Most important books: Jon Krakauer

Jon Krakauer is the author of Eiger Dreams, Into the Wild, Into Thin Air, and Under the Banner of Heaven. He recently told Newsweek about his five most important books.

And he addressed two other book-related issues:

A Certified Important book you still haven't read:

Principia Mathematica by Alfred North Whitehead and Bertrand Russell. I bet fewer than 5 percent of the people who claim to have read this actually have.

A classic that, upon rereading, disappointed:

In Cold Blood by Truman Capote. After I learned of his boast that he wrote all the dialogue from memory, much of it struck me as having been invented.

Read about Krakauer's most important books.

--Marshal Zeringue