Murder in the High Himalaya: Loyalty, Tragedy, and Escape from Tibet

Unbelievable

For anyone who calls himself or herself a humanitarian, this book should be on your list to read. It is the harrowing story of a young Tibetan nun trying to make it across the border into India along with her best friend and a large group of Tibetans, to gain freedom, religious and otherwise, from a stifling Chinese rule.
This is a non-fiction book but it reads so smoothly, without the endless citing of statistics or names that can make some books of that genre seem stilted. The chapters alternate between the Tibetans attempting the dangerous journey, and a group of climbers who come face to face with the secret atrocities being committed against human rights, showing the many points of view with a journalist's careful and impartial eye. The story, however, is almost incredible to read. The author has managed to cross through the red tape that China imposes, to expose a system that abuses a large part of its citizens and that has managed to hide, through censorship and violence, the real truth of Tibetans' plight under Chinese rule.
This book is not easy to read because of the violence and the cruelty inherent in its theme, but it should be read and shared with as many people as possible. We need to become aware of what is going on around us, and this includes knowing what one of the most powerful countries in the world, China, is doing to its citizens. You will not be disappointed in the book, but you might be in our species.

2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

Self interest

As I read this book I kept thinking that history keeps repeating itself.
We don't seem to learn. Self interest seems to be every where in this
world. This book will invigorate the hardships of Tibet. People need to be reminded because they forget easily.

The mountaineering section of the book was interesting.

2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

Telling the Truth

Murder in the High Himalaya is an exquisitely crafted tale that depicts nearly indescribable horrors. It is actually three vivid stories, woven seamlessly together: the heroic attempts of impoverished Tibetans to survive economically, culturally and spiritually; the ethical dilemma of wealthy Westerners faced with choosing between dangerous self-indulgence and moral imperative; and the abuse and torture inflicted by the Chinese as they pursue genocide in their relentless drive for world dominance.

These three irreconcilable cultures converge at a moment in time - September 30th 2006 - at a single place on Earth: the Nangpa La Pass through the Himalayan Mountain Range between Tibet and Nepal. In the brilliant morning sunlight on snowy mountains, Western climbers witness Chinese border soldiers murdering Tibetans, including a 17-year-old nun, as the Tibetans attempt to go to India to meet their spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama. The Tibetans want to leave oppressive captivity in their own country - some briefly, some permanently - and are restrained, retained and tortured by the Chinese occupying forces. The Western climbers want to battle the thin air and treacherous ice of the world's highest mountains, and pay extraordinary amounts of money to the Chinese for the right to safely enter Tibet. The Chinese stand at the fulcrum, AK-47s fully loaded in the hands of young soldiers.

It is one thing to tell a story; it is another to tell a story truthfully; it is yet again a much more nuanced and delicate task to be both elegant and objective, and allow the story to unfold itself to the reader. The author has achieved the last of these three, and the death of 17-year-old Tibetan Buddhist nun Kelsang Namtso is all the more heart wrenching because Mr. Green remains objective and lets the facts to be the judge. Additionally, he goes beyond superficial cultural stereotypes as he describes the political history of Tibet, the complexities of current world politics and the motivations and choices of individuals.

There is a fourth thread in this braided tale: the perseverance and courage of the author, award-winning investigative journalist Jonathan Green. He obviously thoroughly researched the history and current events of Tibet and is well schooled in world politics. It is also clear, by implication only, that Mr. Green risked his own welfare, traveling to India, Nepal and the Roof of the World to gather first-hand information for the story. It is clear only by implication because it is the writer's job to step aside and allow the story to emerge, and that is exactly what Mr. Green achieved.

I hope Jonathan's next book is the back-story; the risks and dilemmas he faced in order to tell the truth with extraordinary clarity, depth and compassion. We, the readers, have a responsibility to honor and thank investigative journalists for bringing the world to us in our safe homes and comfortable chairs. Too often, we forget that investigative journalists are irreparably harmed or killed in their commitment to tell the truth.

So I say here: Thank you, Jonathan Green, for all you did to write this book, and then for writing it. It is essential that human rights violations be documented and the details available for all in the world to know.

2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

Highly recommended

This book draws you into the lives of a group of Tibetans trying to get out of Tibet to visit the Dalai Lama as their lives cross the paths of western climbers about to ascend the mountain peak for a few horrific moments. It is a story about courage and fear that is honest, heartbreaking and true. It is not a light read or an easy read, but it is definitely worth it.

2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

Excellent read on a tough subject!!!

I found out the night before the book reading about this book and I am glad I replied to the e-mail that I would be attending.

Prior to this I was well aware of the story of Kelsang & Dolma via the videos I had seen of their desperate escape from Tibet to seek freedom to enjoy their religion and seek a proper Tibetan education as this was not possible in China under CCP laws.

Knowing what I know of the CCP and how they try and hide anything that might harm the image they are cultivating I can guarantee you this was not an easy book to write, but Jonathan does prevail and has written a fabulous story despite the odds that tells the true story of Kelsang & Dolma, from the very start from their home in Tibet to the tragedy of the Nangpa La to Nepal and on to the final destination of Dharamsala, India. The story shows the true love and compassion that Dolma & Kelsang shared for one another because of their life time of friendship and how even in death that bond could and would not be broken by anything that might try and prevent this story from being told.

Jonathan has done a wonderful job making a difficult subject easy to read with enough facts to get the story told but without getting the reader lost in too little or too many facts like some books tend to do. Pauses in the chapters make it easy to set down when you have to and easy to pick back up and start back on the journey with Kelsang & Dolma.

So I would urge you to join the journey and feel the joys and the fears and the pain of a journey from Tibet to India along the worlds highest mountain peaks!!

2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

An engrossing and moving read.

Imagine the desperation and courage it takes to cross the highest mountains in the world on foot, risking frostbite and braving snowstorms.

Now imagine watching unarmed refugees being shot at by soldiers, and hesitating to speak out because it might ruin your chances to climb the same mountains.

This book tells both of these incredible stories in a measured and engrossing way.

Chinese soldiers shoot and kill Tibetans crossing the Nangpa Pass every year but Tibetans didn't have any 'hard' proof. until this incident was caught on tape. The murder of young Kelsang Namtso at the Nangpa Pass mobilized a new generation of Tibetan activists around the world and changed the Tibet movement forever.

2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

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