Die Entdeckung der Arktis

by Charles Officer, Jake Page, Sabine Schulte (Translator)

Inconstant and forbidding, the arctic has lured misguided voyagers into the cold for centuries--pushing them beyond the limits of their knowledge, technology, and endurance. A Fabulous Kingdom charts these quests and the eventual race for the North Pole, chronicling the lives and adventures that would eventually throw light on this "magical realm" of sunless winters. They follow the explorers from the early journeys of Viking Ottar to the daring exploits of Martin Frobisher, Henry Hudson, Frederick Cook, Robert Peary, and Richard Bird. The second edition features a section entitled "The New Arctic" that illuminates current scientific and environmental issues that threaten the region. Officer and Page discuss such topics as the science behind the melting of the polar ice; the endangered species that now depend on the ice, including polar bears, narwhals, walruses, and ringed seals; commerce in mining and natural resources, especially petroleum and natural gas; and predictions for the economic and environmental future of the region. Library Journal called the first edition a "winning fusion of adventure, suspense, and history."

Genres: Nonfiction, History

Paperback

First published April 19, 2001

Reviews

[GoldGato · Rating 3 out of 5]

If you need a book that provides an introduction to the centuries of exploration in the Arctic, this volume is a good place to start. From the Vikings to the present, the reader learns about the many explorers who were always hoping to discover that quick link between the Atlantic and the Pacific.

"Misguided" is a better description for some of the nutters who sailed into the unknown and frozen seas. While whalers eventually became the experts in the ways of the icebergs, the more romantic adventurers longed for new discoveries, which also meant new deaths and untold suffering. The British, in particular, seemed obsessed with wearing ill-fitting clothes that couldn't withstand below-freezing temperatures and using heavy man-pulled sleds that brought morbidity rather than geographic advancement. I suppose without such hardships, exploring wouldn't be exploring.

Eventually, the Nordic school of exploration took over, including better overall common sense. The Americans had some nutbuckets and these adventurers have some of the most horrid tales. There were also liars who never reached the North Pole and medical doctors who were closer to serial killers than healers of humans. Oh well. It makes for great story-telling.

Book Season = Winter (boldness and luck)

[David · Rating 3 out of 5]

Though not to the level of “The Arctic Grail” this is a light read that can introduce the reader to the quests of Arctic explorers. Trying as it does to be an overall history of Arctic exploration it does gloss over some of the detail that fervent Arctic Historians would consider vital to a real understanding. It does its job I introducing a new enthusiast to the genre and hopefully spurs them on to more in-depth study.

[Mark Goodwin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good and thoroughly researched. Also a section on Global Warming which will make you wonder what the heck are we doing.

[Mallory · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was very informative about the interesting tales of arctic exploration and was written in a way that gave it an easy flow for reading. It's mind-blowing to think about how willing people were a hundred years ago to risk death in order to gain fame. To think that so many died in the pursuit of the north pole when there is such a huge safety net today is lamentable. The page warning about the perils of global warming was a bit over the top, but at least it was only a page.

[Tuck · Rating 4 out of 5]

a great reference resource in a small package. fairly dry writing, more of a geography/history/natural history of artic. but very well done. oxford u press rarely misses.