My old man and the mountain

Finalist for the 2017 Washington State Book Awards

Nautilus Book Awards Silver Medalist

Finalist for the 2017 Banff Mountain Book Festival

"Whittaker writes as he climbs mountains, with courage, grace, and a dash of humility. The result is an utterly compelling tale of a young man who bravely tackles two great challenges--one made of rock and ice and one made of doubts and fears. It's a great read." --Daniel James Brown, author of The Boys in the Boat.

"For mountaineers, both armchair and real alpinists, Leif Whittaker's My Old Man and the Mountain, is a great read. He's from a dynastic climbing family, but doesn't let his royal lineage get to him. Book is funny and poignant." --Tim Egan, author of The Good Rain. 

"Leif Whittaker, son of the first American to summit Everest, has given us a deliciously irreverent perspective on growing up in the shadow of a famous father, and how that journey helped shape a unique perspective on one young man's own relationship with a mountain...and a dad." --Tom Hornbein, author of Everest: The West Ridge. 

"Fortunately, Whittaker brought a talent for inventive, unconstrained language along with his crampons and plastic boots. His narration breathes life into the country and its people, from the stupas, temples, lamas, and rituals along the trail from Kathmandu to Base Camp, where boredom, primitive accommodations, and altitude-related ailments compete with the camaraderie of other climbers and the simmering impatience to get on with the work." --Jon Foro, Amazon Book Review. 

"It might be easy to feel lost in the shadow of a father who was the first American to stand on top of Mount Everest. Leif Whittaker tells the unique story of finding his own identity--as a son, and as a climber--with humility, candor, and a wonderful sense of humor." --Brendan Leonard, author of Sixty Meters to Anywhere.