The High Sierra, Kim Stanley Robinson
The High Sierra, Kim Stanley Robinson
List: $38.99 | Sale: $27.30
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The High Sierra
A Love Story

Author: Kim Stanley Robinson

Narrator: Kim Stanley Robinson

Unabridged: 16 hr 31 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 05/10/2022

Includes: Bonus Material Bonus Material Included


Synopsis

A “sublime” and “radically original” exploration of the Sierra Nevadas, the best mountains on Earth for hiking and camping, from New York Times bestselling novelist Kim Stanley Robinson (—Bill McKibben, Gary Snyder).
 
Kim Stanley Robinson first ventured into the Sierra Nevada mountains during the summer of 1973. He returned from that encounter a changed man, awed by a landscape that made him feel as if he were simultaneously strolling through an art museum and scrambling on a jungle gym like an energized child. He has returned to the mountains throughout his life—more than a hundred trips—and has gathered a vast store of knowledge about them. The High Sierra is his lavish celebration of this exceptional place and an exploration of what makes this span of mountains one of the most compelling places on Earth.

Over the course of a vivid and dramatic narrative, Robinson describes the geological forces that shaped the Sierras and the history of its exploration, going back to the indigenous peoples who made it home and whose traces can still be found today. He celebrates the people whose ideas and actions protected the High Sierra for future generations. He describes uniquely beautiful hikes and the trails to be avoided. Robinson’s own life-altering events, defining relationships, and unforgettable adventures form the narrative’s spine. And he illuminates the human communion with the wild and with the sublime, including the personal growth that only seems to come from time spent outdoors.

The High Sierra is a gorgeous, absorbing immersion in a place, born out of a desire to understand and share one of the greatest rapture-inducing experiences our planet offers. Packed with maps, gear advice, more than 100 breathtaking photos, and much more, it will inspire veteran hikers, casual walkers, and travel readers to prepare for a magnificent adventure.

About Kim Stanley Robinson

New York Times bestselling author Kim Stanley Robinson was born in 1952. A native Californian, he is the author of the Nebula and Hugo Award-winning Mars trilogy, as well as the 2016 winner of the Robert A. Heinlein Award bestowed for outstanding published works in science fiction and technical writings that inspire the human exploration of space. This award is in recognition of Mr. Robinson's body of work, which includes more than fifteen novels-including his groundbreaking Mars novels-and over forty short stories.


Reviews

Goodreads review by Bart on June 09, 2022

(...) That takes me to the second reason: it simply is nice to read about a guy being passionate and joyful, the whole affair has something uplifting, all the more because Robinson manages to convey a cosmic sense: being amazed about our planet, deep time and human life. Rapture is real. It also has......more

Goodreads review by Chantal on May 18, 2022

I'm a Brit who's only been to the Sierras once (Yosemite), but I've been avidly consuming anything to do with the Pacific Crest Trail the last few years, so I jumped at the chance to listen to this. KSR is a giant in the science fiction world, but he only ever mentions this in passing and where it's......more

Goodreads review by Christie on June 20, 2022

I grew up in the foothills of the Sierra Nevadas, and lately have had an almost-overpowering urge to go back. This book poured gasoline on that fire. It’s a perfect mix of personal experience, history, meditation, and science. It allowed me to spend many hours gone away to the Sierras in my head. It......more

Goodreads review by Kathy on July 01, 2024

The closest thing to hiking in the Sierras without leaving home, KSR’s essays are as he said a love story to the mountains themselves and the people with whom he shared them.......more

Goodreads review by Jon on May 07, 2023

As a preservationist and as a Kim Stanley Robinson’s science fiction fan, I was eager to read Robinson’s memoir of hiking in the High Sierra mountains of California. While I loved his passion and found some of his chapters fascinating, the book as a whole was not as much fun as his novels. In the no......more


Quotes

“A titan of science fiction masters a new form in this winsome love letter to California’s Sierra Nevada mountain range. Constructed from an impassioned blend of memoir, history, and science writing, The High Sierra chronicles Robinson’s 100-plus trips to his beloved mountains… From descriptions of the region’s multitudinous flora and fauna to practical advice about when and where to hike, this is as comprehensive a guidebook as any, complete with all the lucid ecstasy of nature writing greats like John Muir and Annie Dillard.”—Adrienne Westenfeld, Esquire

“[A] loose-limbed quality is what makes The High Sierra so appealing. But it’s also something more. Robinson clearly accepts the limits of what nature writing can do, in his hands at least. After a stunning solo hike, he tries to describe it to a friend. But he discovers that 'a day like that can’t be shared; that must not be what they are for...' Rationality is a word with a dry, ascetic feel to it. Perhaps reasonableness comes a little closer to the animating spirit of The High Sierra. That sounds strange, I know, for a book whose purpose is analyzing Robinson’s “crazy love” of the mountains. But it’s a way of getting at the wholeness of his complex approach to the natural world: inquisitive and emotional, thoughtful and immediate, long-range and short-range, drawing on all the variables in the human spirit.”—Verlyn Klinkenborg, The Atlantic

The High Sierra is as sprawling and full of ups and downs as the Sierra Nevada itself, those majestic mountains… the memoir offers fast-paced and highly readable explorations of Sierra history, people, geography, geology and how the range’s rocks can shift your mind… the book is most powerful for demonstrating how a mountain range, and its history, can inspire visions of the future.”—Joe Mathews, San Francisco Chronicle

"In passionate paragraphs and stunning photographs, The High Sierra details the mountains [Robinson has] known for nearly 50 years, into which he’s made more than 100 trips in hopes of protecting the glorious range for future generations."—Bethanne Patrick, Los Angeles Times

“[A] multiplicity of perspectives makes The High Sierra an engaging read even if you've never been to California.”—Christian Holub, Entertainment Weekly

“An invitation to an astonishing journey… Robinson is the reigning high priest of speculative science fiction, a master builder of alternative futures in his many novels… It’s hard to think of another writer who can touch upon climatology, geology, Gary Snyder, LSD, Aristotle, botany, zoology and Spinal Tap in a book about a mountain range… Robinson is a passionate and eloquent companion.”—Marc Weingarten, Wall Street Journal

“I ached all over—metaphorically—when I finished Kim Stanley Robinson’s love letter to the Sierra Nevada… a trek unto itself, dotted with scenes so precisely described you feel you’re there… Robinson’s ambitious book blends nature writing, memoir, history and philosophy… The book gives new dimension to the term “immersive.” Not only does Robinson communicate the wonder of the High Sierra, he makes a compelling argument for preserving places like it… Travel light. Watch your step. Look at the glaciers before they’re gone.”—Carlo Wolff, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

“Equally adept at writing about the distant past, the near future, and locales as far apart as Alpha Centauri and Orange County, Robinson is one of the most environmentally astute science fiction writers of his generation… Whether writing fiction or nonfiction, he gets the details right… The High Sierra brims with useful information… Robinson is able to spot what distinguishes an item—a geological specimen, a fellow traveler on the trail, a marmot sunning itself—and convey how it fits into the grander scheme of life in the Sierra. He communicates his observations without any kind of overblown mysticism, but with a deep sense of gratitude, an appropriate sense of wonder, and a welcome sense of humor… there are some truly harrowing maneuvers. When hair-raising events occur, the author describes the action lucidly and grippingly… Anyone who opens their heart to the mountains—veteran trekker, casual explorer, or complete neophyte—will be well rewarded by this singular book."—Michael Berry, Christian Science Monitor

“Even after spending a thousand days in the high country and reading everything I can find about the Range of Light, The High Sierra surprised and delighted me… It has the heft and beauty of a coffee table book, along with the clear approachable prose, inter-personal struggles, and narrative flow that Robinson is known for… Robinson joins a choir of mystics, poets, and activists who advocate for a return to our original home in the wild.”—Leonie Sherman, Sierra Magazine

“[The High Sierra] has passion galore and glorious moments when science and poetry meet.”—Jeff Van Der Meer, Washington Post