Doctor on Everest

by Kenneth Kamler

Book Overview

Leading up to the 1996 climb in which Dr. Kenneth Kamler played a crucial role aiding survivors of that disastrous ascent, Doctor on Everest is the never-before-seen portrait of how medicine is... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1558219293
• ISBN13: 9781558219298
• Release Date: January 2000
• Publisher: Lyons Press
• Length: 305 Pages
• Weight: 1.60 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.2" x 6.2" x 9.3"

Customer Reviews

excellent account as doctor on Everest....

Despite of the misleading title, I found this book to be quite engrossing and I read it compulsively from cover to cover in a single sitting. The book is different from other climbing books because it deals with medical part of the climb which is not often about making it to the summit but in saving lives. Dr. Kamler writes extremely well and this will be one book that you will read to finish. Like one reviewer before me stated, I was bit disappointed when the book ended.The misleading title refered to the fact that I thought the book was more or less about that 1996 Everest climbing season that took so many lives. That section only took up a small portion of the book. Much of the book involves his other expeditions up to Everest. While not boring reading material, like most I probably expected more on that 1996 climbing season.

House Calls at the Roof of the World

Dr. Ken Kamler is a veteran of several Everest expeditions. His book, Doctor on Everest, chronicles his foray into climbing, leading to the highest mountain on Earth and culminating in his participation in the famous 1996 rescue. Kamler allows us to see his adventures through his eyes, sharing events and inner thoughts that we normally hide behind our persona. We learn enough of his life outside climbing to identify with Kamler, and that makes his fears and emotions loom large in his writing. Wrapped in a demanding profession, he sees some of his boyhood aspirations slipping away. Kamler finds an unexpected lull in his life. Seizing the chance, he enrolls in a rock climbing course, and enters the world of climbers. Moving to mountaineering, he rearranges professional requirements to slip away to South America. On his return, rather than the disdain he thinks he'll find for his shirking his profession, he sees that others give him wistful respect; their own lives a tangle of obligations that seem to keep them pinned to the lowlands, away from the peaks of their own dreams. He finds mountaineering a social crossroads, where climbers from disparate backgrounds meet and share intense experiences. Eventually he's invited to go to Everest. While a good climber, he knows that his experience is below that of most expedition members. But he benefits from a sort of "affirmative action program for doctors." He shares with us not only his experiences, but also his inner self. Will he be able to meet medical challenges at altitudes where the body degenerates and all medical supplies came in by yak? And will he be able to climb well enough not to let down his comrades.Even before he takes us to base camp he entertains with the exotic. In Katmandu a dog seizes a piece of meat. A customer grabs it and finally wins a tug-of-war. She then returns the meat to the bucket and buys the contents, going home to cook dinner. At his hotel, truck diesel exhaust penetrating the window's gaps serves as Kamler's alarm clock. He tries to escape the fumes in the bathroom, where he finds his roommate doing sit-ups. He is immediately struck by two discordant thoughts. The first is that doing sit-ups just before trekking to base camp isn't likely to help fitness. Equally strongly, he has to stifle the fear "I should be doing sit-ups too!"Base camp is a collection of modern fabrics, alloys, and communications gear. But it is also an ironic blend of yak dung, juniper smoke from the altar, and prayer flags. The Sherpa's cultural attitudes are an interesting counterpoint to the immigrant climber's. On a later trip, longing for word from home before starting to climb, Kamler's group tells a Sherpa that they will give him a prized pair of sunglasses if he gets to the post office and back in three days - a significant challenge. He returns in time. When asked for the mail, he says the post office was closed and he couldn't wait or he'd be late. He couldn't understand why the Americans we

An Intellectual and Captivating Story

If you are searching for a new genre of literature that is informative, descriptive, witty, in-depth and factual, then "Doctor on Everest" should finally end your quest. This story is for both men and women who would be intriqued by reading about a doctor's journey on Mt. Everest and all of his interludes along the way. The author is often humorous within his style of writing and leaves no room for the reader to feel superfluous. You will be captivated with curiosity and excitement within the first few pages of his adenture and also feel compelled to continue reading onward. Dr. Kamler describes his journey so vividly in his book, that the reader is made to feel that he/she is right along the journey with him, cheering him on. His compassion towards his numerous patients on the mountain, has the reader feeling a certain amount of empathy for the doctor when he is unable to assist everyone. This is a fast reading story and Dr. Kamler does not confuse the average reader with just quoting medical terminology. It is suited for all to read and will keep the reader on his/her toes. When you finally read up to the last page of the story, you feel almost let down because it has come to and end. After reading Dr. Kamler's story, I believe that the author is an altruistic man who risked his own life to save many others. That to me, is what a true human being was put on the earth to do. There is an oath that Dr. Kamler had taken to become a physician, but it did not state anywhere that you had to risk your own life. This is the type of oath that comes from the heart.

not just another Everest book

Don't miss this one. Adventure. Exploration. Human emotion. The thrill of victory and agony of defeat. Or is it feet? (as in cold and frostbitten) Not to mention broken ankles,concussions,and pulmonary edema.As both climber and M.D.,Kamler offers it all up with unique perspectives.Kamler takes us on the literal and figurative ups and downs of mountaineering, including the tragic Everest storm of '96 when he was the solo medical person on the mountain. The buck stops with Kamler, who as expedition doctor must make ultimate decisions regarding the well-being of fellow climbers with often limited information and resources. He runs a veritable E.R. at the top of the world. So,why climb Everest? Because it's there? Judging from this book, the answer is alot more involved and intriguing. Kamler's insights and recollections really drew me in and kept me going to the last page; it's real life drama that reads like fiction. A must read for those who seek adventure, those who long to, and for those who are not quite sure (like me).

Exceptional insight

As a physician I have been active in expeditions into remote areas since the 1960's. This books is probably the best that I have ever read concerning the tribulations that one goes through as a physician and as a team member attempting to push the envelope of personal risk and responsibility for expedition members. I found this book impossible to put down. It is a great read and is a major contribution to wilderness and mountain medicine and adventure.