HIMALAYAS
Himalayas   |   READING AND TRAVEL GUIDE

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Essential Books These 5 items are available for $82, including
U.S. shipping, a 15% discount (Item no. EXHML31)		  
So Close to Heaven, The Vanishing Buddhist Kingdoms of the Himalayas  •  Barbara Crossette
TRAVEL NARRATIVE •  1996 •  PAPER  • 297 PAGES • FAVORITE
A "New York Times" Asia correspondent writes of Bhutan and neighboring kingdoms of Ladakh and Sikkim in the Himalayas, strongholds of Tantric Buddhism in an increasingly homogenized world. It's part travelogue and part history -- a personal portrait of the region. (NPL04, $16.00)		   So Close to Heaven, The Vanishing Buddhist Kingdoms of the Himalayas
The Blessings of Bhutan  •  Russ and Blyth Carpenter
CULTURAL PORTRAIT •  2002 •  PAPER  • 192 PAGES • HARD TO FIND ELSEWHERE
Not a travelogue, this is instead an introduction to Bhutan -- its people, customs, religion and history -- as interpreted by a husband-and-wife team who has made Bhutan their second home. (BHU16, $26.99)		   The Blessings of Bhutan
The Snow Leopard  •  Peter Matthiessen
EXPLORATION •  2008 •  PAPER  • 368 PAGES • FAVORITE
The most perceptive, acutely observed and personal of all his books, Matthiessen's account of a five-week journey through Nepal with George Schaller combines their quest for the magnificent cat with a moving introduction to Buddhism and the people and culture of the Himalayas. (NPL03, $16.00)		   The Snow Leopard
Essential Tibetan Buddhism  •  Robert Thurman
RELIGION •  1996 •  PAPER  • 317 PAGES
A collection of recently translated texts by the foremost Western scholar of Tibetan Buddhism. Thurman has chosen well from that tradition's sacred literature and helpfully includes suggested further reading, explanatory notes and a directory of sacred sites. (TBT15, $14.99)		   Essential Tibetan Buddhism
Himalaya Map  •  Nelles
MAP
A colorful regional map of the Himalayas at a scale of 1:1,500,000, including Nepal, Bhutan, Tibet and Sikkim. Two Sides. 20x40 inches. (HML09, $13.95)		   Himalaya Map



Also Recommended

Khumbu Trekking Map  •  Trails Illustrated    •  This National Geographic map of Sargmatha National Park and Everest (1:125,000) includes 100-meter contour lines, index, a city map of Kathmandu and overview map of Nepal. (NPL47, $11.99)
 		  
Altitude Illness: Prevention and Treatment, How to Stay Healthy at Altitude  •  Stephen Bezruchka   • REFERENCE  •  Bezruchka, a mountaineer and M.D., includes case studies, frequently asked questions and simple methods of diagnosis and treatment in this indispensable pocket guide. (REF02, $8.95)
 		  
Bradt Guide Tibet  •  Michael Buckley   • GUIDEBOOK  •  A practical, detailed overview of Tibetan history, culture, attractions and natural life. Includes color photographs, local maps and excellent travel information. (TBT74, $22.95)
 		  
Odyssey Guide Bhutan  •  Francoise Pommaret   • GUIDEBOOK  •  A compact overview of the kingdom, its culture, history, flora and fauna by a resident scholar, enhanced by color photographs and maps. (BHU03, $23.95)
 		  
Shangri-la: A Practical Guide to the Himalayan Dream  •  Michael Buckley   • GUIDEBOOK • NEW  •  With marvelous chapters on James Hilton's book and the many meanings and myths surrounding Shangri-La, Buckley's practical guide covers the contenders for this mythical Himalayan paradise in Southwest China, Tibet, Nepal, Sikkim and Bhutan. With many maps and color photographs. (HML84, $25.99)
 		  
Spectrum Guide to Nepal  •  Camerapix   • GUIDEBOOK  •  A comprehensive guide to the country, its people, history, culture and geography, featuring excellent maps and 200 color photographs. (NPL27, $22.95)
 		  
Trekking Tibet  •  Gary McCue  •  George Schaller   • GUIDEBOOK  •  An indispensable guide, featuring pre-trip planning, discussions of the most scenic routes and an overview of Tibetan culture and history. (TBT10, $29.95)
 		  
Himalaya, Personal Stories of Grandeur, Challenge, and Hope on the Roof of the World  •  Broughton Coburn  •  Richard C. Blum  •  Erica Stone   • CULTURAL PORTRAIT  •  A beautifully photographed overview of the geology, history and people of the Himalayas. (HML78, $35.00)
 		  
The Dragon in the Land of Snows  •  Tsering Shakya   • HISTORY  •  A comprehensive account of the history and political development of Tibet since 1947, which includes eye-opening details of the American, British and Indian players involved in Tibet's struggle for sovereignty. (TBT32, $18.00)
 		  
The Open Road, The Global Journey of the Fourteenth Dalai Lama  •  Pico Iyer   • CULTURAL PORTRAIT  •  Travel writer Pico Iyer, who has known the Dalai Lama since his days as a graduate student in Britain, draws on his long association with the man and his ideas for this remarkable portrait of the Tibetan people and the aspirations of their leader. He includes chapters on daily life in Dharamsala, travels with the Dalai Lama and incisive commentary on the history and future of Tibet. (TBT118, $14.95)
 		  
The Raven Crown  •  Michael Aris   • HISTORY  •  Aris chronicles the rise of the Wangchuk dynasty in this beautifully illustrated history of the kingdom and its 20th-century monarchy, featuring 106 rare photographs. (BHU02, $60.00)
 		  
Trespassers on the Roof of the World  •  Peter Hopkirk   • HISTORY  •  Hopkirk's spellbinding history of the uninvited exploration of Tibet from the 19th century to the present, including a fantastic array of Victorian adventurers. His wild tale has as its centerpiece the 1949-1951 invasion by China. (TBT08, $16.00)
 		  
Heavenly Himalayas, The Murals of Mangyu and Other Discoveries in Ladakh  •  Amy Heller  •  Gerald Kozicz  •  Rob Linrothe  •  Peter Van Ham   • ART & ARCHITECTURE  •  Van Ham's exquisite portrait of Ladakh during the Buddhist era includes 189 full-color photographs, 14 line drawings and a map. (HML102, $75.00)
 		  
Annapurna, The Epic Account of a Himalayan Conquest and its Harrowing Aftermath  •  Maurice Herzog   • EXPLORATION • FAVORITE  •  Conrad Anker provides a new foreword for this new 60th-anniversary edition of Maurice Herzog's classic, dictated from his hospital bed in Paris. French minister of youth and sport in the 1960s and former mayor of Chamonix, Herzog recovered nicely (he's 102 in 2011). (HML07, $16.95)
 		  
Beyond the Sky and the Earth  •  Jamie Zeppa   • TRAVEL NARRATIVE  •  Zeppa's memoir of her time as teacher in a remote village shows her growing love and commitment to the people and culture. (BHU08, $16.00)
 		  
Fallen Giants  •  Stewart Weaver  •  Maurice Isserman   • EXPLORATION  •  Subtitled A history of Himalayan Mountaineering from the Age of Empire to the Age of Extremes, this book chronicles the many climbs and the teams of climbers who made them, evoking powerfully the bonds of fellowship between climbers. With maps and many illustrations. (HML85, $39.95)
 		  
Freedom in Exile, The Autobiography of the Dalai Lama  •  Dalai Lama   • BIOGRAPHY/MEMOIR  •  A vivid self-portrait, told with optimism, great determination, humor and insight. (TBT25, $15.99)
 		  
From Heaven Lake, Travels Through Sinkiang and Tibet  •  Vikram Seth   • TRAVEL NARRATIVE  •  An unconventional, award-winning travelogue of a 1981 trip to India from China via the Himalayas by the marvelous Indian novelist Vikram Seth. (HML19, $15.00)
 		  
Himalayan Passage, Seven Months in the High Country of Tibet, Nepal, China, India, & Pakistan  •  Jeremy Schmidt   • TRAVEL NARRATIVE  •  National Geographic Expert Jeremy Schmidt and photographer Patrick Morrow recount their circumnavigation of the Himalayas, accompanied by their wives. Their journey by bike, truck and foot across Tibet, Nepal, China, India and Pakistan is illustrated with 32 pages of color photographs. (HML05, $18.95)
 		  
My Journey to Lhasa  •  Alexandra David-Neel   • TRAVEL NARRATIVE  •  Dressed as a humble pilgrim and traveling under the cover of night, the indomitable 55-year-old David-Neel and her young companion climbed mountains and tricked soldiers to ultimately reach Tibet's forbidden capital. Originally published in 1923, her account stands as a riveting portrait of early 20th-century Tibet. (TBT26, $14.99)
 		  
The Way of the White Clouds  •  Lama Anagarika Govinda  •  Robert Thurman   • TRAVEL NARRATIVE  •  The 40th anniversary edition of the remarkable German-born monk and interpreter of Tibetan Buddhism's account of travels and discoveries in Tibet before the 1950 Chinese invasion. (TBT87, $19.95)
 		  
The Will to Climb  •  Ed Viesturs   • EXPLORATION  •  In collaboration with writer and fellow mountaineer David Roberts, the great climber tackles the history and adventure of Annapurna. (HML103, $26.00)
 		  
Turtle Feet, The Making and Unmaking of a Buddhist Monk  •  Nikolai Grozni   • BIOGRAPHY/MEMOIR  •  Grozni writes with insight and humor about his pilgrimage to the Himalayas, the quirky characters he meets and his experience with Buddhism, ultimately finding wisdom and spirituality off the beaten path. (HML83, $24.95)
 		  
Escape from Kathmandu  •  Kim Stanley Robinson   • LITERATURE  •  The four interconnected stories in this laugh-out-loud novel include the (mis)adventures of two young Americans with a Yeti, international espionage, mountain climbing of the highest sort and a quest for Shangri-La. (NPL41, $18.99)
 		  
Lost Horizon, A Novel  •  James Hilton   • LITERATURE  •  First published in 1933, this novel (and subsequent movie) introduced the world to the Himalayan paradise of Shangri-La, which a group of Americans and Englishmen discover after a plane crash. (HML73, $12.99)
 		  
The Ascent of Rum Doodle  •  W. E. Bowman   • LITERATURE  •  This hilarious send-up of the great British mountaineers, originally published in 1956, is hardly handicapped by the fact that Bowman never set foot in the Himalayas. (HML55, $15.95)
 		  
The Circle of Karma, A Novel  •  Kunzang Choden   • LITERATURE  •  The first novel by a Bhutanese woman, this lyrical coming-of-age story explores the rituals of daily life in Bhutan. When Tsomo's mother suddenly dies, the young girl must travel alone across Bhutan and into India. (BHU26, $14.00)
 		  
Tales of the Rose Tree, Ravishing Rhododendrons and Their Travels Around the World  •  Jane Brown   • NATURAL HISTORY  •  An English garden writer, Brown offers an entertaining, learned whirlwind tour through the social, commercial and botanical history of the much-loved ornamental, including a roundup of early collecting forays into Asia and the Himalayas. (GEN372, $35.00)
 		  
Photographic Guide to Birds of the Himalayas  •  Bikram Grewal   • FIELD GUIDE  •  A pocket guide to 250 birds found from the foothills up to high elevations ranging from the Hindu Kush and Kashmir to Arunachal Pradesh in the Eastern Himalayas. With brief descriptive information, maps and 260 full-color illustrations. (HML31, $15.95)
 		  
 
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