{"product_id":"9781911342496","title":"The Magician's Glass: Character and fate: eight essays on climbing and the mountain life","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003cb\u003e‘How much risk is worth taking for so beautiful a prize?’\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe Magician’s Glass\u003c\/i\u003e by award-winning writer \u003cb\u003eEd Douglas\u003c\/b\u003e is a collection of eight recent essays on some of the biggest stories and best-known personalities in the world of climbing.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn the title essay, he writes about failure on \u003cb\u003eAnnapurna III\u003c\/b\u003e in 1981, one of the boldest attempts in Himalayan mountaineering on one of the most beautiful lines  – a line that remains unclimbed to this day.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eDouglas writes about bitter controversies, like that surrounding \u003cb\u003eUeli Steck\u003c\/b\u003e’s disputed solo ascent of of the south face of Annapurna, the fate of \u003cb\u003eToni Egger\u003c\/b\u003e on \u003cb\u003eCerro Torre\u003c\/b\u003e in 1959 – when \u003cb\u003eCesare Maestri\u003c\/b\u003e claimed the pair had made the first ascent, and the rise and fall of Slovenian ace \u003cb\u003eTomaz Humar\u003c\/b\u003e. There are profiles of two stars of the 1980s: the much-loved German \u003cb\u003eKurt Albert\u003c\/b\u003e, the father of the ‘redpoint’, and the enigmatic rock star \u003cb\u003ePatrick Edlinger\u003c\/b\u003e, a national hero in his native France who lost his way.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn Crazy Wisdom, Douglas offers fresh perspectives on the impact mountaineering has on local communities and the role climbers play in the developing world. The final essay explores the relationship between art and alpinism as a way of understanding why it is that people climb mountains.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Vertebrate Publishing","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47164100509936,"sku":"9781911342496","price":18.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0737\/7593\/9824\/files\/9781911342496_p0.jpg?v=1763630845","url":"https:\/\/shop-qa.barnesandnoble.com\/products\/9781911342496","provider":"Barnes \u0026 Noble (DEV)","version":"1.0","type":"link"}