Sherpa (book)

• Sherpa* recounts the tales of Sherpas, exploring their struggles and perseverance on Everest. It delves into their lives and recounts how they live on the edge of life and death.{{Cite web|url=http://kathmandupost.com/books/2022/09/17/because-there-are-sherpas|title=Because there are Sherpas|website=kathmandupost.com}} The book covers the period from the 1930s and 1940s, with the first-generation climbing Sherpas, and the key Sherpa hubs of Khumbu, Rolwaling, Makalu, and Darjeeling.{{Cite web|url=https://news.mongabay.com/2022/08/sherpas-real-stories-are-seldom-written-qa-with-authors-ankit-babu-adhikari-pradeep-bashyal/|title='Sherpas' real stories are seldom written': Q&A with authors Ankit Babu Adhikari & Pradeep Bashyal|date=August 9, 2022|website=Mongabay Environmental News}} Through the stories of dozens of characters, the authors explore the act of climbing, as well as the life, culture, myths, and religions that have shaped Sherpa lives for generations.{{Cite web|url=https://www.mansworldindia.com/experiences/adventure/documenting-the-sherpa-mountaineers-finally/|title=Documenting The Sherpa Mountaineers, Finally|first=Murali K.|last=Menon|date=November 28, 2022}}

The Telegraph wrote in its review that "the human-centric stories of Sherpas aren't told with as much sensitivity, candour, and creativity as they're in Sherpa."{{Cite web|url=https://www.telegraphindia.com/culture/books/lives-of-heroes-sherpa-stories-of-life-and-death-from-the-forgotten-guardians-of-everest-by-pradeep-bashyal-and-ankit-babu-adhikari/cid/1897451|title=Lives of heroes|website=www.telegraphindia.com}} The Times Literary Supplement called it "the first English-language book devoted to these remarkable people."{{Cite news|url=https://www.the-tls.co.uk/articles/sherpa-pradeep-bashyal-anit-babu-adhikari-himalaya-john-keay-high-erika-fatland-book-review-jonathan-buckley/|title=Three studies of the Himalayas and their peoples|newspaper=TLS }} The Spectator wrote that "sherpas may once have been the dogsbodies in other people's adventures but today they are the heroes – and, increasingly, heroines – of their own story."{{Cite web|url=https://www.spectator.co.uk/article/finally-the-sherpas-are-heroes-of-their-own-story/|title=Finally, the Sherpas are heroes of their own story|first=Mark|last=Cocker|date=September 8, 2022|website=The Spectator}} The Hindu asks readers to "the next time you hear of someone summitting Mt. Everest, spare a thought for the one that made it possible."{{Cite news|url=https://www.thehindu.com/books/books-reviews/book-review-sherpa-stories-of-life-and-death-from-the-forgotten-guardians-of-everest-ankit-babu-adhikari-pradeep-bashyal/article66225367.ece|title=Life on the edge: Review of 'Sherpa: Stories of Life and Death from the Forgotten Guardians of Everest' by Ankit Babu Adhikari and Pradeep Bashyal|newspaper=The Hindu |date=December 9, 2022|via=www.thehindu.com}} Dawn newspaper wrote "packing in plenty of information about what goes on behind the scenes of a summiting expedition, Bashyal and Adhikari's book gives credit where it is due."{{Cite web|url=https://www.dawn.com/news/1730385|title=NON-FICTION: THE STRUGGLES OF THE SHERPA|first=Rizwana|last=Naqvi|date=January 8, 2023|website=DAWN.COM}} The Kathmandu Post writes that the book "brilliantly portrayed a moving human side of people performing the world's deadliest job."

Nepali Times writes: Sherpa "attempts to go behind the climbs to portray the lives, dreams, and destinies of the people who have made their surname and ethnicity a word for ‘support crew’ in the English language dictionary." The reviewer of Business Standard wrote: "In describing them as 'forgotten guardians of Everest', the authors remind us of the worth of these mostly unacknowledged enablers behind those triumphal headlines of this or that person summiting Everest each year."{{Cite web|url=https://www.business-standard.com/article/beyond-business/high-life-in-the-death-zone-of-the-forgotten-guardians-of-everest-122101101343_1.html|title=High life in the death zone of the forgotten guardians of Everest|date=October 11, 2022|website=www.business-standard.com}} Annapurna Post wrote that "every chapter reads like a documentary film"{{Cite web|url=https://annapurnapost.prixa.net/news/himali-brand-214707/|title=हिमाली ब्रान्ड|website=Annapurna Post}} whereas Online Khabar says it is a "great history lesson for both Nepalis and foreigners."{{Cite web|url=https://english.onlinekhabar.com/sherpa-book-bashyal-adhikari.html|title=Sherpa: Untold stories of people in the shadows of Everest|date=September 1, 2022}} The Conversation wrote: "They entwine the climbers’ stories of achievement and disaster on the mountains with tales of family struggles off the mountain."{{Cite web|url=http://theconversation.com/triumph-tragedy-and-climate-change-telling-the-stories-of-the-sherpas-of-everest-189791|title=Triumph, tragedy and climate change: telling the stories of the Sherpas of Everest|first=Ruth|last=Gamble|date=October 24, 2022|website=The Conversation}}The Annapurna Express reviews the book as "an engaging work of storytelling that adds to the body of work on Everest, which already includes Wade Davis’ ‘Into the Silence’ and Jon Krakauer's ‘Into Thin Air’."

It was translated into Italian as Sherpa: I Custodi Dell’Everest by Clara Mazzi and published by Corbaccio, a publisher based in Milan, in 2023.{{cite web | url=https://kathmandupost.com/books/2023/06/08/sherpa-by-nepali-authors-published-in-italian | title='Sherpa' by Nepali authors published in Italian }}

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Category:2022 non-fiction books