Tenzing: Hero of Everest A Biography of Tenzing Norgay

Washington, D.C., U.S.A.: Natl Geographic Society, 2003. Book. New. Quarter Cloth. First Edition. 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall. Washington, D.C.: National Geographic Society, 2003. First Edition, stated first printing. 8vo. Quarter cloth, 304 pp. It's an unforgettable image capturing a unique moment in human endeavor: Tenzing Norgay planting his foot on the summit of Everest, as Edmund Hillary presses the shutter. The first ascent of Everest was dazzling for both men, but for Tenzing, the climb was the culmination of a much more difficult journey. The Himalaya was a region where aristocrats and monks ruled a society untouched by time, a place where a man of Tenzing's humble birth had little hope of advancement. Enduring years of poverty and loss as he traveled the length of the range, Tenzing was determined to escape his origins and, by the end of his life, was worshipped as a god. As this biography tells Tenzing's story -- of optimism, opportunity, and determination, winning recognition as one of the strongest porters traveling in support of early Himalayan climbing expeditions -- it chronicles the transition of the Himalayan region from its age-old isolation to a place in a modern, post-colonial world. New in new dustjacket..