Into Thin Air cover art

Into Thin Air

 Preview
Try Premium Plus free
1 credit a month to buy any audiobook in our entire collection.
Access to thousands of additional audiobooks and Originals from the Plus Catalogue.
Member-only deals & discounts.
Auto-renews at $16.45/mo after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Into Thin Air

By: Jon Krakauer
Narrated by: Philip Franklin
Try Premium Plus free

$16.45 per month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy Now for $22.99

Buy Now for $22.99

About this listen

One of the inspirations for the major motion picture Everest, starring Jake Gyllenhaal and Keira Knightley.

This is the true story of a 24-hour period on Everest when members of three separate expeditions were caught in a storm and faced a battle against hurricane-force winds, exposure, and the effects of altitude, which ended the worst single-season death toll in the peak's history.

In March 1996, Outside magazine sent veteran journalist and seasoned climber Jon Krakauer on an expedition led by celebrated Everest guide Rob Hall. Despite the expertise of Hall and the other leaders, by the end of summit day eight people were dead.

Krakauer's audiobook is at once the story of the ill-fated adventure and an analysis of the factors leading up to its tragic end. Written within months of the events it chronicles, Into Thin Air clearly evokes the majestic Everest landscape. As the journey up the mountain progresses, Krakauer puts it in context by recalling the triumphs and perils of other Everest trips throughout history. The author's own anguish over what happened on the mountain is palpable as he leads his listeners to ponder timeless questions.

©2011 Jon Krakauer (P)2016 Audible, Ltd Adventurers, Explorers & Survival Climbing & Mountaineering Ecosystems & Habitats Nature & Ecology Outdoors & Nature Science Adventure Inspiring Thought-Provoking Extreme Sports Sports
All stars
Most relevant  
Only complaint was the accents were terrible, mainly the South African and New Zealand accents which sounded more like a botched Aussie accent than anything. Would have preferred no accents at all as it does distract from the story . Overall read very well and highly recommend this book !

Awesome book, very harrowing story - could improve

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
An very candid and personal account of the expedition and the consequences of mistakes on high altitude mountaineering expeditions. Loved the detailed storytelling, however the narration wasn't that great, the attempt at using accents for the dialogue was a bit distracting but it didn't detract from the story too much.

A personal account of a disastrous expedition.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
A well written and paced book, deeply moving and sad (as expected) with a decent level of analysis of the whys and wherefores. Be warned, the narrator does accents and it’s not good.

An emotional and engaging listen

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Great narrator (the accents are fine and barely even noticed the switch back and forth) gripping story that is well written

Excellent story and easy to listen to

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Loved this book, was hooked from the very beginning. A thoughtful and forensic look at how a tragedy unfolds.

Hooked from the beginning

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Really, really enjoyed this book. An exceptional re-telling of a very sad story. Actually now one of my all-time favourites despite being so sad and somber.

I found myself unable to switch it off...kept needing to hear what happened next.

Unlike others who have reviewed the book, the narrator's accents didn't bother me at all. It helped me differentiate between the various individuals as I was getting to know them.

Excellent book and reading

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
great book, loved it, very interesting I was hooked could hardly turn it off listened every spare second I could

great book

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Even though I have read the book it was so well narrated truly compelling, felt like you were there

Riveting story

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
if you've ever wondered what it would be like to climb a big mountain or to summit mount Everest, read or listen to this book.

The most INTENSE true story!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
An interesting and riveting insight into the madness of Everest, and the dreams and consiquences that it brings.
Only let down was the narrator, whose attempts at accents could be jarring. Otherwise, it seemed to be well rounded by other's reminisces - even if a few voices were notably absent.

Intense!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
See more reviews
In the spirit of reconciliation, Audible acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of country throughout Australia and their connections to land, sea and community. We pay our respect to their elders past and present and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples today.