Ends of the Earth
Excerpt from my article on the works of Peter Matthiessen published in The Helbender Press
July/August 2006. I mentioned three new nonfiction works:
Perhaps the most significant of the three is End of the Earth: Voyages to Antarctica. In this gem Matthiessen describes two voyages to Antarctica, one departing from Tierra del Fuego, and the other from Tasmania. The book includes historical vignettes on polar exploration, whaling and sealing. He includes information on many polar explorers; Nansen, Amundsen, Shakleton, Ross, Scott, and others. He also describes first hand encounters with Antarctic wildlife and descriptions of research stations, wrecked ships, and abandoned outposts, especially the one at South Georgia Island.
He contrasts the luxury he and his fellow travelers experience on board the vessel Kapitan Khlebnikov with the hardships suffered by early explorers. End of the Earth is a complete book on the Antarctic. It includes extensive discussion of current and past threats to Antarctic wildlife and the environmental quality in the region.
Matthiessen’s voyages to Antarctica took place during the 1990’s. During that same decade, he was traveling world-wide with wildlife biologists and documenting their research on the several species of cranes found worldwide and researching the worldwide population of tigers. Two nonfiction books grew out of these travels, The Birds of Heaven, and Tigers in the Snow. Each is a delightful read and includes historical insights into human interactions with these creatures.
Matthiessen has been called America’s greatest Natural History writer in the literary tradition. I certainly place him among the best and hope that he will give us more insights into wild nature and exhortations to preserve the world’s wildlife and the landscape in which it lives.
July/August 2006. I mentioned three new nonfiction works:
Perhaps the most significant of the three is End of the Earth: Voyages to Antarctica. In this gem Matthiessen describes two voyages to Antarctica, one departing from Tierra del Fuego, and the other from Tasmania. The book includes historical vignettes on polar exploration, whaling and sealing. He includes information on many polar explorers; Nansen, Amundsen, Shakleton, Ross, Scott, and others. He also describes first hand encounters with Antarctic wildlife and descriptions of research stations, wrecked ships, and abandoned outposts, especially the one at South Georgia Island.
He contrasts the luxury he and his fellow travelers experience on board the vessel Kapitan Khlebnikov with the hardships suffered by early explorers. End of the Earth is a complete book on the Antarctic. It includes extensive discussion of current and past threats to Antarctic wildlife and the environmental quality in the region.
Matthiessen’s voyages to Antarctica took place during the 1990’s. During that same decade, he was traveling world-wide with wildlife biologists and documenting their research on the several species of cranes found worldwide and researching the worldwide population of tigers. Two nonfiction books grew out of these travels, The Birds of Heaven, and Tigers in the Snow. Each is a delightful read and includes historical insights into human interactions with these creatures.
Matthiessen has been called America’s greatest Natural History writer in the literary tradition. I certainly place him among the best and hope that he will give us more insights into wild nature and exhortations to preserve the world’s wildlife and the landscape in which it lives.
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