Synopses & Reviews
* A collection of vivid, intimate essays and prose poetry on the universal themes of life, love, friendship, personal empowerment, and more, told through a career in climbing
* 40 percent of these pieces debut here for the first time
* Davis has been profiled in publications including Outside, Men's Journal, W Magazine, and Sports Illustrated.
Throughout her life, Steph Davis has chosen to take risks, to trust her impulses, to make decisions based on what feels right inside and never look back. Studying to be a concert pianist, she quit music the day she was introduced to rock climbing. Later, she abandoned the respectability of university life and pursuit of a law degree to become a "dirtbag climber," living out of her grandmother's hand-me-down Oldsmobile sedan with Fletcher, a heeler mix dog. Today, through courage and perseverance, Davis is a high-profile athlete sponsored by Mammut, Clif Bar, Five Ten and Cascade Designs.
In High Infatuation, Davis writes on the universal themes of life, love, friendship, personal empowerment, and more, told through a career in climbing. We wait with her in the tent through weeks of rain, wind, snow, and sleet, hoping for the weather to improve in the mountains of Patagonia, then race with her up a towering rock wall of Yosemite's El Capitan in a single day. We feel gratitude toward a female climbing partner who cheers her on through an epic ascent and heartache when her relationship with the man she marries, climber Dean Potter, is tested by her need for constant movement and career challenge. More than adventure stories, these pieces reveal Davis' soul. They draw us into her struggles with safety, independence, ambition, and compassion. By following the journey of this remarkable woman, we learn what it means to live a truly adventurous life.
Review
"Steph Davis's stories and anecdotes are truly inspiring; her writing, thoughtful and poignant. She has led an uncompromising life. And her heartfelt insight into the struggles and decisions that have informed that life is a gift to any reader." — Jimmy Chin, Photographer and climber
Review
"[Davis's] writings reveal a woman given to impulses, seeking outlandish challenges and daring to be different." — Klamath Falls Herald News
Review
"High Infatuation chronicles her stripped-down, up-the-wall life... [and] the book is about more than gear and climbing routes." — The Modesto Bee
About the Author
Steph Davis is on record with first ascents in Pakistan, Patagonia, Baffin Island, and Kyrgyzstan. Her writing has appeared in Climbing and Rock & Ice, among other publications. Married to climber Dean Potter, she makes her home in Moab, Utah. She was the first U.S. woman to summit 11,073-foot Fitz Roy Peak in Patagonia a success realized after spending five seasons, a total of ten months, in Patagonia.