The story is based on the first ascent of the Matterhorn and follows the young boy Rudi Matt who is determined to climb the citadel.
[2] The book was inspired by a real-life event in 1865 when an Englishman named Edward Whymper became the first to climb the Matterhorn.
Sixteen-year-old Rudi Matt is determined to carry his father's red shirt to the top of the Citadel despite his family's reservations.
[6] Rudi had been studying the lower slopes of the mountain with the help of his coworker Teo, a crippled old cook who had assisted Josef Matt on the expedition that led to his death.
[9] The novel received a favorable review from Laura Scott Meyers in the El Paso Herald-Post, however, she was more impressed by Ullman's previous work—The White Tower.