Name: Valley of Giants: Stories from Women at the Heart of Yosemite Climbing
ISBN: 9781680515145

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Valley of Giants: Stories from Women at the Heart of Yosemite Climbing

Lauren Delaunay Miller

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"Long overdue anthology highlights women in Yosemite climbing history." -- Climbing Magazine

Women Writing the West WILLA Literary Award Finalist
Independent Publisher Book Award Silver Winner
Banff Mountain Book Competition Climbing Literature Winner
Foreword INDIES Book of the Year Awards Finalist

Contributors include Lynn Hill, Steph Davis, Liz Robbins, Beth Rodden, Kate Rutherford, Katie Brown and more
Introduction by Mari Gingery
Author is deeply connected with the Valley community through her work with Yosemite Search and Rescue (YOSAR)

Though long overlooked, women have always been at the center of Yosemite--climbing, crafting equipment, and establishing new routes. In Valley of Giants, editor and climber Lauren DeLaunay Miller pulls together journal excerpts, original essays, interviews, archival materials, and memorable firsts that span the past century of climbing in the Valley.

This first-ever collection of both famed and untold stories from women at the heart of Yosemite climbing gathers almost 40 contributors, from Bea Vogel who forged her own pitons to Molly Higgins who participated in the ﬁrst all-female ascent of the Nose on El Capitan to Liz Robbins who established routes in Yosemite Valley during the Golden Age. Astonishing Stonemasters like Lynn Hill, as well as many other notable climbers, including Steph Davis, Kate Rutherford, Beth Rodden, Chelsea Grifﬁe, Libby Sauter, and more share their recollections of the exhilaration they felt up on the wall and the determination it took to get there. As Mari Gingery, one of the first women to climb the Shield on El Cap, writes in the foreword, "the stories feature a medley of intrepid female characters" who "offer fresh perspectives."

Organized into ﬁve distinct eras in Yosemite climbing history, this groundbreaking anthology captures a range of stories from heartbreaking losses to soaring joys, trip reports of signiﬁcant ascents to moments that convey the larger essence of the Valley--and what it means to call this iconic place "home."

Book Details

Publisher: Mountaineers Books
Publish Date: Mar 18th, 2022
Pages: 240
Language: English
Edition: undefined - undefined
Dimensions: 8.40in - 5.90in - 0.90in - 0.85lb
EAN: 9781680515145
Categories: • Essays• Rock Climbing• Women

About the Author

Delaunay Miller, Lauren: - Lauren DeLaunay Miller has dedicated her life to exploring the mountains of the world and telling stories of underrepresented people. DeLaunay Miller is deeply involved in the climbing community, serving as vice president of the Bishop Area Climbers Coalition and event coordinator for the American Alpine Club. Her creative work has been featured in the Climbing Zine, and she is a regional editor for the AAC's publications, the American Alpine Journal, Accidents in North American Climbing, and the Cutting Edge podcast. After three years with YOSAR (Yosemite Search and Rescue), she is embarking on a new adventure at the UC Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism. DeLaunay Miller lives in Bishop, California, with her husband and rescue pup. Follow her online at laurendmiller.com or on Instagram @laurendelaunaymiller.

Praise for this book

Lauren DeLaunay Miller's work brings women's stories to their rightful place, front and centre of the literary canon of Yosemite Valley.--Dave Smart "Gripped"

While the book of course features stories by well-known valley climbers such as Lynn Hill and Steph Davis, DeLauney Miller has gone to painstaking lengths to include older, more obscure - but equally important stories - as well. The result is a rich and inspiring history of female climbing and adventure in Yosemite Valley.--Evan Phillips "The Firn Line"

Lauren DeLaunay Miller's 'Valley of Giants' book collects a wide range of stories from pivotal women in Yosemite climbing history -- with fresh perspectives from Lynn Hill, Liz Robbins, Beth Rodden, and more. Let's be frank: Women climbers have crushed it in Yosemite just as much as the guys.--Sam Anderson "GearJunkie"

Long overdue anthology highlights women in Yosemite climbing history-- "Climbing"

The book makes a strong case that women have played important roles in the history of Yosemite climbing--even if, as women in the book point out, they haven't always gotten credit for it.--Jim Benning "AAA Westways"

This book is chock-full of intrepid characters who offer a perspective that's often groundbreaking, sometimes heartbreaking, and always fresh.-- "Sierra Magazine"

A new collection from Mountaineers Books tells the stories of women on Yosemite's big walls.-- "The Daily"

Editor Lauren DeLaunay Miller worked hard to earn the trust of legends, and the payoff is a delightful mix of anecdotes, introspection, and new context for past climbs.... Climbers will reap the most enjoyment from the book, but adventure is woven through every page.-- "Adventure Journal"

Miller is an artful curator of Valley-focused female climbing stories.... [This book is] a map of inspiration that refutes the notion that men are better suited to the vertical world of Yosemite.--Nick Miley "California Climber"

Valley of Giants is an important thread in Yosemite climbing history. Each period is a patch and each climber is connected to one of these, forming a colourful quilt that will keep the hearts of all climbers warm as you stoke the fire of your next climbing adventure.--Dave Barnes "Common Climber"

An engaging read, and within the sport and the framing of climbing literature and histories, an important one.--Camille E. Meder "Women's Studies"

[Lauren DeLaunay Miller's] work will expand the horizons of even those who consider themselves well-versed in Yosemite climbing history.... More than just a litany of women's accomplishments, though, "Valley of Giants" expresses the wisdom its contributors achieved.--Matt Johanson "Sacramento Bee"

A much-needed anthology, this book highlights the stories of women in Yosemite from 1930 to the present. The contributions come from a wide range of climbers, a world-renowned soloist, a mother, a microbiologist, a daughter, a tribe member, a quiet expert and a first-time climber. Some stories are already famous, others are previously untold, but all add a fresh perspective to the lore of the valley. The stories build on one another, each one lends depth and history to the next, and when combined, they show how voices are strongest when they join together.--Claire Cameron "Banff Mountain Book Competition Jury"

Miller's anthology, Valley of Giants, is a salve to this repression, a masterfully assembled collection from the many women toiling and chortling in the Big Ditch. The anthology is a coming-of-age story: of its contributors, of climbing, and of women in America.--Shey Piper "American Alpine Journal"

Common themes within the pieces are self-discovery, a determination to show what women can climb and the style in which they can do it. But the ways in which the contributors write about their climbing, friendships and how they explore themselves makes for a collection that differs from the standard rock-climbing anthology.--Heather Dawe "The Alpine Journal"