Welcome to our library of Nepal Books and Trekking Guides.
Below, we have tried to outline the best trekking guidebooks and general fiction books on Nepal mountaineering.
Best Overall Trekking Guide
Lonely Planet Trekking in the Nepal Himalaya by Bradley Mayhew, Joe Bindloss and Lonely Planet is the best all-round trekking guide for Nepal. It includes 30 detailed itineraries on the most popular routes, including Everest Base Camp and the Annapurna Circuit.
Best Travel Guide to Nepal
The 11th edition of Lonely Planet Nepal (Travel Guide) by Bradley Mayhew, Lindsay Brown, Trent Holden and Lonely Planet is by far the best travel guidebook companion for Nepal. It's super comprehensive and brilliantly laid out for fast regional and city references.
Best Regional Trekking Guides
Everest Region or Khumbu
A Trekking Guide to Everest by Sian Pritchard-Jones, Bob Gibbons and the Himalayan Map House is absolutely brilliant. It's so good that we would say you can trek in this region solo with this guide, and not have to ask anyone any questions!
Annapurna Region
Annapurna: A Trekker's Guide by Sian Pritchard-Jones and Bob Gibbons is another reliable and great guide. It's recently been updated with details on New Annapurna and Cicerone Trekking Trails.
We also recommend Trekking the Annapurna Circuit by Prem Rai and Andrées de Ruiter. It's a more up-to-date Annapurna guide that has very accurate information on the NATT-Trails. It is now available on Kindle too.
Langtang Region
A Trekking Guide to Langtang: Gosainkund, Helambu and Tamang Heritage Trail by Sian Pritchard-Jones, Bob Gibbons and the Himalayan Map House is the best trekking guide available for the Langtang region. It's also been recently updated too!
Manaslu Region
A Trekking Guide to Manaslu and Tsum Valley: Lower Manaslu & Ganesh Himal by Sian Pritchard-Jones, Bob Gibbons and the Himalayan Map House is the best trekking guide for the Manaslu region. It's also been recently updated.
Dolpo Region
A Trekking Guide to Upper and Lower Dolpo by Sian Pritchard-Jones, Bob Gibbons and the Himalayan Map House is the best trekking guide for the Dolpo region and also been recently updated.
Nepal Himalaya Classics
The Snow Leopard (Penguin Classics) by Peter Matthiessen was published in 1978 and one of the best travel books on the region. The Snow Leopard won the 1979 National Book Award in the category of Contemporary Thought and the 1980 National Book Award for Nonfiction. It was voted in the Top 100 Travel Books by World Hums and the top 80 Around the World books by National Geographic!
Best Everest Climbing Books
Everest: The West Ridge by Thomas Hornbein was published in 1965. Hornbein was the first person to climb Everest via the treacherous West Route. This book is his account of the expedition, which is an absolute classic and must-read for anyone interested in Mount Everest.
The Crystal Horizon: Everest - The First Solo Ascent by Reinhold Messner was published in 1988. Messner is not the greatest writer, but he is one of the greatest climbers to have ever lived. This book tells of his experience as the first person to ascend Everest solo and worth the read!
Into Thin Air: A Personal Account of the Mt. Everest Disaster by Jon Krakuer was published in 1997. If you can only read one book on Everest, this is it. Krakuer's first-hand account of what happened on Everest's most deadly day in May 1996 is harrowing!
The Climb: Tragic Ambitions on Everest by Anatoli Boukreev was published in 2002. In response to Krakuer’s book, Anatoli Boukreev wrote his own account, which tells a slightly different story from that of 'Into Thin Air'. Read both and make up your own mind.
Best Annapurna Climbing Books
Annapurna: The First Conquest of an 8,000 Meter Peak by Maurice Hertzog was first published in 1952. If we had to recommend one book on Annapurna, it would be Hertzog's account of his expedition's maiden summit on the world's most dangerous mountain. It was voted one of the Top 100 Sports Books of All Time by Sports Illustrated.
Annapurna: A Woman's Place by Arlene Blum was first published in 1980. In 1978, Arlene Blum led a team of 13 women on an expedition to climb Annapurna. This story tells of the scale and difficulty involved in a Himalayan expedition and is totally gripping!
The Will to Climb: Obsession and Commitment and the Quest to Climb Annapurna - The World's Deadliest Peak by Ed Viesturs and David Roberts was published in 2013. Annapurna was the last 8000er that Viesturs climbed to become the 5th person to scale all fourteen 8000m peaks without supplementary oxygen. It took him three goes but he eventually got there. This book tells the story of his nemesis - Annapurna!
Best K2 Climbing Books
K2, situated in the Pakistan Karakoram, is the second highest mountain in the world. Many fantastic, yet tragic, books have been written about K2. Here are our favourites:
No Way Down: Life and Death on K2 by Graham Bowley was published in 2011. 'No Way Down' tells the story of one of the worst mountaineering disasters ever. You will not be able to put this book down. It is excellently researched and brilliant storytelling. You won't put this book down until it is finished.
The Time Has Come: Ger McDonnell - His Life & His Death on K2 by Damien O'Brien was published in 2012. It was written by the brother-in-law of the late Ger McDonnell who died along with 11 other climbers during the disastrous descent from the summit if K2 in 2008. It has fascinating insight into what drives high altitude mountaineers.
Buried in the Sky: The Extraordinary Story of the Sherpa Climbers on K2's Deadliest Day by Peter Zuckerman and Amanda Padoan was published in 2013. If you only have enough time for one K2 book, then this is it. It is an incredible story of the loyalty and bravery shown by mountaineering sherpas.
K2: Life and Death on the World's Most Dangerous Mountain by Ed Viesturs and David Roberts was published in 2010. It is a brilliant book that focuses on 7 of the mountains most dramatic expeditions, including Viesturs' iconic climb with the late Scott Fischer in 1992.
Savage Summit: The Life and Death of the First Women of K2 by Jennifer Jordan was published in 2006. Jordan tells the gripping story of the handful of women who have successfully climbed K2. It's a fascinating read!
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FAQ
We are constantly updating our library, so if you think any worthy Nepal books are missing, please leave a comment below and we will read and review the book. If we like it, we will include it here.
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