“Do you know what happiness is? It’s not found in the moment you achieve something. No, happiness is what you find just before you achieve it” – Kilian Jornet
One of the best mountain athletes in the world. Check. Huge adventure/project in the works. Check. Biggest mountain in the world. Check.
Combine them all and you get an incredible book by Kilian Jornet and his Seven Summits project. Summits of my Life by Kilian Jornet is a quick read about his daring adventure to take on the world’s highest peaks in the fastest time possible.
The book is a quick read, and while the format is not a large coffee table book, it reads like one. The book is full of incredible pictures from Kilian’s journey, with chapters divided into his projects. Kilian describes each chapter by talking about the history of the mountain and the climb, the gear he used for the challenge, and finally his own experience with the climb.
The book culminates in Kilian’s double Mt. Everest summit. This incredible feat is hard to comprehend for us mere mortals, so it is great to read about his struggles and successes.
One of the most interesting chapters in the book is Kilian’s love and compassion for Nepal, especially following the earthquake in 2015. Here we learn about Kilian as a compassionate human being and that there is more to this man than just running and mountains. Kilian and his team led by example, and not only put their own goals aside for benefits of others, not only by raising money for the region but also by being on site, working side by side with the local on rebuilding the infrastructure.
In 200 pages, Kilian only gives a glimpse of his adventure and leaves us wanting to know more. A quick read, with wonderful pictures, this book is a great addition for anyone who is a fan of the athlete, the sport and the mountains.
The book is available now from VeloPress and at major bookstores.
Disclaimer: This book has been provided to Trail and Ultra Running free of charge, without any obligation to provide a positive review. All opinions expressed in this review are the author’s own opinion of the book.
Thanks so much for this review! I’ve been temped to purchase this book (because I’ve followed Killian’s ultra career and have appreciated his humility) but I wanted to make sure it was a good story presented in an engaging way.
Thanks for the recommendation!