In 2003, the world will celebrate the 50th anniversary of Sir Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay Sherpa's historic ascent of Mount Everest, an event which became the defining moment in 20th-century adventure and delivered fame and glory to the men who took part in the expedition.

All, perhaps, except Tenzing, who, after a brief honeymoon period with the world's media and political leaders, returned to his humble home in the hill station of Darjeeling, India, and never properly received the credit and plaudits he so richly deserved. In 1986 he passed away, having touched the hearts of all those he came across, and having done so much for his people.

Tenzing and the Sherpas of Everest is the inspiring story of this poor and illiterate man who left his small ancestral village in a remote part of the Himalaya and through grit, courage and sheer determination climbed the world's highest mountain and become a hero around the globe. But it is also a tribute to Tenzing's family and the Sherpa people who have contributed so much to exploration in the Himalaya over the last hundred years.