Review by NadiaJ -- The Altitude Journals by David J Mauro
Posted: 04 Aug 2018, 04:39
[Following is a volunteer review of "The Altitude Journals" by David J Mauro.]
4 out of 4 stars
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THE ALTITUDE JOURNALS is a book authored by David J. Mauro, telling of his great 7-year adventurous journey across seven continents and in his personal life too. It is an amazing story of a man facing a midlife crisis, overcoming it, to accomplishing major milestones such as climbing the summit of Mount Everest. And to think in his early life, he was just a chubby and an unathletic sort of kid.
At the lowest point of his life, after facing a life of frustrations and many hurts that had kept him down for years such as his father’s abandonment, childhood poverty, his brother’s death and divorce, David Mauro in his determination decided to take things into his hands and make a change in his life. He decides to fight past demons with courage and also decides to give love a chance.
It is an inspirational and motivating story, filled with adventure, awe, wonder, lessons, and insight – told in the form of a personal story. We see the author take upon each challenge and in turn learning and growing from each climb. It’s amazing to see how he comes down a mountain a different man every time and as he takes the reader across the seven mountains, one can clearly see the changes from the man he was when he started climbing Denali to the man he became when he climbed Everest.
The author brings out the spiritual aspect of life’s journey. He is open about all the emotional battles he was going through after divorce – struggle, depression, isolation, grieving, defeat and self-loathing. And, he is also candid about his therapy sessions. He shows courage to express his emotions like crying, anger, frustration. And in spite of everything he is experiencing, he is able to bring out humor too.
As the author takes his journey, he is able to describe all the scenes clearly and meticulously. The dreams he had, his imaginations and things he was seeing. Not only does he make you see in your mind’s eye the picture perfectly as he describes it, but also feel what he feels as well. And upon each summit, you can actually feel the elation, the excitement, and sense of accomplishment. He makes the reader feel as being part of the journey. I personally had wet eyes when he made it to the top of Everest.
Besides giving a lot of detailed information about mountain climbing, high altitude survival skills, the do’s and don’t’s, he also mentions facts about the places he goes to, such as politics, culture, science, the environment, food and the people. Facts about leeches and the Sherpas were interesting to read and know about.
I like the way the author was able to use mountains as metaphors of life. How he brought out the lessons he learned from each challenge. How the book is inspirational without having to tell the reader what to do but just writes what worked best for him. The author makes overcoming challenges, starting over, growing and changing your life seem possible. He also introduces the reader to new places that people outside the climbing world hardly know anything about. He takes one on a real adventure of discovery as he does the same.
I felt that the mountain climbing expeditions of Kilimanjaro, Elbrus, Aconcagua, Vinson Massif, and Carstensz Pyramid, were not as detailed as I hoped. The author described Denali and Everest in so much detail which I wished he had in the others too. Even so, the story flows, is laid out in an orderly fashion and the author clearly and articulately shares his thoughts. The use of photos was a great idea, it makes the story so real. I like how the author describes every new subject and character as they were introduced into the story, it helped to understand every part of the journey and to be a part of it. The book has great character development. The cover is perfect - the title font and colors are just right for the book.
I give this book a 4 out of 4 stars. It is well edited and the story is well told. I recommend it for someone who loves adventure, or is fighting some battles, or loves inspirational books. It is also a great story if you just need entertainment.
******
The Altitude Journals
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
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4 out of 4 stars
Share This Review
THE ALTITUDE JOURNALS is a book authored by David J. Mauro, telling of his great 7-year adventurous journey across seven continents and in his personal life too. It is an amazing story of a man facing a midlife crisis, overcoming it, to accomplishing major milestones such as climbing the summit of Mount Everest. And to think in his early life, he was just a chubby and an unathletic sort of kid.
At the lowest point of his life, after facing a life of frustrations and many hurts that had kept him down for years such as his father’s abandonment, childhood poverty, his brother’s death and divorce, David Mauro in his determination decided to take things into his hands and make a change in his life. He decides to fight past demons with courage and also decides to give love a chance.
It is an inspirational and motivating story, filled with adventure, awe, wonder, lessons, and insight – told in the form of a personal story. We see the author take upon each challenge and in turn learning and growing from each climb. It’s amazing to see how he comes down a mountain a different man every time and as he takes the reader across the seven mountains, one can clearly see the changes from the man he was when he started climbing Denali to the man he became when he climbed Everest.
The author brings out the spiritual aspect of life’s journey. He is open about all the emotional battles he was going through after divorce – struggle, depression, isolation, grieving, defeat and self-loathing. And, he is also candid about his therapy sessions. He shows courage to express his emotions like crying, anger, frustration. And in spite of everything he is experiencing, he is able to bring out humor too.
As the author takes his journey, he is able to describe all the scenes clearly and meticulously. The dreams he had, his imaginations and things he was seeing. Not only does he make you see in your mind’s eye the picture perfectly as he describes it, but also feel what he feels as well. And upon each summit, you can actually feel the elation, the excitement, and sense of accomplishment. He makes the reader feel as being part of the journey. I personally had wet eyes when he made it to the top of Everest.
Besides giving a lot of detailed information about mountain climbing, high altitude survival skills, the do’s and don’t’s, he also mentions facts about the places he goes to, such as politics, culture, science, the environment, food and the people. Facts about leeches and the Sherpas were interesting to read and know about.
I like the way the author was able to use mountains as metaphors of life. How he brought out the lessons he learned from each challenge. How the book is inspirational without having to tell the reader what to do but just writes what worked best for him. The author makes overcoming challenges, starting over, growing and changing your life seem possible. He also introduces the reader to new places that people outside the climbing world hardly know anything about. He takes one on a real adventure of discovery as he does the same.
I felt that the mountain climbing expeditions of Kilimanjaro, Elbrus, Aconcagua, Vinson Massif, and Carstensz Pyramid, were not as detailed as I hoped. The author described Denali and Everest in so much detail which I wished he had in the others too. Even so, the story flows, is laid out in an orderly fashion and the author clearly and articulately shares his thoughts. The use of photos was a great idea, it makes the story so real. I like how the author describes every new subject and character as they were introduced into the story, it helped to understand every part of the journey and to be a part of it. The book has great character development. The cover is perfect - the title font and colors are just right for the book.
I give this book a 4 out of 4 stars. It is well edited and the story is well told. I recommend it for someone who loves adventure, or is fighting some battles, or loves inspirational books. It is also a great story if you just need entertainment.
******
The Altitude Journals
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
Like NadiaJ's review? Post a comment saying so!