Maria Coffey, Børge Ousland and Book Awards
Thursday, November 6, 8 p.m.

Maria Coffey confronted one of the harshest realities for those who love mountaineers after her partner, Joe Tasker, disappeared on the Northeast Ridge of Everest in 1982. She eloquently explored the human side of mountaineering in her first book, "Fragile Edge". On Thursday evening, Maria read from her newest book, "Where the Mountain Casts Its Shadow: The Dark Side of Extreme Adventure", an examination of the toll mountaineering takes on those left behind. Coffey's groundbreaking book tackles the romantic myth of mountaineering, painting a shockingly real picture of its private world, its extraordinary moments of exhilaration and its far-reaching personal costs.

Also on Thursday evening, Norwegian adventurer Børge Ousland took us into the icy heart of polar exploration. The first person to trek solo and unaided to both the South and North poles, Ousland trained by dragging car tires behind him as he skied with 175 pounds of old phone books and lead in his backpack. Ousland shared the grueling challenges and unearthly beauty he experienced in these frozen landscapes.