turns into a eulogy to his father, part memoir, part biography, always a love story. It also contains one of the most unflinching, moving descriptions of death I have read.

—— Melanie Reid , The Times

This beautifully written book is a haunting reflection of identity and our relationships with the people and places we love.

—— Jane Shilling , Daily Mail

Stewart provides much food for thought about how we value our past history

—— Susannah Law , Scottish Field
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