Friday, March 22, 2013

HarperCollins New Zealand saddened to hear of the death of legendary New Zealander George Lowe



HarperCollins New Zealand is saddened to hear of the death of legendary New Zealand-born explorer, mountaineer, photographer and film-maker George Lowe.

Lowe was a leading climber on the 1953 British Everest expedition, forging the route up Everest's Lhotse Face and cutting steps all the way up the summit ridge for his best friend, Edmund Hillary.

HarperCollins Publishers announces that, on the sixtieth anniversary of the historic Everest expedition, it will publish Letters from Everest: A New Zealander's Account of the Epic First Ascent by George Lowe and edited by Dr Huw Lewis-Jones, in June.

Letters from Everest brings together, for the first time, unpublished letters from the Lowe collection to describe the day-to-day moments of the historic 1953 Everest expedition.

“I feel very fortunate to have been able to create this book for George over the course of the last year,” says Dr Lewis-Jones. 

“Letters from Everest went to press just a few days ago and Mary Lowe, George’s wife, saw the final proofs and told George all about how wonderful it looked. Mary is pleased that we can all honour him in this way and it makes it all the more important now that people can read George's words.”

“Given the sad news of Lowe’s passing, the publication of his letters seems even more poignant at this time,” says Vicki Marsdon, Associate Publisher at HarperCollins New Zealand.

Lowe and Hillary met while working in New Zealand's Southern Alps, in the years after the Second World War, and struck up a friendship.

In 1953 Lowe was invited to be part of the ultimately successful Everest expedition where he was an integral part in the success of the venture.

As often as he could, Lowe wrote letters home to his family, but the letters were more than just news – he also wrote in case he and his friend Ed Hillary never returned to tell the tale.

These rare and previously unpublished letters offer insight into a remarkable and historic expedition which is an integral part of New Zealand’s history.

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