sherpas

Standing just 1.65m tall and weighing 82kg, nobody would ever have suspected Babu Chiri of being an athlete if he walked into a bar. But in 1998, he was one of the top three in the world at his specialist event of climbing Everest.

There have been many books about Sherpa mountaineers over the years, but few have been written from the perspective of Sherpas themselves. One that comes close is Sherpa by Pradeep Bashyal and Ankit Babu Adhikari, which I read recently.

In the last 35 years, Everest has entered a new era. Since 1992, the majority of Everest ascents have been made by clients and staff of commercial operators. Now, thanks to journalist Will Cockrell, this unique period has the history it deserves.

I’m happy to say that the next instalment of my diaries, The Everest Politics Show, is now available on Audible, Amazon and Apple Books, and will be available on other outlets such as Spotify very soon.

I’ve lost count of the expedition accounts where the hardest route to the top is the only one worth considering, or where stronger climbers are cast as heroes and weaker ones clowns. All of these accounts were written by men, so it’s always refreshing to read a woman’s perspective.

Himalayan travel writing is peppered with stories of yeti sightings or yeti footprints. But if yetis still exist why hasn’t someone filmed one by now? I may have stumbled upon the answer in a long-forgotten work of Himalayan travel writing.

A few months ago someone recommended to me a lesser known volume in the Everest canon, written by Sherry B Ortner, an American anthropologist who spent over 30 years studying Sherpa culture, including fieldwork in the Solu-Khumbu region of Nepal.

I have recently completed narrating my latest book Sherpa Hospitality as a Cure for Frostbite, and it’s now available as an audiobook on a number of platforms, including Amazon, Audible, iTunes, Nook, Scribd, Libro.fm, Audiobooks.com and many more.

With Nirmal Purja’s book and film riding high, the profile of Nepali mountaineers is at an all-time high. But where do you go if you want to find out more? Here are seven insightful and entertaining books that have Sherpas at their heart.

Yes, that’s right I’ve made the ebook version of my new book Sherpa Hospitality as a Cure for Frostbite available for less than a pound/dollar/euro on all the main online bookstores. This offer will only be available for a few days, so hurry and panic buy it!

A night on top of the world: the legend of Babu Chiri Sherpa

12 inspiring stories about the lives of Sherpa mountaineers

A long-awaited history of Everest in the commercial era

My latest audiobook: The Everest Politics Show — an eyewitness account of the 2014 Everest tragedy

The most shocking first page in mountaineering literature

Why don’t we see yetis anymore? I may have found the answer

Life and Death on Mt Everest: a rare window into Sherpa culture

Sherpa Hospitality now available as an audiobook

7 great books with Sherpa mountaineers at their heart

Special offer: Sherpa Hospitality at a super low price