Lillelara

Mountain no. 6 is done and my thoughts so far are:

• Messner is a living testament to human endurance and willpower.
• The fact that he is still alive is a miracle.
• I think, when it comes to climbing a mountain, Messner is an incredibly egotistical and selfish person. Which I don´t mean as a criticism, because mountaineers, especially the professional ones, have to be that in order to achive their goals. With this book, I´m getting some fascinating insights into the psyche of a professional climber, which I´m always eager to learn about. But it makes me wonder if he really minded the public backlash and criticism as much as he tries to make me believe in his narrative.
• My favorite passages in this book are the ones in which Messner is up on a mountain and he has to face a dangerous situation. You can feel the tension in some of those passages and Messner´s almost haunted narrative style emphasises this even more. 

I have to say, though, so far it´s not my favorite book about the mountaineering world. I haven´t quite made out yet why. Maybe it´s the episodic feel of these small snippets about every mountain, maybe it´s the narrative style ... I simply don´t know.