Product Description

In the 1960s, an American named John Harlin II changed the face of Alpine climbing. Harlin successfully summitted some of the most treacherous mountains in Europe. But it was the North Face of the Eiger that became Harlin's obsession. John Harlin III was nine years old when his father put together a terrific team for an ill-fated direct ascent of the notorious Eiger. When Harlin's rope broke, 2,000 feet from the summit, he plummeted 4,000 feet to his death. In the shadow of tragedy, young John Harlin III came of age possessed with the very same passion for risk that drove his father. For years, he successfully denied the siren call of the mountain that killed his father. But in 2005, John Harlin could resist no longer. With his daughter, Siena - his very age at the time of his father's death - and with an IMAX Theatre filmmaking crew watching, he set off towards the Eiger. This is an unforgettable story about fathers and sons, climbers and mountains, and dreamers who dare to challenge the earth.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #149641 in Books
• Published on: 2009-06-04
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 304 pages

Sunday Times
`Gripping... Harlin elegantly combines a frank biography of his frequently absent parent, with a vivid memoir of his own childhood.'

Booklist
`A tribute to a legendary climber and a celebration of a very personal triumph, this book will captivate the imagination of anyone who reads it.'

From the Inside Flap
In the 1960s an American named John Harlin II changed the face of Alpine climbing. Gutsy and gorgeous – he was known as 'the blond god' – Harlin successfully summitted some of the most treacherous mountains in Europe. But it was the North Face of the Eiger that became Harlin's obsession. Living with his wife and two children in Leysin, Switzerland, he spent countless hours planning to climb, waiting to climb, and attempting to climb the massive vertical face. It was the Eiger direct – the direttissima – with which John Harlin was particularly obsessed. He wanted to be the first to complete it, and everyone in the Alpine world knew it.

John Harlin III was nine years old when his father made another attempt on a direct ascent of the notorious Eiger. Harlin had put together a terrific team and, despite unending storms, he was poised for the summit dash. It was the moment he had long waited for. When Harlin's rope broke, 2,000 feet from the summit, he plummeted 4,000 feet to his death. In the shadow of tragedy, young John Harlin III came of age possessed with the very same passion for risk that drove his father. But he had also promised his mother, a beautiful and brilliant young widow, that he would not be an Alpine climber.

Harlin moved from Europe to America, and, with an insatiable sense of wanderlust, he revelled in downhill skiing and rock-climbing. For years he successfully denied the siren call of the mountain that killed his father. But in 2005, John Harlin could resist no longer. With his nine-year-old daughter, Siena – his very age at the time of his father's death – and with an IMAX Theatre filmmaking crew watching, Harlin set off towards the Eiger. This is an unforgettable story about fathers and sons, climbers and mountains, and dreamers who dare to challenge the earth.

Customer Reviews

A personal take on parenthood and the Wall of Death
John Harlin III reminds us of the story of his charismatic father - who fell 4000 feet to his death in the 1960's when his rope broke during an attempt to climb "The Ogre" North Wall. He is good telling the details of his family life and how is father was a brilliant man - but whose ambitions ultimately led to a grief-stricken family. He is better still when he becomes lyrical about his own climbing experiences in the high mountains of the Alps and North America, and particularly when he makes his own climb of the Norwand. His asides about the lights twinking below in Grindlewald and the stars glittering above - and then the moment he passes from shadow into sunlight as he nears the summit of his father's nemesis, are very moving.
This is a book for every lover of mountains - and for every boy who ever loved his father. It is not in the same league as "The White Spider" -Heinrich Harrer's classic account of the first successful ascent of the North Face - but it is more personal and very rewarding.

a biographical investigation into the life of the famous American mountaineer and the impacts that his chosen life path had
The Eiger Obsession is a biographical investigation into the life of the famous American mountaineer; John `The Blonde God' Harlin II and the impacts that his chosen life-path of mountaineering (which ultimately led to his death on the North face of the Eiger in March 1966) had on him, his friends and his family. Written by his son, John Harlin III who himself is an accomplished mountaineer and writer, this award winning book is no ordinary biography.


Split into two halves, the first documents the life, times and exploits of John Harlin, who amongst other things was a US Air Force pilot, loving husband and father who was adored by his wife and children. This sections of the book is given gravitas and genuine insights through observations taken from numerous interviews with John Harlin's friends, family, climbing partners and colleagues as well John Harlin's III unique perspective as his son. But what really brings this section of the biography to life is the vivid recounts of some of John Harlin II's significant climbs.

The second half is much more personal, even over-personal at times, and explores the profound legacy that John Harlin had on his family. This is primarily achieved through an autobiography of the author: John Harlin III. While the first half of the book is filled with the focused, strident idealism, and the great, almost mythological exploits of The Blonde God, the second half is filled with his son's deep, introspective thoughts regarding mountaineering, and life and also documents his achievements, which always seem to be overshadowed by the exploits of his father. Whilst autobiographical in nature, its less focused and the introspection isn't always of the carefull kind advised by John Harlin II.

The Eiger Obsession is thus most certainly a book of contrasts, but what shines throughout is the sheer quality of the writing and the love that John Harlin III has for the mountains and his Father.