Ian Birrell

The courage of a madman: Maurice Wilson’s doomed assault on Everest

Ed Caesar describes how an engaging maverick set out to conquer Everest in 1934 with a crippled arm, no crampons and a defective altimeter

Maurice Wilson was such an inexperienced pilot that when he left for Everest he nearly crashed by taking off in the wrong direction with the wind. Credit: Getty Images
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  • The Moth and the Mountain: A True Story of Love, War and Everest

    Ed Caesar

    Viking, pp. 320, £18

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