In the Himalayan winter, without food or shelter, a human being is not expected to live longer than a week. This is the story of how James Scott survived for forty three days.

Co-written very naturally with his sister Joanne who persevered in looking for her brother when nearly all had given him up for dead.

While the easy moral in the book would be not to be so careless in the first place, and to take a few more precautions, it is easy to be wise in hindsight. In fact after a slow start, the story becomes fairly gripping even when you know how it will end. Written in diary style it follows the mental state of James and his sister as the chances of him being found alive slowly diminish. It is a little easy to get lost as to where the searchers are, and you need to make reference to the maps at the front on a regular basis. What would have happened without the fortitude and determination of his sister is fairly easy to guess

A great book for reminding us to be grateful for what we have-all James wanted in those 43 days was food, warmth and company.

This book is also a great testament to the awesome beauty of the Himalayas and its people