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The White Ladder: Triumph and Tragedy at the Dawn of Mountaineering
A sweeping history of mountaineering before Everest, and the epic human quest to reach the highest places on Earth.
Whether in the name of conquest, science, or the divine, humans across the centuries have had myriad reasons to climb mountains. From the smoking volcanoes of South America to the great snowy ranges of the Himalaya, The White Ladder follows a cast of extraordinary characters—conquistadors and captains, scientists and surveyors, alpinists and adventurers—up the slopes of the world’s highest mountains, seeking the summits of the world’s highest peaks. With thrilling pace and novelistic detail, Daniel Light traces the epic rise of mountaineering’s world altitude record and highlights the roles of local guides and indigenous mountaineers whose feats are too often eclipsed by their white Europeans counterparts. Describing the innovative technical accomplishments of the climbers, Light shows how each new breathtaking ascent heightened the spectacle of their dangerous sport.
“[Daniel Light] ... has thought seriously about the entire sweep of his subject. ... It’s a massive story with an enormous cast of characters, among them some of the most compelling figures of mountaineering history.”—Wade Davis
Whether in the name of conquest, science, or the divine, humans across the centuries have had myriad reasons to climb mountains. From the smoking volcanoes of South America to the great snowy ranges of the Himalaya, The White Ladder follows a cast of extraordinary characters—conquistadors and captains, scientists and surveyors, alpinists and adventurers—up the slopes of the world’s highest mountains, seeking the summits of the world’s highest peaks. With thrilling pace and novelistic detail, Daniel Light traces the epic rise of mountaineering’s world altitude record and highlights the roles of local guides and indigenous mountaineers whose feats are too often eclipsed by their white Europeans counterparts. Describing the innovative technical accomplishments of the climbers, Light shows how each new breathtaking ascent heightened the spectacle of their dangerous sport.
“[Daniel Light] ... has thought seriously about the entire sweep of his subject. ... It’s a massive story with an enormous cast of characters, among them some of the most compelling figures of mountaineering history.”—Wade Davis
432 pages, Hardcover
Published November 19, 2024
108 people are currently reading
3278 people want to read
About the author
Daniel Light
1 book5 followersDaniel Light grew up in Godalming, a stone’s throw from the family home of George and Ruth Mallory. He has been climbing for twenty years, indoors and out. Dan writes from an office at a climbing wall in East London, where he climbs regularly with his daughters Lola and Ruby. He lives in Hackney.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 52 reviews
December 17, 2025
3.5 stars
October 8, 2024
Full review: https://bookerthanyou.blogspot.com/20...
The White Ladder is a truly novel-like history. What especially fascinates me is how the initial interest in climbing mountains – purely scientific – evolved into sport, conquest and global power. From surveyors to naturalists, young aristocrats, rich protégés and even the odd occultist, the cast of mountain literature is as colourful as any novel, and Light gives an easy to follow chronological history of the evolution of high-altitude exploration. All the while, it is engrossing, written in a way that makes the reader feel like they are there with these great men (and even a woman), lighting pipes, breathing in the chill mountain air, eating Irish stew straight from the tin when the stove wouldn't light, 'slowly melting the lumps of white frozen grease in our mouths, and then swallowing them'.
The White Ladder is a truly novel-like history. What especially fascinates me is how the initial interest in climbing mountains – purely scientific – evolved into sport, conquest and global power. From surveyors to naturalists, young aristocrats, rich protégés and even the odd occultist, the cast of mountain literature is as colourful as any novel, and Light gives an easy to follow chronological history of the evolution of high-altitude exploration. All the while, it is engrossing, written in a way that makes the reader feel like they are there with these great men (and even a woman), lighting pipes, breathing in the chill mountain air, eating Irish stew straight from the tin when the stove wouldn't light, 'slowly melting the lumps of white frozen grease in our mouths, and then swallowing them'.
May 28, 2025
Fantastic account of the dawn of mountaineering. Learned the fun fact that a woman, named Fanny, actually held some altitude records at a time when most women were forbidden from a lot of aspects of life.
July 16, 2025
For reasons I can’t explain, I love reading about mountaineering. As someone who is afraid of heights and gets vertigo on the third floor of a local shopping centre, this might seem an odd interest, but there it is.
This was a fascinating book on the history of mountain climbing, going back as far as the 1500’s. Most books about mountain climbing deal with a single person and their career, or possibly a single peak. I loved the historical perspective of it.
Highly recommended, even if you don’t think you’re interested in mountain climbing!
This was a fascinating book on the history of mountain climbing, going back as far as the 1500’s. Most books about mountain climbing deal with a single person and their career, or possibly a single peak. I loved the historical perspective of it.
Highly recommended, even if you don’t think you’re interested in mountain climbing!
December 30, 2024
For someone who has never been to the top of to many mountains (anything near me isn't much more than a large hill) I have discovered a real interest in reading about mountaineering, especially the history of the sport in the high mountains, and The White Ladder by Daniel Light has placed itself very high up on the list of books I've read on the subject.
While many books about mountain climbing might focus on one particular mountain or climber, or perhaps just one specific famous ascent. The White Ladder takes a different approach though, following the adventures of some of the people who first chatted the tallest mountains in the world, or who first set foot on the summit of some the.
Stretching from Hernán Cortes and his conquistadors in Mexico, through the likes of Henry Godwin-Austen, Albert Murmmery, Matthias Zurbriggen, Fanny Bullock Workman, Oscar Eckenstein, Alister Crowley, Tom Long staff, Carl Rubenson and Alec Kellas.
While many books about mountain climbing might focus on one particular mountain or climber, or perhaps just one specific famous ascent. The White Ladder takes a different approach though, following the adventures of some of the people who first chatted the tallest mountains in the world, or who first set foot on the summit of some the.
Stretching from Hernán Cortes and his conquistadors in Mexico, through the likes of Henry Godwin-Austen, Albert Murmmery, Matthias Zurbriggen, Fanny Bullock Workman, Oscar Eckenstein, Alister Crowley, Tom Long staff, Carl Rubenson and Alec Kellas.
March 14, 2025
An in-depth history of the quest to climb higher and higher.
October 7, 2025
I was actually so worried that this book was going to infuriate me because there’s nothing I have more than white pioneers but the author was quick to note that recording was a colonial setting and we have no real account of what really happened. Because as Daniel Light said “Only those who survive live to tell the tale”.
I really enjoyed the note of religious aspects to mountains in the Himalayas and why they shouldn’t be climbed, but, Europeans needed to “assault” and “conquest” these mountains and made a political game out of it. Forcing local porters and risking their life for the benefit of these mountaineers who never recorded their names.
Oh and thank you for calling out Aleister Crowley who is an absolute psychopath and should have been locked up for beating his porters.
I really enjoyed the note of religious aspects to mountains in the Himalayas and why they shouldn’t be climbed, but, Europeans needed to “assault” and “conquest” these mountains and made a political game out of it. Forcing local porters and risking their life for the benefit of these mountaineers who never recorded their names.
Oh and thank you for calling out Aleister Crowley who is an absolute psychopath and should have been locked up for beating his porters.
July 20, 2025
Instead of focusing on the amazing Himalayan adventures of the last 75 years, this readable climbing history covers the less trod path, the first known efforts to reach high summits and slopes on the various continents. Most of these documented efforts took place in the Alps in the 19th century (although other places such as Aconcagua in South America are also covered). Inevitably, the pioneering mountaineers turned their attention to the Himalaya, as their foremost goals were altitude records (so many of the summits were out of reach, due to the lack of today's hi-tech mountaineering gear, and supplemental oxygen). Lots of great stories at the true cutting edge of mountain adventuring.
March 21, 2025
I do love mountaineering books, and this one filled in some early gaps, as it leads up to the point where interest turns to Everest. Because it covers many characters, they did begin to blend in my head, and some were more interesting than others. The climbers' attitude toward the porters hired to assist in these assaults on the world's highest mountains was almost uniformly unpleasant but par for the course.
Recommended to fans of Into Thin Air and such.
Recommended to fans of Into Thin Air and such.
September 18, 2025
Pretty cool book about the first failed attempts and successful ascends of the tallest mountains in the world.
Mostly it's switching between hilarious anecdotes about the obnoxiousness of rich English men around 1900 and horrifying anecdotes of how the aforementioned wealthy Englishmen treated (and, tbh - although it's more international now, still treats) the locals helping them ascend mountains.
Mostly it's switching between hilarious anecdotes about the obnoxiousness of rich English men around 1900 and horrifying anecdotes of how the aforementioned wealthy Englishmen treated (and, tbh - although it's more international now, still treats) the locals helping them ascend mountains.
November 16, 2025
An extremely interesting read with great character descriptions! I also liked the spotlight on the imperial elements in the climbs and the racist behaviour of some of these early mountaineers.
Unfortunately the author sometimes describes photographs which are not in the book, which is a bit annoying.
Unfortunately the author sometimes describes photographs which are not in the book, which is a bit annoying.
December 5, 2025
An engaging and very informative book about the early days of mountaineering, Daniel Light's book is a fantastic beginning read for people—like me—who don't (or didn't) know anything about the history of this subject. Though I picked it up without much interest in mountaineering or mountain climbing, I couldn't put it down once I started reading.
February 12, 2025
9-2025. This was a captivating history of the determined folks who set out to climb the highest peaks in the world. By today’s standards, they were terribly equipped, but had bravery and determination on their side. I got cold just reading about their time on the mountains. :-)
February 19, 2025
Daniel Light’s “The White Ladder” is a fascinating look at the early days of mountaineering. Light weaves a very readable tale. One is left in awe of these people who climbed with minimal equipment and in almost every case, no supplemental oxygen. It’s a compelling history.
February 20, 2025
Terrific summary of mountain climber pioneers. Interesting accounts of groups going halfway around the world to climb mountains using inaccurate maps. Didn’t know what they were getting themselves into. Concise stories of many climbers.
February 28, 2025
A bit tenacious at times but a wonderful story of mountaineers for anyone who loves the mountains and to climb, 4000 feet or 29000.
While there are maps at the beginning, it would have been nice to have them nearby while reading the individual stories.
While there are maps at the beginning, it would have been nice to have them nearby while reading the individual stories.
September 28, 2025
This was a different mountain book in that it went through a large period of time across lots of mountains that aren’t talked about. Truly the beginning of mountaineering (with a lot of dudes) and the early thoughts around mountain sickness. Pretty solid read.
January 12, 2025
This is now one of my favorite mountaineering books! So much drama.
January 22, 2025
LOVED how feminist the author was, always said men AND WOMEN however the woman he focused on the most was in fact racist
February 8, 2025
Tremendous, written as a thriller and captures the imagination and verve of early mountaineering with the perfect balance of technical detail and grand narrative
March 6, 2025
A fascinating read about the history of mountaineering, why some names are remembered more than others and the power of a summit.
May 7, 2025
Took me a while to finish, but I really enjoyed this early history of mountaineering I stumbled upon at the library.
May 26, 2025
A little slow to start, but picks up steam. A look at the characters and events in early mountaineering.
June 17, 2025
Really interesting to learn how mountaineering as a sport came to be. Definitely a bit of colonialism…
December 14, 2024
Just finished reading The White Ladder and loved it - it weaves the history into an engaging novel style narrative, complete with cliff hangers (excuse the pun). For me it was quite a unique read in this respect, learning about the history of climbing (which was far more multifaceted than I would have anticipated), and at same time an easy and enjoyable read. Recommended to climbers and non-climbers alike.
September 5, 2025
won in giveaway - will review once read
January 31, 2025
This is a rather odd book by someone who seems rather odd himself. What the proximity of his birthplace to that of George Mallory has to do with the author's qualification to write about climbing is beyond me. Yet there it is in his somewhat self-regarding blurb. He apparently writes at the climbing wall where his daughters - named - "train". And your point is?
As I said, it's an odd book too. The subtitle is misleading, because the events recounted didn't take place "at the Dawn of Mountaineering"; that was in the Alps in the mid 19th century, whereas this book is largely concerned with attempts to climb higher and higher in the Himalaya and elsewhere, continuing well into the inter-war period in the 20th.
There isn't a great deal of either triumph or tragedy either; instead there's a great deal of failure, as successive European expeditions struggle to get to grips with the brutal challenges of high altitude climbing.
For those interested in the period, a lot of old ground is gone over, although I was personally unfamiliar with the efforts of Fanny Bullock Workman, who with her husband - given rather short shrift here - and a guide visited the Himalaya many times, holding successive altitude records.
Mountaineering is a wonderful thing, but repetitive in nature. As the Cambridge philosopher Leslie Stephen remarked, "we climb to remind ourselves what it's like". A pattern emerges; and it certainly does in this book. Successive expeditions struggle to raise funding, travel arduously into the interior, fall out with each other, fall out with their native porters, finally approach the foot of the mountain, find it harder than they imagined, endure bad luck with the weather, suffer frostbite and then (in most cases) are forced to retreat. Given that the author devotes fifteen or twenty pages to each expedition, you are essentially reading the same thing over and over again.
Although many of the pioneers in the Himalaya were Brits - inevitable perhaps, given the British rule in India - Mr Light is not generally sympathetic. Some of them treated native porters with contempt (although few worse than Fanny Bullock Workman, an American), but many, particularly British army officers, very much valued the efforts of their Ghurka soldiers. Mr Light is keen to point out their failings, whereas the desertion of and theft by the (paid) native staff passes without comment or is excused. Surely this is a similar 2D flattening of which the racist European colonists were guilty?
There was a good deal wrong with colonialism, but even Mr Light's partiality cannot conceal that his book is essentially about the extraordinary achievements of white Europeans. It doesn't seem to have occurred to the author that the same gung-ho confidence which led to Britain ruling half the world might have motivated its mountaineers to climb higher and higher in the Himalaya, ending with their conquest of the highest mountain of all.
PS Anyone who really wants to read about Triumph and Tragedy at the Dawn of Mountaineering could do worse than read Killing Dragons by Fergus Fleming, an account of the true Alpine pioneers.
PPS I am not Fergus Fleming in disguise.
As I said, it's an odd book too. The subtitle is misleading, because the events recounted didn't take place "at the Dawn of Mountaineering"; that was in the Alps in the mid 19th century, whereas this book is largely concerned with attempts to climb higher and higher in the Himalaya and elsewhere, continuing well into the inter-war period in the 20th.
There isn't a great deal of either triumph or tragedy either; instead there's a great deal of failure, as successive European expeditions struggle to get to grips with the brutal challenges of high altitude climbing.
For those interested in the period, a lot of old ground is gone over, although I was personally unfamiliar with the efforts of Fanny Bullock Workman, who with her husband - given rather short shrift here - and a guide visited the Himalaya many times, holding successive altitude records.
Mountaineering is a wonderful thing, but repetitive in nature. As the Cambridge philosopher Leslie Stephen remarked, "we climb to remind ourselves what it's like". A pattern emerges; and it certainly does in this book. Successive expeditions struggle to raise funding, travel arduously into the interior, fall out with each other, fall out with their native porters, finally approach the foot of the mountain, find it harder than they imagined, endure bad luck with the weather, suffer frostbite and then (in most cases) are forced to retreat. Given that the author devotes fifteen or twenty pages to each expedition, you are essentially reading the same thing over and over again.
Although many of the pioneers in the Himalaya were Brits - inevitable perhaps, given the British rule in India - Mr Light is not generally sympathetic. Some of them treated native porters with contempt (although few worse than Fanny Bullock Workman, an American), but many, particularly British army officers, very much valued the efforts of their Ghurka soldiers. Mr Light is keen to point out their failings, whereas the desertion of and theft by the (paid) native staff passes without comment or is excused. Surely this is a similar 2D flattening of which the racist European colonists were guilty?
There was a good deal wrong with colonialism, but even Mr Light's partiality cannot conceal that his book is essentially about the extraordinary achievements of white Europeans. It doesn't seem to have occurred to the author that the same gung-ho confidence which led to Britain ruling half the world might have motivated its mountaineers to climb higher and higher in the Himalaya, ending with their conquest of the highest mountain of all.
PS Anyone who really wants to read about Triumph and Tragedy at the Dawn of Mountaineering could do worse than read Killing Dragons by Fergus Fleming, an account of the true Alpine pioneers.
PPS I am not Fergus Fleming in disguise.
January 3, 2025
While Sir Edmund Hillary is the most well-known mountaineer from the first half of the 20th century being the first person to scale Mt. Everest, there was a long trail of climbers who preceded him and took the same risks to climb heights unknown to man at that time. Those climbers and their adventures are captured in this well-researched book by Daniel Light.
What separates this book from most other mountaineering books I have read is that instead of concentrating on one group or climber, this book profiles many different climbers and their quests to become the first climber to either summit a particular peak (and not always in the Himalayas) or at least attain an altitude that no person had ever reached before. I found this very interesting as these climbers did not have the equipment, clothing, gear and other necessities that today’s mountaineers have. How they were able to attain these heights without items that modern climbers could not live without made for very interesting stories.
It was also noteworthy that like today, the climbing society is mostly male, but some determined women will make their mark and show they are worthy of being considered among the elite in the sport. In this book, one woman’s story, Fanny Bullock Workman, was fascinating and while she may not have fit the image of women of that time, she certainly knew her way up a mountain as she and her husband made many expeditions.
The reader will learn a lot of interesting facts and personalities in the early days of the sport. One great example that I learned was who the person was that invented crampons. His name is Oscar Eckenstien (an elite climber of the era in his own right) and instead of settling for using nails inside his boots as was common at that time, he modified the design of climbing irons and used a 10-point bladed boot attachment to gain better footing on steep ice or snow.
While at times the book does delve into very technical language, any climbing enthusiast will enjoy reading this selection. That includes those like me who have never strapped on crampons or climbing boots but love to read about the sport as well as those who enjoy climbing at any skill level.
I wish to thank W.W. Norton and Company for providing a copy of the book via NetGalley. The opinions expressed in this review are strictly my own.
https://sportsbookguy.blogspot.com/20...
What separates this book from most other mountaineering books I have read is that instead of concentrating on one group or climber, this book profiles many different climbers and their quests to become the first climber to either summit a particular peak (and not always in the Himalayas) or at least attain an altitude that no person had ever reached before. I found this very interesting as these climbers did not have the equipment, clothing, gear and other necessities that today’s mountaineers have. How they were able to attain these heights without items that modern climbers could not live without made for very interesting stories.
It was also noteworthy that like today, the climbing society is mostly male, but some determined women will make their mark and show they are worthy of being considered among the elite in the sport. In this book, one woman’s story, Fanny Bullock Workman, was fascinating and while she may not have fit the image of women of that time, she certainly knew her way up a mountain as she and her husband made many expeditions.
The reader will learn a lot of interesting facts and personalities in the early days of the sport. One great example that I learned was who the person was that invented crampons. His name is Oscar Eckenstien (an elite climber of the era in his own right) and instead of settling for using nails inside his boots as was common at that time, he modified the design of climbing irons and used a 10-point bladed boot attachment to gain better footing on steep ice or snow.
While at times the book does delve into very technical language, any climbing enthusiast will enjoy reading this selection. That includes those like me who have never strapped on crampons or climbing boots but love to read about the sport as well as those who enjoy climbing at any skill level.
I wish to thank W.W. Norton and Company for providing a copy of the book via NetGalley. The opinions expressed in this review are strictly my own.
https://sportsbookguy.blogspot.com/20...
January 13, 2025
This was a great read for the snow this weekend! We follow various mountain ascents over the course of the late 19th - early 20th century, and enlighten ourselves on what motivates us: an odd mix of the desire for discovery and pure greed / insanity. I appreciate that this book doesn’t glorify a very dangerous sport, the risk of death ever looming & often realized. You come to see the importance of strategy and team work and risk on trade decisions, and these stories reinforce that knowledge is nothing without leadership & vice versa. I will say it does get repetitive after a while (ascent, adversity, descent, death, record breaking achievements). I was hoping for a bit more of a take away / a bit more of a comprehensive plot, but am mostly walking away with the understanding that it’s really about the journey not the destination (stopping shy of the pinnacle is not defeat). A few sore spots for me:
Who in their right mind writes a book and alternates between both meters and feet? Simply irritating. Also frustrating that the only woman (despite being an apparently badass) has to be a complete and bitch. Of course westerners build their success (ungratefully) on the backs of others…
Who in their right mind writes a book and alternates between both meters and feet? Simply irritating. Also frustrating that the only woman (despite being an apparently badass) has to be a complete and bitch. Of course westerners build their success (ungratefully) on the backs of others…
March 11, 2025
History of the beginning of mountaineering starting in Europe with the first attempts to climb the Matterhorn and Mont Blanc. Soon attention shifted to the Himalayas, as the British controlled India and were working on survey projects for unmapped regions and to triangulate the altitude of many of the peaks that could be seen from northern India. The story of many of these hardy climbing pioneers is well told. For many years, the person who held the altitude record was a woman who climbed with her husband. It's quite remarkable to me that they got as high as they did, under the terrible conditions they faced, considering the old-fashioned equipment, food and clothing they had. And it made me sad to know that most of them, with some inspiring exceptions, treated the porters and guides with contempt and no concern for their safety. They wouldn't even provide them with decent shoes or tents. There are illustrations throughout, and a center of historic photos, but the author describes other photos that were taken that I wish could have been included. A good installment in my love of mountaineering accounts.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 52 reviews