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Product Description
Review
'Ralston manages to keep the tension flowing throughout . . . alternating each chapter of angst-ridden, present-tense narrative with a cosier chapter of climbing nostalgia. This lends the book a Hitchcockian rhythm, see-sawing neatly between calm and tension. . . . . He is somehow able to chronicle the ebb and flow of his thoughts and feelings during his ordeal with an exactness that gives his book the emotional pull of a psychological thriller.'
Craig Brown, book of the week in the MAIL ON SUNDAY
'Ralston is a passionate man who has lived his life resolutely pursuing this passion. His fortitude in his dire predicament was, as he would say, awesome, and from this it is possible to learn much about hope in the face of overwhelming odds.'
Toby Clements, DAILY TELEGRAPH
'Heroic, searing and compelling' Benedict Allen '[This book has] the emotional pull of a psychological thriller'
MAIL ON SUNDAY
'A gripping book . . . It not only details his entrapment and escape but tells vivid tales of extreme mountaineering prior to that defining misadventure'
Joanna Walters, DAILY EXPRESS
'Ralston is superb at evoking the epic beauty of the land, and his description of his ordeal is riveting: think Touching the Void directed by Tarantino'
Sarfraz Manzoor, NEW STATESMAN
'Riveting . . . if you only read one adventure book this year, this is it'
THE GREAT OUTDOORS
'Here is one man's heroic struggle with the infinite, a searing and compelling read. Aron Ralston tells his agonizing, inspiring tale of survival with all the verve and honesty you'd expect of someone who somehow found inspiration even in the face of a lonely death.'
Benedict Allen
Product Description
THE “EXTRAORDINARY” (Booklist) #1 INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER—THE “HARROWING” (The Washington Post) SURVIVOR’S MEMOIR YOU WILL NEVER FORGET
Aron Ralston, an experienced twenty-seven-year-old outdoorsman, was on a day’s solitary hike through a remote and narrow Utah canyon when he dislodged an eight-hundred- pound boulder that crushed his right hand and wrist against the canyon wall. Emerging from the searing pain, Aron found himself completely stuck. No one knew where he was; no one was coming to rescue him. With scant water and food, and a cheap pocketknife his only tool, he eliminated his options one by one. On the fifth night, wracked by delirium and uncontrollable shivers, Aron scratched his epitaph into the rock wall, certain he would not see daylight.
Yet with the new morning came an epiphany: if he could use the rock’s vise-like hold to break his arm bones, his blunted pocketknife could serve as a surgeon’s blade. . . .
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
3.9 out of 5 stars (39 customer reviews)
42 of 45 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
one of the best books i've read., Dec 17 2010
By nurse nicole - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: 127 Hours: Between a Rock & a Hard Place (Mass Market Paperback)
I'm not sure who these reviewers are who have such pity for Aron Ralston, or who think he's a "dumbf--k" for his risk-taking, or who think he hasnt learned something of crucial importance from his experience at Blue John Canyon. Either they missed the point of this incredible story, or I did. Given how deeply this book touched me, I'd say it's a safe bet that it wasnt me that missed the point.The story of his saga in the canyon is retold in this book in often excruciating detail, to the point where I sometimes found my hands clenching, my heart pounding, my eyes welling with tears as he reminisced, hallucinated, struggled with things that seem to me the very core of being human - in particular, discovering a greater appreciation for the people we love.
I would recommend this book to all but maybe the most squeamish of individuals, and even then I would suggest sucking it up and reading it anyway. This story is inspiring in so many ways. Totally worth reading.
Aron, if you're reading these reviews....thank you. Your suffering was not in vain, my friend. And i thank you for sharing it with all of us.
9 of 9 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars
On the one hand, a metaphor...., Jan 12 2011
By Alice "My name is Alice and I'm an Audible-ho... - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: 127 Hours: Between a Rock & a Hard Place (Mass Market Paperback)
Aron Ralston's boulder, a chockstone on which he steps recklessly then carefully tries to dismount, is his metaphor. Ralston, a 27-year-old adrenaline-fueled philosopher was living zenfully, tripping across canyons, floating up mountainsides, and approaching his thirties with the aggression of an alpha wolf. Impressive in his knowledge and skill, he approached that boulder, knowing what the dangers of a loose chockstone were, yet not giving it the proper respect it deserves. He regarded as an obstacle over which he might step over, as he had in the past, forgetting his past narrow escapes.When, on page 23, we read about the falling boulder and the trapped hand, the question comes to mind, what's to follow on the remaining 319 pages? A slow-motion account follows, of the rock loosening and tumbling between the crevice walls, and Ralston's moment-by-moment, instinct-by-instinct reaction. Time stands still, all is suspended. This is the space between Ralston's two lives, one before and one after the boulder.
What follows is an incredibly detailed and honest account of Ralston's thought process over the next 127 hours. He grasps at thoughts in his mental terrain--nostalgic, logical, meditative, desperate, regretful and torturous. Ralston has failed to leave an itinerary of his hiking trip with anyone, as he always has. He surveys and analyzes the tools in his backpack: an inexpensive multi-purpose tool, a Nalgene bottle, ropes, webbing, two frozen burritos, and various other pieces of equipment. With a video camera he has carried into the canyon, he films the key images of his circumstances, and turns the camera onto himself to record messages to his family and friends. He comes to regard the boulder as his trap, and his arm as the thing he would like to let go of, but his tools don't suffice. Only when he realizes his arm is gangrenous does he change his view of the situation. The arm becomes the trap and the boulder, the tool.
The story is structured in order of his thoughts, not in order of events. In this style of writing, Ralston is stylistically effective, as the time and place he occupies is stationary, and his past and future moments project themselves randomly on the canyon walls. His references to musical artists Phish and the String Cheese Incident are consistent with his improvisational writing and lifestyle. He does fill in some blanks with the accounts of his family, friends and co-workers, who gradually register that Aron is missing, and the various law enforcement and rescue units narrow in on his whereabouts.
Ralston portrays himself at times as arrogant, other times as humble. The soul-searching that occurs doesn't end when he is free of his arm, thirst, hunger and helplessness. He poignantly recalls the difficulty adjusting to his amputation, and describes his self-pity and a sense of overwhelming responsibility to respond as a hero to those who name him as such.
7 of 7 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars
Sharing in Aron's great journey..!!, Jan 15 2011
By Hisham Sabha - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: 127 Hours: Between a Rock & a Hard Place (Mass Market Paperback)
"Our purpose as spiritual beings is to follow our bliss, seek our passion and live our lives as inspirations to each other". This quote from Aron Ralston captures the essence of this book. I have also gleaned from the story a universal inspiring message. His entrapment is symbolic of all the things that hold us down in life and from living it. Aron Ralston embodies the saying "it is not how many breaths we take, it is the moments that take our breath away". He followed his passion without any hesitation or fear, all the way to that big boulder that imprisoned him for a week. There is no regret either in the after-survival about the decisions he has made. It forces you to think about what have you given up? And how far will you go to pursue your passions. Surprisingly, it is also well written by this guy who is not a writer; So much heart and mind. I could not put it down, except for the few times where I had to get up and get a tissue!! There is a lot of introspection during the week he looked death in the face. This book is not self help, It is not Fankel's"Man's Search for Meaning", but certainly has a hint reminiscent that message of the strength and beauty of the human spirit. I totally recommend it to any person who needs a little nudge to sway one big boulder away..!!. His love of the outdoors and nature if does not resonate with you to go out and hike the Appalachian mountains, will at least force you to take hike in your backyard, enjoy a breath of fresh air and take your kids exploring. They too might appreciate the beauty that envelopes our life that we might be too busy to observe it. And keep in mind Walter Bonatti's " Mountains are the means, but man in the end. The goal is not to reach the tops of mountains, but to improve the man"...Enjoy..
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