Out of Mind

In 2015, climber and documentary maker Joe French was about to fulfil a dream of a lifetime – to climb Everest and film it. Then natural disaster struck and Joe found himself at the epicentre of an vicious earthquake which killed nearly 9,000 people. Only a few years previously, his team of Sherpa had been killed in another avalanche, and soon after that, Julie, his wife, was diagnosed with cancer.

The accumulation of trauma took its toll: suffering from post-traumatic stress, Joe was haunted by the horrors he’d witnessed. In an attempt to find a resolution, his only answer was to find solace in what had inspired him all along - the outdoors.

Running barefoot through the forests and glens around his house in Scotland, Joe discovered the means to find a return to health and peace of mind. Out of Mind is his story.

A story of hard climbing, extreme adventuring and reconnecting with one's own self through time in the hills. A story that starts on the outcrops of the Peak District but plays out on the highest mountain in the world.

Born in 1978, Joe French grew up in Sheffield. A decade of worldwide travel followed, which led him to the Highlands of Scotland, where he now lives. Joe taught himself to become a climbing cameraman and made films on Ben Nevis which kickstarted a successful career in TV. Joe was soon working as a self-shooting producer/director on high-profile productions across the globe: from recreating Sir Ernest Shackleton’s epic journey of survival in Antarctica to the first attempted wingsuit flight from the summit of Everest. He has worked for Channel 4, the BBC and Discovery Channel. Joe is a climber, musician, barefoot runner and member of Lochaber Mountain Rescue Team. He is married to Julie French and together they have two children, Imogen and Jemima.

Discounts & P&P

From Friday 1 April 2022, we offer 25% off to all newsletter subscribers. Simply sign up to our newsletter here to receive your discount code. If you're already a subscriber, we'll remind you of the code every time we send out a newsletter.

In addition, we offer FREE standard UK P&P for orders, along with options to upgrade the delivery service at checkout.

Postage costs are dependent on order weight (book/s weight plus packing materials) and are calculated automatically upon checkout, before payment is taken. Full details of our delivery and returns information can be found here. 

UK Delivery

We offer FREE standard UK P&P for orders: orders are sent Royal Mail Second Class as standard and should arrive within two to three working days. The option to upgrade UK shipping to Royal Mail 24 Next Day Delivery is available at checkout.

International Delivery

International orders are sent by Royal Mail International Tracked. Deliveries can take between a few days and a couple of weeks to arrive, depending on the delivery location. Please contact us if your country is not listed.

Dispatch

Update: September 2022. Most orders received through the Vertebrate Publishing Adventure Books website are dispatched from Gardners in Eastbourne, UK; some orders (such as signed copies of pre-orders, or limited stock items) are sent from our office in Sheffield, UK. If your order is for multiple items, you may receive more than one package, though we try to avoid this (if applicable, you would only be charged once for shipping). Orders received before 11 a.m. are dispatched the same day; orders received after 11 a.m. are usually dispatched the following business day. You will be sent a notification email when your order has been dispatched. If we are temporarily out of stock of a title we will advise by email.

Gift Cards

Gift card purchases are delivered electronically – we do not dispatch physical gift cards. Full details are provided with gift card purchases.

Ebooks

Coming soon! Ebooks are fulfilled securely by our partner Glassboxx using their app. For more details about how to access your ebook, please refer to the information in your order confirmation. 

Payment

Payment is made safely and securely using Shopify, which incorporates the world's leading payment gateways, including Stripe, Apple Pay and Google Pay. You can also check out with PayPal. All payments are handled directly by these payment gateways and Vertebrate Publishing Adventure Books does not process or store any cardholder details on the Adventure Books website.

Returns

We will happily refund or exchange any item that is returned to us in an unused, as new condition. If you want to make a return, contact us with your details. Once we've received the item(s), we will credit your account. If the item is faulty or damaged or we have sent the incorrect item we will refund postage.

If you're returning something because it's not suitable, you'll need to pay the postage costs to return it to us. We process most returns the day they arrive with us, and certainly within seven working days. Goods must be returned to us within 21 days.