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Falling
Falling is a sobering, amusing, and often poetic meditation on the wonders and risks of working aloft. Rigger Brion Toss takes you into a world of masts, towers, stadiums, pure air, and adrenaline as he recounts more than 40 years worth of stories of things gone awry at altitude. From dropped tools to collapsed towers to near-fatal falls, the litany of accidents and near-accidents is long…and the sometimes miraculous outcomes are both instructive and thought-provoking.
Not a technical manual, Falling is nonetheless a must-have companion in the library of anyone working at heights.
"Brion Toss is a rigging master, a fine writer, and a perfectionist. In this book he is also a courageous man, who dares to focus on failures! Now, as the man who walked a tightrope between the Twin Towers, falling is not in my vocabulary - and yet I must mistakes have been my greatest teachers. We learn from disasters much more than from victorious achievements. So read and learn (and be frightened), so that you do not fall prey to inattention and amateurism - so that you do not fall, period. Thus join me at shouting to the guy 'Bravo Brion!'" (Philippe Petit, Man on Wire)
"All who have met Brion know he has a way with words. This is fully on display in this delightful little book, rich with experience and loaded with fascinating stories. It will entertain, and perhaps educate, anyone who has ever gone aloft." (Nigel Calder, Boatowner's Mechanical and Electrical Manual)
Not a technical manual, Falling is nonetheless a must-have companion in the library of anyone working at heights.
"Brion Toss is a rigging master, a fine writer, and a perfectionist. In this book he is also a courageous man, who dares to focus on failures! Now, as the man who walked a tightrope between the Twin Towers, falling is not in my vocabulary - and yet I must mistakes have been my greatest teachers. We learn from disasters much more than from victorious achievements. So read and learn (and be frightened), so that you do not fall prey to inattention and amateurism - so that you do not fall, period. Thus join me at shouting to the guy 'Bravo Brion!'" (Philippe Petit, Man on Wire)
"All who have met Brion know he has a way with words. This is fully on display in this delightful little book, rich with experience and loaded with fascinating stories. It will entertain, and perhaps educate, anyone who has ever gone aloft." (Nigel Calder, Boatowner's Mechanical and Electrical Manual)
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Published January 30, 2019
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
October 27, 2020
A short book of anecdotes from a master rigger about the hazards of working at height. These are not sad and gruesome tales of deaths and maimings, such as everyone who dangles from aloft may fear. Rather these are stories of things going wrong, but still working out for the best in the end. Close calls. "No no no no... yes!"
Recommended for anyone whose feet leave the ground. It's a way to build awareness and thoughtfulness about risk through the painless process of hearing a number of Brion's light-hearted stories.
Recommended for anyone whose feet leave the ground. It's a way to build awareness and thoughtfulness about risk through the painless process of hearing a number of Brion's light-hearted stories.
October 24, 2018
I decided to read this in the wee hours when I ought to have been sound asleep. I was laughing so hard I had to bury my head under the pillow to keep from waking my husband up-- who *was* sleeping soundly.
Brion's distinctive voice helps prove, once again, his mastery not only of rigging, but of story telling! (I would dare say the mastery over gravity is an ongoing and valiant battle... even if ultimately futile. It is the Law after all.)
Brion's distinctive voice helps prove, once again, his mastery not only of rigging, but of story telling! (I would dare say the mastery over gravity is an ongoing and valiant battle... even if ultimately futile. It is the Law after all.)
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews