Himalaya: A Human History
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- Create Date：2021-01-08 04:18:31
- Update Date：2025-09-07
- Status：finish
- Author：Ed Douglas
- ISBN：9780393541991
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
Editor Reviews
11/02/2020
Extreme landscapes， vibrant cultures， and tumultuous politics animate this sweeping history of the Himalayan region。 Journalist Douglas （Tenzing: Hero of Everest） surveys the dazzling geology and ecology of the world’s highest mountain range and the unique civilizations it fostered， which produced a flowering of Buddhist philosophy， art， and architecture during Tibet’s medieval glory days。 He also probes the tectonic geopolitical forces that molded Tibet and Nepal as they confronted powerful neighbors in China and British India and then diverged in the post-WWII era， with Tibet succumbing to Chinese colonization while Nepal struggled through monarchical dictatorships and Maoist insurgency to become a democracy and tourist mecca。 It’s a colorful story， full of bloody palace intrigues in Kathmandu and Lhasa and nervy exploits by the many foreign （primarily British） outsiders drawn to the region—merchants， missionaries， cartographers， and， above all， mountaineers， whose conquests of Himalayan peaks Douglas recounts in vivid detail。 Providing a corrective to romantic Western stereotypes of the region as the homeland of spiritual purity， Douglas notes the allure of Himalayan cultures but is clear-eyed about the prosaic economic motives that shape life there。 Written in elegant prose with sharply etched profiles of historical figures， this engrossing account offers a fresh， revealing portrait of a much-mythologized place。 Photos。 （Jan。）
Reviews
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Kathleen Gray
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An amazing book with an impressive scope that neither panders to or speaks over those with little in-depth knowledge of the region。 Douglas has a good journalist style that pulls the reader in and educates as well as sparks the imagination。 I'd recommend reading this in had copy vice ebook- it's a BIG book。 It would also be easier to flip back and forth to check data points， who's who etc。 Almost unbelievably given how ， I still found myself going down the google hole to follow up on certain thi An amazing book with an impressive scope that neither panders to or speaks over those with little in-depth knowledge of the region。 Douglas has a good journalist style that pulls the reader in and educates as well as sparks the imagination。 I'd recommend reading this in had copy vice ebook- it's a BIG book。 It would also be easier to flip back and forth to check data points， who's who etc。 Almost unbelievably given how ， I still found myself going down the google hole to follow up on certain things， which I consider a positive。 Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC。 Terrific read。 。。。more
Stephen King
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This is excellent in parts and sheds a welcome light on a much underserved region - its history， religion and culture and its geopolitical importance。 However， unless you’re a devotee or student of Nepali history， it can be dense and turgid。
Geoffrey
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（Note: I received an advanced reader copy of this book courtesy of NetGalley）Nearly as epic as the Himalayan mountains themselves， Ed Douglas’s Himalaya: A Human History” takes readers into a region that is far， far， far from the widely held misconceptions of a land has long closed off and isolated from the rest of the world and sparsely filled with little more than scattered monks and other assorted holy men。 What is shown here in this in-depth historical exploration is the true “roof of the wo （Note: I received an advanced reader copy of this book courtesy of NetGalley）Nearly as epic as the Himalayan mountains themselves， Ed Douglas’s Himalaya: A Human History” takes readers into a region that is far， far， far from the widely held misconceptions of a land has long closed off and isolated from the rest of the world and sparsely filled with little more than scattered monks and other assorted holy men。 What is shown here in this in-depth historical exploration is the true “roof of the world” - a place richly diverse with peoples with vibrant cultures who have long been influenced from all sides while sending out their own influence in turn。 As one who had a little background knowledge of the region’s history but still incorrectly viewed it as a land of limited interaction with the surrounding world， this book quickly proved to be an eye-opening learning experience。 Chapter after engrossing chapter revealed between how spreading faiths， trade， armies from various nations and kingdoms， refugees， “explorers” and many other forces and figures， this land has in fact been a vibrant crossroads and consistent point of connection throughout the ages。 The incredibly detailed narrative provided by Douglas made it fascinating to learn just how wrong I have been with my prior limited familiarity with this land。 However， unfortunately there ended up being a few times where the scope that he tried to cover， plus the sheer amount of information that the author tried to supply ended up being a little overwhelming。 This occurred with particularly noted frequency about halfway through the book when the focus shifted to various westerners and their exploits in and around the Himalaya， including but not at all limited to a range of missionaries， mountaineers， and quite a few servants of the British Empire。 While entirely in line with the overarching themes of the book， the amount of detail paid to the book’s large cast of western characters in particular definitely reached occasional saturation。 That all being said， I overall enjoyed Himalaya: A Human History。 Although it wasn’t the easiest of reading journeys， it was still a delight to travel so deep through this region’s stunningly rich and vibrant past。 。。。more
Lou
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Having had a keen interest in natural history and enjoyed plenty of books before this on the Himalaya I was slightly sceptical regarding the bold claim that this book is "by far the most comprehensive yet written" about the area， its culture and its people。 For many years， the unique and astonishing geography of the Himalaya has attracted those in search of spiritual and literal elevation: pilgrims， adventurers， and mountaineers seeking to test themselves among the world’s most spectacular and c Having had a keen interest in natural history and enjoyed plenty of books before this on the Himalaya I was slightly sceptical regarding the bold claim that this book is "by far the most comprehensive yet written" about the area， its culture and its people。 For many years， the unique and astonishing geography of the Himalaya has attracted those in search of spiritual and literal elevation: pilgrims， adventurers， and mountaineers seeking to test themselves among the world’s most spectacular and challenging peaks。 But far from being wild and barren， the Himalaya has been home to an astonishing diversity of indigenous and local cultures， as well as a crossroads for trade， and a meeting point and conflict zone for the world’s superpowers。 Here Jesuit missionaries exchanged technologies with Tibetan Lamas， Mongol Khans employed Nepali craftsmen， the East India Company grappled for dominance with China’s emperors， and independent India confronts Mao’s Communists and their successors。Writers and publicists often have a tendency to make all sorts of outrageous claims to lure readers into purchasing a book and many fail to deliver what they initially promised。 However， Ed Douglas does deliver with this superb read。 His passion and enthusiasm are a delight to witness and are evident right from the get-go whilst remaining for the entirety。 His ceaseless enthusiasm fed into mine and I saw the topics， places and people come alive more and more with each turn of the page。 Vividly tracing the mountainous terrain Douglas draws spectacular portraits with his prose and his richly detailed descriptions evoke a feeling of freedom and wanderlust despite me being at home curled up under a blanket。 If you have been searching for an extensive， all-encompassing work on the beauty of the Himalayas， peppered with stories， myths and legends， and engaging anecdotes then you can't go wrong with this immersive masterpiece。 Many thanks to Bodley Head for an ARC。 。。。more
Dawn
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The rating I have given this book should in no way diminish the writing （5 stars） or the （obviously） huge amount of research that the author has done to provide readers with an incredible history。 My problem （and， yes， it is MY problem） is that the scope is just too big。 There is just so much information that the over-all feeling from this book is one of being overwhelmed。 Sorry。My thanks to the author， publisher， and NetGalley for an advance copy to review。 This review is entirely my own， unbi The rating I have given this book should in no way diminish the writing （5 stars） or the （obviously） huge amount of research that the author has done to provide readers with an incredible history。 My problem （and， yes， it is MY problem） is that the scope is just too big。 There is just so much information that the over-all feeling from this book is one of being overwhelmed。 Sorry。My thanks to the author， publisher， and NetGalley for an advance copy to review。 This review is entirely my own， unbiased， opinion。 。。。more
Jessica
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