4 out of 4 stars
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The story begins with Mauro’s wish to be successful in sports (any sport!). After numerous failed attempts at baseball, basketball, soccer, track, swimming, tennis and football, he realizes that what he really loves is wearing a uniform. David graduates from college, marries Jenny and is soon hired by Merrill Lynch. Seven years later, he and Jenny divorce, leading Mauro to add marriage to his long list of perceived failures. He also struggles with the idea of having failed his two sons.
On his forty-fourth birthday, Mauro receives a package from his brother-in-law, Ty. He opens the cardboard tube and discovers two climbing poles with a note “Happy birthday, Super Climber”. Relieved that someone finally believes in him, Mauro accepts the Denali climbing challenge. So begins his love affair with the seven summits.
I am very impressed to learn that Mauro is one of only sixty-five Americans to climb all seven major summits. The Altitude Journals: A Seven-Year Journey From The Lowest Point In My Life To The Highest Point On Earth by David J. Mauro is his collection of the stories of these climbs. He devotes a chapter to each climb and includes what inspired him to make the climb, a log of the climb itself, what he learned from that particular journey, how he applied that lesson to his life and the personal demons that he quieted along the way.
As he narrates this story in first person, he paints a journey so vivid and powerful that I could easily imagine being on the climb along with him. The reader will see the brilliant scenery afforded with each climb, feel the bone-chilling cold (as temperatures dip life-threateningly low), taste the disabling fear in tense moments of the climb (when his throat was dry and parched from the altitude and the cold temperatures) and experience the utter exhilaration of standing on each summit beside Mauro.
Also, I love that Mauro tells his story with exquisite humor and captivating honesty. With each climb, he learns a valuable lesson that becomes a missing piece to the puzzle of his life. This lesson may be one of patience (that he links with dealing with his father’s Alzheimer’s disease), of forgiveness or of opening up to a new love. Additionally, he included enough photos to engage the reader but not become tiresome or detract from the story.
I am pleased to award 4 out of 4 stars to this amazing book. Thankfully, the author also did a thorough job of editing, which further added to the enjoyment of reading his story. I could find nothing to dislike about this book.
Mauro’s story will appeal to anyone who has ever dreamed of climbing even one of the summits. Likewise, it will appeal to armchair summit climbers (like myself). Additionally, someone struggling with a sense of failure will find this book engaging and helpful. It is difficult to imagine a group that this story would not appeal to. I highly recommend this inspiring and captivating read.
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The Altitude Journals
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