This new and important biography of Sir Edmund Hillary, a truly great New Zealander, breaks new ground among previous accounts of his life. The author, Michael Gill, was a close friend of Edmund Hillary's for over 50 years, accompanying him on many expeditions, and becoming heavily involved in his Himalayan aid work. He was also granted access by Sir Edmund's children to a large archive of private papers and photos that were deposited in the Auckland Museum after his death. Building on personal experience, and this new unpublished material, Michael Gill has written a wonderfully insightful and illuminating biography. He describes the uncertainties of the first 33 years of Edmund Hillary's life, as well as the always-fascinating stories of the early attempts on Mt Everest, all a prelude to the first ascent which brought him instant world-wide fame. But too, this biography reveals, in part through personal letters, the tender and loving relationship he had with his wife Louise. Her importance to him during their 22 years of marriage only underlines the horror of her death, along with that of their youngest daughter, in a plane crash in 1975. Sir Edmund eventually pulled out of the subsequent depression to continue his life's work building schools and hospitals in the Himalayas. Affectionate, but scrupulously fair, Michael Gill has gone further than anyone before to reveal the humanity of this remarkable man.

Edmund Hillary – A Biography is the story of the New Zealand beekeeper who climbed Mount Everest. A man who against expedition orders drove his tractor to the South Pole; a man honoured around the world for his pioneering climbs yet who collapsed on more than one occasion on a mountain, and a man who gave so much to Nepal yet lost his family to its mountains. The author, Michael Gill, was a close friend of Hillary's for nearly 50 years, accompanying him on many expeditions and becoming heavily involved in Hillary's aid work building schools and hospitals in the Himalaya. During the writing of this book, Gill was granted access to a large archive of private papers and photos that were deposited in the Auckland museum after Hillary's death in 2008. Building on this unpublished material, as well as his extensive personal experience, Michael Gill profiles a man whose life was shaped by both triumph and tragedy. Gill describes the uncertainties of the first 33 years of Hillary's life, during which time he served in the New Zealand air force during the Second World War, as well as the background to the first ascent of Mount Everest in 1953, when Hillary and Tenzing Norgay became the first climbers to reach the summit – a feat that brought the pair instant worldwide fame. He reveals the loving relationship Hillary had with his wife Louise, in part through their touching letters to each other. Her importance to him during their 22 years of marriage only underlines the horror of her death, along with that of their youngest daughter, Belinda, in a plane crash in 1975. Hillary eventually pulled out of his subsequent depression to continue his life's work in the Himalaya. Affectionate, but scrupulously fair, in Edmund Hillary – A Biography Michael Gill has gone further than anyone before to reveal the humanity of this remarkable man.

In a memoir by the first man to reach the peak of Everest, Hillary discusses the adventures that shaped his life, from the South Pole to the Ganges River.

Working closely with the author of the highly acclaimed Sir Edmund Hillary- An Extraordinary Life, writer David Larsen has produced a readable, exciting book aimed at young readers in the 9-14 age range. Reaching the Summitfollows in the tradition of successful recent books about Burt Munro and Sir Peter Blake, transforming bestselling adult books into accessible texts for younger readers. In Reaching the Summitthe emphasis is at all times on high adventure. The book tells the story of the young Ed Hillary growing up in the Waikato, his increasing love of climbing and the outdoors, his early climbs and growing reputation, then the Everest expedition and the ascent on Mt Everest itself. It describes in gripping fashion the successful assault on the summit by Hillary and Tensing Norgay, and the aftermath. Reaching the Summit then goes with Hillary to Antarctica and the trek to the South Pole, then summarises the rest of his life

In the late morning of May 29, 1953, the sun was shining brightly and a gentle breeze was blowing on the highest elevation of the world--and two men were there to witness it for the first time ever. Their names were Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay, and they had ascended Everest. This is the breathtaking story of how two very different, yet equally determined, men battled frost-biting temperatures, tumbling ice rocks, powerful winds, and death-defying ridges to reach the top of the world's highest mountain. Combining fresh and contemporary illustrations by Joe Todd-Stanton with Alexandra Stewart's captivating writing, this unique narrative tells the story of how Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay made their mark on the world from birth right up to their final days and the impact they've had on Nepal today.

This is the first biography of the renowned adventurer & mountaineer who pioneered the simple alpine-siege style.

Tenzing Norgay was the son of poor Tibetan immigrants living in Nepal. He longed to see the world but was told he could aspire to be little more than a servant. Edmund Hillary was a humble beekeeper from New Zealand, who spent his youth dreaming of adventures he could never hope to experience. And Everest was the ultimate adventure. The mountain's peak is the highest point on Earth, stretching beyond the clouds. So dangerous and challenging, Everest had never been successfully climbed and many had died trying. In 1953, Tenzing Norgay and Edmund Hillary joined a team of explorers determined to reach its top. Alone at the top of the world with their oxygen running low, they faced brutal elements and new dangers at every turn. And they were armed with little more than their courage, determination, and a belief in each other. But would that be enough to achieve the impossible, what no man had done before?

A biography of Edmund Hillary, whose love of snow, mountains, and the outdoor life culminated in his conquering the highest peak in the world.

'Well if you have a big life, a lot of stuff happens. Dad had a big life.' - Peter Hillary Edmund Hillary is a towering figure among adventurers. His conquest of Everest and his dedication to the welfare of the Nepalese people is well known. While much has been written about what Sir Edmund Hillary did, 'Ed', the man behind the legend, is less well known in large part because he controlled how his story was told. The years leading up to Everest and the other great adventures are remarkable enough, but it is the drama of Ed's later years that throws light onto the world of the private man: the death of his wife and daughter in an air crash, his remarriage to the widow of an old friend, and, finally, the falling out, after his own death, of family members and those in his inner circle. Ed's image was that of a simple, straightforward man, but in reality he was a complex bundle of paradoxes. He was an individualist who always worked with a team; a young loner who came to be loved by millions; a sometimes distant father who was seen as a surrogate parent by thousands of Nepalese; and a left-leaning thinker who accepted the highest order of chivalry from Queen Elizabeth II. This is the story of the man behind the legend.

Born and raised in a quiet country town in New Zealand, Edmund Hillary was a shy, unassuming schoolboy with an unremarkable career seemingly ahead of him. As a young man he discovered a love of mountaineering; it was a hobby that turned him into a legend of the twentieth century. Over sixty years after his memorable ascent of Everest, this book tells the full story of Sir Edmund Hillary's extraordinary life, from his expeditions to remote corners of the world to his humanitarian activities serving the Sherpa people. Drawing on Hillary's personal archives, it is an intimate but inspiring portrait of a revered yet modest man who lived life to the full - surviving personal tragedies as well as achieving historic triumphs, earning worldwide fame and displaying tireless philanthropy. Ranging from the roof of the world to the frozen extremes of the South Pole, Sir Edmund Hillary: An Extraordinary Life is a fitting and revealing tribute to a great man. 'Ed Hillary loved this book and so do we.' Peter Hillary, Sarah Hillary