Sch-Mountaineer

He may be the most distinguished mountaineer of our time; since 1951, Bonington has amassed an impressive record of ascents from Chile to China, Alps to Himalayas and in his native Britain. He has described some of his climbs in The Everest Years , Kongur and other books. Here he recaps his adventures, augmenting the text with his spectacular photographs that provide a visual record of his major ascents. Bonington agonizes over the loss of companions on the high peaks: ``Were we reckless or just unlucky?'' This fine illustrated biography gives the reader a sense of what it is like to be compelled to climb mountains. (Mar.)