Tag: Bulgaria

How to climb K2 and Everest – Silvia Azdreeva’s journey

~ Veselin ~ 1 Comment

I read “To Conquer Yourself” by Silvia Azdreeva yesterday. A woman who likes hiking goes to the Himalayas and climbs Ama Dablam, with no prior high-altitude experience. It’s 288 pages of captivating insanity and by far the best book I had a chance to read in 2024. Makes “Into thin air” sound sane or rookie, with its mild insanity levels, and lack of ambition or real achievement.

You can’t turn a page without thinking that this couldn’t possibly be happening, that it’s made up, that she’s going to give up, or even die. But the evidence is clear – it did happen, and a series of difficult adventures were endured by a woman made of steel, blood, tears, vomit, and a gigantic bowl of emotions. Reading it made me cry several times and then enthusiastically promote it to friends and family, although it looks like mountaineering is not exactly a hot topic out there.

The book is not yet available in English but it should be because it’s powerful and unusual. 5/5.

Skyward

~ Veselin ~ Leave a comment

A world, surrounded by flying broken machinery. Humans, hiding underground, and under constant attack by alien spaceships. The future is grim but for the youngsters, it all looks like a game and plays like a game. And they, Spensa in particular, will try to game the system. The brand new book 4, published over the last couple of days, might be the conclusion where they’ll defeat at least some of the evil.

The Bulgarian edition is on a very hard cover. Like hardwood cover. I’m not very sure what material they’re made of but it is wood-like, very thick. It’s rough and painful to hold. Perhaps gypsum plasterboard? It is pretty if you don’t look from the side. Paperback was also available but I paid respect to the weird choice by the publisher and bought the strange one. I should remind myself to ask them about the material at the next book fair.

It’s one of the better series by Brandon Sanderson, I recommend it, although I’ve not started “Defiant” yet and don’t know the end. I hope it’s not a tragedy.