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Shop nowRising
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“Sharon Wood, the first North American woman to summit Everest, reflects on her groundbreaking achievement, on the sport of mountaineering, and on the subsequent 30 years of personal and relationship development. Written lyrically about the harsh natural environment and with unflinching honesty about personal growth, Rising illustrates how social connections and support systems – essentially relationships of all kinds – can have lingering effects and shape the path to success.”
— BrocheAroe • River Dog Book Co.
In Rising, Wood reflects on the seventy days she spent on Everest and on the pivotal experiences and influences that brought her to that staggeringly beautiful and austere corner of the world. Beyond the physical hardships, she faced personal challenges as an outlier in the male bastion of Himalayan climbing. These were compounded by the vexing presence of her past mentor and lover with his new girlfriend on the American team climbing on the same side of the mountain. It didn't help that the media pitched the two women as rivals, both vying to become the first North American woman to reach the summit of the highest mountain in the world. Wood rose to all these challenges, finding camaraderie and inspiration among her teammates.
Rising is both a gripping, adrenalin-filled mountain story and a reflective memoir that reaches beyond the summit to explore a life lived in Everest's long shadow: unexpected acclaim, outrageous expectations, and personal struggles. As Wood tells her story today, her perspective is steeped in six decades of life experience rich with adventure, change, growth, and humility. It is a tale that feels poignantly relevant—a testament to the strength of the human spirit to overcome all obstacles, whether mountain peaks, social expectations, or self-imposed barriers.
Sharon Wood is an internationally certified alpine guide and was recognized with the "Mountaineer of the Year Award" in 1987 by the American Alpine Club. She is a writer, business owner, and sought-after professional speaker. Her writing has appeared in the Vancouver Magazine and in Everest: The Best Writing and Pictures from Seventy Years of Human Endeavour. Sharon lives in Canmore, Alberta, where she continues to teach and guide in the Canadian Rockies.
Emily Durante has been acting since the age of seven, performing in a number of stage plays professionally, in the community, and at the college level. Other performance credits include commercial and industrial voice work, educational live theater, and singing telegrams. She has been narrating audiobooks for over ten years. Her titles include the Midnight Twins trilogy by Jacquelyn Mitchard, Casting Off by Nicole R. Dickson, Impossible and Locked Inside both by Nancy Werlin, and Smooth Talking Stranger by Lisa Kleypas. She has also directed audiobooks, including the Earphones Award-winning performance of Heaven's Keep narrated by Buck Schirner. Emily resides in the Philadelphia area with her husband and two children.