Keep Climbing: How I Beat Cancer and Reached the Top of the World Book

I had the opportunity to hear this author speak of his life experiences and as I am a cancer survivor and a reader of mountaineering literature it was an easy sell. Sean Swarner has a wonderful sense of humor and a smile that could light up a dark room. Its not hard to see why. The man has been given a gift.

Sean Swarner survived two separate kinds of cancer. In fact he is the only one in the world to have been diagnosed with both Hodgkins's disease and Askin's sarcoma. With the first diagnosis he was given three months to live, with the second it was only three weeks. His youth was a long series of endless treatments and this was in the old days before there was anti-nausea drugs given out with the chemo. He suffered greatly and he was robbed of his teen-age years.

No one knows why he developed two different kinds of cancer. No one knows why he is still alive. After it was all over to his and everyone else's astonishment he found himself in remission. Young and experiencing a survivor's high he decided to do the impossible and train to climb Everest. He knew nothing of climbing.

His narrative of his life and adventure is a refreshing change from most books in this genre. Normally the writer is an experienced climber who comes from a background of knowledge of the subject. If you are a novice at climbing you will find yourself learning right along with Sean and if you know something about the subject it will amuse you to read about familar paths and trails through fresh eyes.

I enjoyed it. It brought back many unpleasant memories but it also gave me a new way to view the world -"We shouldn't be afraid of dying. We should be afraid of living a life that doesn't matter'. True words from a brave and inspiring young man.