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Product details
File Size: 3548 KB
Print Length: 352 pages
Publisher: Bison Books (April 1, 2011)
Publication Date: April 1, 2011
Sold by: Amazon Digital Services LLC
Language: English
ASIN: B004Z12LLG
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#1,106,796 Paid in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Paid in Kindle Store)
This book was mostly enjoyable; if you're interested in the trek, by all means read it end to end; if you're interested in Bhutan, perhaps start elsewhere and find your way here. I read it along with several others ahead of a trip there this fall.One of the challenges with travel books such as these is there are only so many themes to pull from ... having done a couple of eco-trips and homestays (none so fierce as the Snowman Trek!) I can't claim to be an expert but have a fair sense of what there is to pull from:1 - The trek / geography / experience itself: The book does a wonderful job here, telling the story of the trek with great detail and a good and evocative writing style. Very interesting (and very cool/impressive).2 - One's fellow travelers: Again, nicely done. Grange captures the spirit of traveling with a group and his band of trekkers is described in enough detail to build the story, but not so much as to be intrusive.3 - The locals one meets: Pretty good; obviously limited here as most of the time was spent hiking. I tend to be more interested in people than scenery so I might have liked more, but wouldn't hold this against the book.4 - Snippets of the local history / culture / politics to provide "backstory": We get a highly romanticized view of Bhutan with selective emphasis on the positive and overmuch time on the Buddhism. From other books it's a fascinating culture that has both its pro's and its dark sides - we see none of the latter here, or the complexity of the country.5 - Reflections on personal transformation associated with the travel: Probably the hardest to write, threading the narcissism line carefully (and following heavily trodden ground), and this is where the book stumbles (I hate to say this as the author has obviously opened up and shared experiences which were deeply meaningful to him). Overall these portions of the book feel like I would have enjoyed them much more, say, in my more angst-ridden 20s. They occur with enough frequency to be distracting and at times border on trite/naive. For the right audience at the right time, they'll probably resonate, but I wasn't that audience, and the storytelling mechanics here didn't converge to get me to connect or much care. A transformational story has to have a deeper connection to the "pre" state of the author as central character, and the book spends more time on nostalgic reminiscences of childhood than in describing a person whose transformation is emotionally engaging.I wouldn't let the last note discourage folks interested in the trek from reading - the reflective passages can be gotten by, and the rest of the tale is well written and worth reading.
I so wanted to enjoy this book - with its intriguing title, exotic setting and description of an adventure I am unlikely to ever enjoy - but sadly it all fell very, very flat. The author only describes the apparently extraordinary sights and locations in the most cursory terms. He leads us on to the Shangri La of Thanza - but never elaborates on or properly describes an apparently awesome place. There is just no sense of 'being there'. The book's style is that of a 'dear diary' and never rises to the promised/anticipated heights. Thank heavens for the photos, mostly provided by a professional photographer on the journey, as they provide some much needed filling where the words so frequently fail.A few significant annoyances as well - where does an American author get off blaming China (and China alone) for the global warming that is having a devastating impact on Bhutan? And more - there's patronising language regarding the Bhutanese people met on the trek, some very uncomfortable/creepy descriptions of local children and the juvenile purportedly-romantic encounters with another treker, Ingrid, were all highly cringe-worthy. Ingrid has my sympathy - come on Kev, grow up! It was unsurprising that it only took some rain to put Ingrid off consummating the 'planned' final meeting. Finally, the stilted 'conversations' which provide the background to geological wonders, history and Buddhist belief are both awkward and unrealistic.It's not a terrible book, there are many enjoyable parts, but it could have been so much better. A missed opportunity - but thankfully the photos provide some redemption.
Twenty-four days, half a million steps, 216 miles, eleven mountain passes (seven over 16,000 feet): how does a surfer-screenwriter hopeful from Orange County (albeit, as many, a transplant--from New Hampshire) push himself to his limits? Quests appear regularly (this is one of three recent accounts, for instance, I've found on this Snowman Trek alone). So, what distinguishes Grange's 2007 mission, as his subtitle explains, "Discovering Bhutan on the Toughest Trek in the World"?Unlike Mark Horrell, a veteran mountaineer in his diaries (exactly two autumns later, in 2009; see my Nov. 2012 review) "Yakking with the Thunder Dragon: Walking Bhutan's Epic Snowman Trek," Grange does not address his fellow trekkers or assume familiarity with the logistics and exertions of such an expedition. He takes the time, therefore, to tell us how difficult it is: more people have climbed Everest than finished the Snowman Trek, and of fewer than 120 who try each year, half finish. I remained hazy (as with Horrell) as to what preparations people make, given their ages and occupations, before spending $8000 on this excursion. I did wonder as with my reading of Horrell how tough a trek might claim that offers skilled porters, modern gear, lots of food, and beasts of burden despite the dangers of altitude sickness, weather, and weariness--but I did learn about the remote wonders and climates Grange and his eight companions, guided by natives, encounter.He's bent to finish what he could not on a previous trip. Sacred snowy Jholmohari, unclimbed home of a goddess, borders Tibet, and represents the first of the places that beckon Grange, unhappy at 33 with his life's direction. He vows to make it to Thanza in the Lunana, a Shangri-La in his fantasy if belied by its name as "The Dark Inner Region." and this shimmers as his fabled destination of wonder.Reality, unsurprisingly, intervenes by day three. "After lunch the mighty Himalayan range began to assert itself. The trees thinned, shrinking as if scared, and the soft rolling mountains transformed into immense ridges, rocky folds, and scree chutes. This change in the external environment was mirrored in me internally--my breath grew shallow, the pressure in my head increased, and the altitude popped in my ears like kettle corn." (76)Grange as this shows takes the time to alternate between his physical and mental struggle and that of his comrades, as well as the beauty they witness slowly unfold in the clouds or meadows. "Far down the misty trail below, my trekking companions looked like brightly colored confetti flakes with feet." (108) His interest in Buddhism, as well as a comely German woman, Ingrid, a day's march behind his team on her own trek, impels him to advance, and his eventual arrival at the holy glacial valley of Kephu reveals that Lunana, and soon Thanza, will appear."After lunch, we followed the river down the valley, crowned with sharp ridges that shot out of the earth like giant arrowheads. The trail meandered along, alternating between the open sunshine of the river and the shadowy enchantment of the mossy forest. It was is as if whoever had cut the winding trail was so enthralled with the surroundings that they couldn't decide which was prettier, woods or river, so they chose both. In the forest, birds sat unafraid on the branch and anytime my attention drifted inward and I'd get lost in thought, a waterfall crashing down sheer rocks would suddenly appear and catapult me back to the present moment. Waterfalls were the meditation bells of the Snowman Trek, they'd always suddenly sound and appear when you least expected it, pulling you out of your thoughts and waking you up to wonder once again." (214)I cite this at length to show the interplay of nature, spirituality, and attention to phrasing that at its best "Beneath Blossom Rain" evokes. Its title comes from Kevin Grange's wish to see rain and sun fall at the same moment, "metok-chharp" in Dzongkha, and what this descent of elusive grace connotes. I sense that while Grange may not be a "born writer," if any exist, that he crafts much of his story carefully and attentively. One shortcoming, as an earlier reviewer {'Harry'} here raised: Grange must halt his gait to insert conversations about religious, natural, or cultural topics that don't feel true to the actual moment, as they're aimed more at the reader than the fellow trekker. (As an aside, if he had as he shows studied up on Bhutan before his arrival, I doubt if he'd be as "shocked" by the phallic imagery adorning walls and houses as he makes himself out to be for the newcomer. He also discusses "polygamy" when he means "polyandry"--and this from a university press title?) As an aspiring screenwriter, he needs to recognize how difficult this exposition can be to carry off well. It does throw off the pace of the book, which works best when he focuses upon his own reactions to his trail actions.He shifts between his inner tension and his mental reverie, as he learns to take that phallocentric Divine Madman of Bhutan Drukpa Kunley's advice to heart: "whatever happens is the path of release." He applies the Buddhist idea that its teachings are like water that finds its own container, and he learns to adjust to the trail as he must his return to asphalt, a Thimphu house party, and trucks and airports--as if, he notes, he returned from war, so jarring is the initial jolt back into civilization.His tale fills with the joy of having your needs met (food, campsites, water) despite the drawbacks of the chilly, windy, snowy trail. He finds the clutter of his mind silent at times, enabling him to tune in to his own nature, free of distraction. Gradually, trekkers regress to a childhood adventure, complete with stalking deer, running horses, herding or fleeing yaks, wandering slopes, sipping Pabst--and in the author's case, reading Rilke's "Letters to a Young Poet" by flashlight under the sleeping bag's warmth at night in a tent and watching a girl's coming-of-age dance.Grange witnesses an old woman's demise, another girl's suffering, and the privations those in these hinterlands endure amidst yak herds and raw farms. He conveys literary and cultural references to bring readers unfamiliar with Bhutan into the contexts he elaborates. These sometimes call attention to themselves, but he does strive to reach out to the reader, to connect our understanding with his as it unfolds. It's not always as fluid as the passages I've included, but it's worthwhile alongside Jamie Zeppa's "Beyond the Sky and the Earth: A Journey into Bhutan" (see my May 2012 review) for a Westerner's attempt to make sense of the off-road expanses of this often romanticized realm.Grange tries to listen and watch those with whom he walks and those he meets. Peter McBride's photographs enhance at key moments the narrative, and this proves a welcome addition to any armchair or real traveler's shelf. As he notes near the end: "The backache of camping was a blessing; it gave me a key to the city of stars." (270)
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