2018 Colorado Book Awards finalist in the Creative Nonfiction and
National Bestseller and **Honorable Mention Award Winner in the
Outdoor Literature category of the 2017 National Outdoor Book Awards
(NOBA)
"A beautiful book about family and finding a way to achieve more than
you ever thought possible." --Brad Meltzer, New York Times bestselling
author**
Erik Weihenmayer is the first and only blind person to summit Mount
Everest, the highest point on Earth. Descending carefully, he and his
team picked their way across deep crevasses and through the deadly
Khumbu Icefall; when the mountain was finally behind him, Erik knew he
was going to live. His expedition leader slapped him on the back and
said something that would affect the course of Erik's life: "Don't make
Everest the greatest thing you ever do."
No Barriers is Erik's response to that challenge. It is the moving
story of his journey since descending Mount Everest: from leading
expeditions around the world with blind Tibetan teenagers to helping
injured soldiers climb their way home from war, from adopting a son from
Nepal to facing the most terrifying reach of his life: to solo kayak the
thunderous whitewater of the Grand Canyon.
Along the course of Erik's journey, he meets other
trailblazers--adventurers, scientists, artists, and activists--who,
despite trauma, hardship, and loss, have broken through barriers of
their own. These pioneers show Erik surprising ways forward that surpass
logic and defy traditional thinking.
Like the rapids of the Grand Canyon, created by inexorable forces far
beneath the surface, No Barriers is a dive into the heart and mind at
the core of the turbulent human experience. It is an exploration of the
light that burns in all of us, the obstacles that threaten to extinguish
that light, and the treacherous ascent towards growth and rebirth.
