Sherpa (book)

Sherpa: Stories of Life and Death from the Forgotten Guardians of Everest is a 2022 narrative non-fiction book by Nepali authors Pradeep Bashyal and Ankit Babu Adhikari. It was first published by Cassel, an imprint of Octopus Publishing Group, UK on 28 July 2022. The book is an oral history that unveils the untold stories of Sherpas, shedding light on their extraordinary mountaineering triumphs and tragedies. It was shortlisted for the 2023 Boardman Tasker Prize for Mountain Literature.

Synopsis
Sherpa recounts the tales of Sherpas in the book. It is a tale of struggle and perseverance on the Everest. It delves deeply into their lives and tells how they live on the edge of life and death. The book covers the range of time covering as early as the first-generation climbing Sherpas from the 1930s and 1940s. And comes the range of geography covering key Sherpa hubs of Khumbu, Rolwaling, Makalu and Darjeeling. Through the dozens of characters, the authors explore the act of climbing, as well as the life and culture, myths and religions that have shaped Sherpa lives for generations.

Reception
The Telegraph wrote in its review that "the human-centric stories of Sherpas aren't told with as much sensitivity, candour, and creativity as they're in Sherpa." The Times Literary Supplement called it "the first English-language book devoted to these remarkable people." The Spectator wrote reviewing the book as "sherpas may once have been the dogsbodies in other people's adventures but today they are the heroes – and, increasingly, heroines – of their own story." The Hindu reviews asking readers "the next time you hear of someone summitting Mt. Everest, spare a thought for the one that made it possible." Dawn newspaper wrote "packing in plenty of information about what goes on behind the scenes of a summiting expedition, Bashyal and Adhikari's book gives credit where it is due." The Kathmandu Post writes the book "brilliantly portrayed a moving human side of people performing the world's deadliest job."

Nepali Times writes: Sherpa "attempts to go behind the climbs to portray the lives, dreams, and destinies of the people who have made their surname and ethnicity a word for ‘support crew’ in the English language dictionary." The reviewer of Business Standard wrote: "In describing them as 'forgotten guardians of Everest', the authors remind us of the worth of these mostly unacknowledged enablers behind those triumphal headlines of this or that person summiting Everest each year." Annapurna Post newspaper writes "every chapter reads like a documentary film" whereas Online Khabar news portal says it has "great history lesson for both Nepalis and foreigners." The Conversation wrote: "They entwine the climbers’ stories of achievement and disaster on the mountains with tales of family struggles off the mountain." The Annapurna Express reviews the book as "an engaging work of storytelling that adds to the body of work on Everest, which already includes Wade Davis’ ‘Into the Silence’ and Jon Krakauer's ‘Into Thin Air’."

Translation
It was translated in Italian as Sherpa: I Custodi Dell’Everest by Clara Mazzi and published by Corbaccio, a publisher based in Milan in 2023.