The very beginning of True Summit started as most of the mountaineering books do, with an account of an ascent, the history of high-altitude mountaineering and the countries involved in first ascents. As the book started to progress, I felt that my perception of Herzog and the self-described euphoric and pure experience on his Annapurna expedition became less of the focal point and his behavior coming into question; his accomplishments became less and less admirable as accounts such as the editing of Notebooks of the Vertiginous were uncovered.

The writer writes about a form of heroism on the Annapurna expedition, but it was far different than Herzog’s account and it wasn’t a heroism that Herzog possessed. I think that the heroism the writer speaks of was something that the other mountaineers on the expedition such as Lachenal, Terray and Rebuffat possessed because they had to deal with the egocentric approach that Herzog had conducted while leading the ascent and descent. It’d be extremely hard to be put into a life and death situation, your body is dying, and your leader is on a power trip; they definitely showed heroism, patience, determination and perseverance in a time when most would crumble when looking death in the eye.

I did find it enjoyable that I finally learned the process of becoming an expedition leader, as it was discussed in class that at times, experience was trumped by the ability to take on a commanding leadership role; I found myself wondering if expeditions may have been more successful had they taken experience more so into account than a commanding personality. However, as a history major, I took into account the time period of this expedition (post WWII) and it made sense regarding the selection process and what was deemed a quailed “leader.” The whole “less-experienced” climber implied approach to mountaineering was also shocking because that was clearly not the case with Herzog. He thought of himself and his bid at a successful ascent as most important, rather than the most skilled and able to reach the summit, something that wasn’t expressed in the Annapurna book.

This book allowed the differing perspectives and experiences of the Annapurna expedition mountaineers to finally allow their voices to be heard. I had already had a somewhat negative perspective on Herzog due to the oaths and five year contracts that each climber was required to sign, but upon reading this book, it’s an indefinite negative opinion. He was just very narcissistic in my opinion and rather than think of the “brotherhood” or well-being of the group, it appeared to me that his approach was, “well, if we all make it cool, but if it’s just me, that’s alright, too.” He very much embodied the whole general ideology of a mountaineering leader within this time frame, maybe a little too much.

Herzog wrote in the final page of his book that “there are other Annapurnas in the lives of men” and after reading this book, the way I interpret that is different. There may be different and many  Annapurnas in a man’s life, but the experiences and how they are told depends entirely on who gives the final say on how it is delivered to the public.