All the Way to Heaven: An American Boyhood in the Himalayas

by Stephen Alter

The son of a Presbyterian missionary living in the Himalayas in India soon after independence looks back on the events and exotic setting of his youth

Genres: India, Nonfiction, Memoir

319 pages, Hardcover

First published April 1, 1997

About the author

STEPHEN ALTER is the son of American missionaries to the Himalayas, and was raised in India. The author of seven books for adults, he is the former Writer-in-Residence at MIT, and a recipient of a Fulbright grant. He currently lives in India with his wife, where he is researching his newest book for adults—a behind the scenes look at the world of Bollywood.

Reviews

[Vikas Singh · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nice nostalgic book detailing the author's childhood in India- Growing up in Landour and Etah and later at Woodstock. The book is a good peek into the socio-cultural conditions of the period and the expat's way of life in India. The book is also a great introduction to the lovely settlement of Landour.

[Kathy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think I particularly enjoyed this book because for a short time I was part of the same type of community in which Stephen Alter grew up. Living in a colony of mostly American missionaries in northern India near the Himalayas, he beautifully evokes the sense of family and closeness that develops among a community with a single purpose that has been transplanted from the US to a foreign country. Despite his birth certificate it's clear that Mr. Alter will always prefer life in India to life in the US. I especially enjoyed his stories of the countryside and his detailed description of the local flora and fauna as he & his family spent their summers camping and fishing and hiking. HIs love for India and it's people shines throughout this book.

[Geeta Ramani · Rating 5 out of 5]

Stephen writes about growing up in India , as a child of missionaries during the British rule. It is indeed a very mesmerising book, both in terms of the places and the times he lived in.

[Evan Campbell]

I read this while in India and was definitely experiencing some culture shock myself. The author (American who grew up in India) offered a really interesting parallel to a lot of similar emotions I was feeling when he left India to start college in the U.S. His childhood in India seems like it was a very charmed existence and I really enjoyed getting lost in it.

[Jeffrey Thomas · Rating 4 out of 5]

A well-crafted memoir of a time gone by, and a place that remains only somewhat changed. Every Woodstock resident will read this in longing for the beauty and difficulty of the place, such a stamp it makes on our memories. I arrived there ten years after the author completed this book, and felt it encapsulate the jungly mountain ethos so well. He incorporates a bit of bildungsroman and Third-Culture Kid narrative (though never using those terms), that both add a sense of purpose to the memoir. I met the author (and several folks mentioned in the book) on the hillside, and I affirm the accuracy of his descriptions. This book is a sort of sequel or companion to an earlier one by his teacher Ruth Unrau; though his work is definitely more lyrical and purposeful.

[Neha Agrawal · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed reading the book immersing myself in the mountain life of Mussoorie and Dehradun. The best part about reading such books is when you are in that place. I read it when I was on 2 weeks travel staycation in Mussoorie and dehradun. I picked it up from the resort library in Walterre. The places and events come alive and you experience it at a deeper level. As Stephen describes the places in Landour, I walk there soaking it all in and imagining the setup during that era.

[Nate Rabe · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book gets 5 stars from me because I know the author but more importantly because he describes the Indian hill station where we both grew up in India. Full of wonderful nostalgia for a long gone boyhood. I don't think the book would appeal to the wider public, and those who have no connection with India, Mussoorie or Woodstock.

[Philip Mc · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fantastic. Well written, took me back to my times at Woodstock School and growing up in India as a miss kid. But I wonder if others without the school or India experience (from the 1940s up to 1980) would agree - there are lots and lots of experiences and background of the School and India which most others would not be able to join in sharing - Indian words, Indian towns, places, events, the school setting and events, boarding school, the weather, the hillside, the birds, the foods. Is it too specific, or are there many emotions, places, and events which others might not resonnate with as strongly but still greatly enjoy reading about.
Autobiographies are strange that way - the importance of specific events and places, yet some shared human experiences and emotions.
I was continually impressed by many childhood details which he remembered and wrote so well and clearly about after almost 30 years (from the 1960s to the writing in the 1990s). Envious - wish I had that type of memory, and documentation, such as letters and family and friends.
What an unusual and wonderful experience through reading.

[Santanu Dutta · Rating 3 out of 5]

The book started with a great rhythm. I have visited the places of doon valley, mussourie, landour a couple of times. Scenes did not match for obvious reasons for time. The descriptions however clear and vivid of the days, the changes of time, changes in seasons and the changes of the periods.
However only thing is that the rhythm get cut in many an instances and reading got jerky and got halted many a times. After such jerky halts for serious read like this to return to the track becomes difficult.
However leaving aside this problem this is book honestly is a good read about the society, the culture, the people and the changes.

[Ben Lall · Rating 3 out of 5]

Steve Alter is a colleague. He is the Director of Development in Woodstock School, Mussoorie, India
As I read this book I was literally transported to the times that he talked about.
He has the unique gift of being an American, a Missionary kid as well as an Indian. His perspective is real.

[Jolene · Rating 3 out of 5]

It took me a while to read this book (and I admittedly still have a few chapters left to go). It was interesting, but a bit slow-paced. I'm keeping on my bedside table to finish soon.