Trial By Ice

by K.M. Kostyal, Alexandra Shackleton (Foreword by)

Traces the adventurous life of the South Pole explorer whose ship, the Endurance, was frozen in ice and crushed, leaving the captain and crew to fight for survival. 12,500 first printing.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Historical, Biography, Picture Books, Childrens

64 pages, Hardcover

First published October 1, 1999

Reviews

[Philip · Rating 4 out of 5]

(NOT A NEW REVIEW; JUST SHELVED ON NEW "NAT GEO" BOOKSHELF)

I've been jonesing on Ernest Shackleton for a while now, and recently read Caroline Alexander's outrageously excellent Endurance: Shackleton's Legendary Antarctic Expedition. Certainly a highlight of that book were the over-130 photos by expedition photographer Frank Hurley - but I was disappointed that there was only one actual portrait of Shackleton himself - that famous, unsmiling portrait with turtleneck, center-parted hair, and unidentified arctic harness that is probably responsible for everyone's mental image of the man.

So Kostyal's "photobiography" is a welcome find, not only for its many photos of both a younger and older Sir Ernest, but also for it's pictures and descriptions of his earlier voyages about the Quest and Nimrod. I'm also glad that no one seems to be listing this book under "Young Adult," since it isn't - it's just a brief if full-scope biography with a lot of pictures; just what I was looking for.

I'll probably take a break now for a while, but would love to read South someday, Shackleton's own recounting of his journey, since as I've found with my other "personal heroes" (Francis Younghusband, Roy Chapman Andrews, Teddy Roosevelt, Alfred Russel Wallace and Peter Fleming), their self-effacing memoirs tend to be way more enjoyable than what others write about them. I'd also like to read one of the MANY books on leadership based on Shackleton's Endurance adventure - Shackleton's Way, Shackleton: Leadership Lessons From Antarctica, Leading at the Edge - but for now I'm good.

FINAL NOTE: It's disappointing if not exactly surprising how many great explorers fare so poorly in "the real world." Partly due to the need to finance their expeditions, but also equally due to their own fish-out-of-water status when they return "home" (usually the UK), a fair number of them fail at business, or die in poverty, or both. Certainly Shackleton, Wallace and Percy Fawcett (of "Lost City of Z" fame), and at least a few of the great Nile explorers whose names escape me at the moment.

[Rose · Rating 4 out of 5]

I can’t believe people willingly put themselves through so much hardship

[M · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was an excellent that tells of Ernest Shackleton's life and voyages. It was written for children, yet it is excellent for adults, too. A year or so ago I listened to the audio of "Endurance." I loved it, but there were a lot of things I didn't remember or fully understand because I was doing other things while listening to the book. This picture book was a great refresher and it helped explain some of the facts that I didn't get very well in the other book. It is full of actual pictures from his voyages. There is a nice map of Antarctica and Shackleton's voyages at the end of the book that help with context. I read this book to my father-in-law and he was fascinated! It was a short read and took only a couple of hours.

[Athena · Rating 4 out of 5]

Intended for kids, but a great overview for adults too. It doesn't dumb things down.

[Becca · Rating 5 out of 5]

I learned a lot, about someone/expedition I never heard of.
Amazing, what they did a hundred years ago.

[Catherine Lowe · Rating 4 out of 5]

What an inspiring story!

[Marjorie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Junior book about shackeltons life. Book club tonight about the endurance.

[Destiny · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was exactly what I needed to read tonight. Truly. What an inspiring human being and good man as well as an epic explorer.

Excellent book with clear photos taken by his crew in the early 1900s!

[Wayne Walker · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ernest Henry Shackleford was born in 1874 in the green hills of Ireland’s County Kildare. When he was six, his landowner father decided to become a doctor and eventually moved the family to the London, England, suburb of Sydenham. Ernest longed to go to sea, so when he was sixteen, his father arranged for him to sign with a commercial sailing ship. He spent ten years as a merchant marine and by age 24 was qualified to command a British ship anywhere in the world. Then in 1901, he joined the National Antarctic Expedition led by Robert Falcon Scott on the Discovery. They failed to reach the South Pole, and when Shackleton returned to England, he married, settled in Edinburgh, Scotland, and worked with the Royal Scottish Geographic Society.

Then in 1907 and 1908, Shackleton led his own expedition to the Antarctic on the Nimrod but failed again to reach the Pole. After Roald Amundsen did make it to the Pole in 1911, Shackleton led still another expedition from 1914 to 1916 on the Endurance intending to sled all the way across Antarctica. That mission also failed to achieve its goal, but after a long series of harrowing experiences, he managed to bring his entire crew to safety. Well, it’s another book on Ernest Shackleton. In the recent past I have read Endurance by Alfred Lansing, Mrs. Chippy’s Last Expedition by Caroline Alexander, and Trapped by the Ice! by Michael McCurdy. However, those books focus primarily on the 1914-1916 Endurance expedition, whereas Trial by Ice is a more general biography focusing on the man rather than on the one expedition.

This book does cover the Endurance expedition, but it also discusses Shackleton’s life before and after his most famous trip, although there is not too much afterwards, since Shackleton died and was buried on South Georgia Island just six years later, in 1922, while leading yet another Antarctic expedition on the Quest. The biggest complaint is that it would have been a better read if it had been broken up into chapters or had more obvious places to pause in the reading. However, generously illustrated with stunning, archival black-and-white photographs and accompanied by Shackleton’s quotes to introduce sections, it is a great photo biography for older children that tells the incredible story of one man drawn southward to the icy continent of Antarctica.

[Amy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this story of Ernest Shackleton and his fateful trip to explore Antartica. I've read several biographies of his expeditions and seen the documentary. I find it remarkable that he led this group of men on this journey and despite the most horrific odds, brought them all home safely. It is a testament to true leadership and courage...and what is even more remarkable is that he went back! And several of the men who endured the hardships of that first trip traveled back with him. I'm reading this out loud to my boys right now! Amazing true story!

[Shelli · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fascinating look into the ever determined life of explorer Sir Ernest Shackleton. This book not only covers his famous expedition on the Endurance, but also his previous and later journeys. This would have been a better read if it had been broken up into chapters or had more obvious places to pause in the reading, however the page layouts were lovely.

[Hilary · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great story if you've never heard about it before. But I think I like the one by Jennifer Armstrong better (I think it's called Shipwreck at the Bottom of the World).

[Megan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting pictures