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    To the Last Breath: A Memoir of Going to Extremes
    To the Last Breath: A Memoir of Going to Extremes
    To the Last Breath: A Memoir of Going to Extremes
    Audiobook7 hours

    To the Last Breath: A Memoir of Going to Extremes

    Written by Francis Slakey

    Narrated by Francis Slakey

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    About this audiobook

    Before Georgetown physics professor Francis Slakey decided to climb the highest mountain on every continent and surf every ocean, he had shut himself off from other people. His lectures were mechanical; his relationships were little more than ways to fill the evenings. But as his journey veered dangerously off course, everything about him began to change.

    A gripping adventure of the body and mind, To the Last Breath depicts the quest that leads Slakey around the globe, almost takes his life, challenges his fiercely held beliefs, and opens his heart. The scientist in Slakey explores the history of Robert Falcon Scott’s doomed Antarctica expedition, the technology of climbing, and the geophysics of waves. But it is the challenges he endures and the people he encounters—a Lama who gives him a mysterious amulet, a life-or-death choice atop Everest, an ambush at gunpoint in Indonesia, a head-on collision in the high desert—that culminate in a moving lesson about what it means to be human.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherBrilliance Audio
    Release dateMay 8, 2012
    ISBN9781455876792
    Author

    Francis Slakey

    Francis Slakey is the Upjohn Lecturer on Physics and Public Policy at Georgetown University and an Associate Director of Public Affairs at the American Physical Society, where his focus is the intersection of science and society. The founder and co-director of the Program on Science in the Public Interest, a Lemelson Associate of the Smithsonian Institution, and a MacArthur Scholar, Dr. Slakey has been featured by NPR, National Geographic, and others, and his writing has appeared in The Washington Post, The New York Times, Slate, and Scientific American.

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    Reviews for To the Last Breath

    4/5

    26 ratings3 reviews

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    • 4/5
      Francis Slakey is a scientist and a professor who suddenly realizes his life does not have meaning, is not the kind of life he wants to lead. Thus, he begins a journey to find that meaning, to live the life he wants to live across the globe. When his plan veers off track, he begins to change while almost losing his life and changing his inner core beliefs. This is the story of a person in search of himself. The travels are fine for this, but it is really the challenges resented that show him who he really is and how to really live his life. The story, however, focuses on his life rather than some of the amazing feats that he achieves, leaving the reader to question who the author really is and whether this is just another self-centered person trying to cash in on a book deal. The book descriptions were fairly good but not as complete as they could have been and may have left the reader wanting for more. However, as a book about learning the importance of science in today’s world and the value of personal interactions and relationships, this is a real winner. It really depends on what the reader is looking for in a book. I received this book as art of the goodreads giveaway.
    • 4/5
      The memoir and gripping adventure stories of Francis Slakey, Physics and Public Policy lecturer at Georgetown University. Slakey took on the challenge to climb the highest mountain on every continent and to surf every ocean. This is the story of personal growth, connections made, and the lessons learned that he passes on to his students.
    • 4/5
      I absolutely loved this book, from the first page to the last page it was hard to put down. If I had the chance I would have read it through in one day. It was exciting but mostly it was insightful, to watch him on his journey how he transformed from the disconnected person he was to one with such passion. I would recommend this book to everyone, however if you want to read a book about mountain climbing and surfing this may not be the one for you. This is more about his journey and less about his adventures.I won this book from Goodreads.