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Dead Men
'Fascinating.' Telegraph
Birdie Bowers is a woman with a dead man's name. Her parents had been fascinated by Henry 'Birdie' Bowers, one of Captain Scott's companions on his ill-fated polar expedition. A hundred years after the death of Bowers and Scott, she sets out to discover what really happened to them... The discovery of Captain Scott's body in the Antarctic in November 1912 started a global obsession with him as a man and an explorer. But one mystery remains - why did he and his companions spend their last ten days in a tent only 11 miles from the safety of a depot that promised food and shelter?
Dead Men tells the story of two paths. One is a tragic journey of exploration on the world's coldest continent, the other charts a present-day relationship and the redemptive power of love.
Birdie Bowers is a woman with a dead man's name. Her parents had been fascinated by Henry 'Birdie' Bowers, one of Captain Scott's companions on his ill-fated polar expedition. A hundred years after the death of Bowers and Scott, she sets out to discover what really happened to them... The discovery of Captain Scott's body in the Antarctic in November 1912 started a global obsession with him as a man and an explorer. But one mystery remains - why did he and his companions spend their last ten days in a tent only 11 miles from the safety of a depot that promised food and shelter?
Dead Men tells the story of two paths. One is a tragic journey of exploration on the world's coldest continent, the other charts a present-day relationship and the redemptive power of love.
284 pages, Kindle Edition
First published March 1, 2012
7 people are currently reading
289 people want to read
About the author
Richard Pierce
5 books41 followersRichard Pierce is a writer, poet, painter, and broadcaster.
He lives in Norwich.
His debut novel, DEAD MEN, was nominated for The Guardian First Book Award.
He lives in Norwich.
His debut novel, DEAD MEN, was nominated for The Guardian First Book Award.
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Displaying 1 - 29 of 29 reviews
June 5, 2012
It’s frightening being in love. You face a huge, uncertain prospect that ties your stomach in knots and makes you do crazy things. So much lies in wait. Whatever happens, will you be up to it? There’s no-one else you can rely on. It’s just you against an unknown and unknowable otherness.
When Adam falls in love with Birdie Bowers, there can be no compromises. It’s all or nothing. “I knew it would have to be forever, or not at all,” he tells us. Without her he is numb, like a dead man.
So it is when you write a novel – especially your first. It can be so daunting that many of us never get started. We quail before that limitless expanse of white space. We buckle under all that emotion. We wonder if we will ever find our voice. We are fearful that our voice might turn out to be small and insignificant. It is the ultimate test of character. Like going into a vast, white, inhospitable wilderness. “Those of us with no talent,” writes Adam, “will be lost in the drifts of history.”
Dead Men articulates this fear, which is really the fear of being alive, with unostentatious clarity. It’s a very self-aware book. Adam and Birdie are embarking on a journey into the Antarctic to uncover the truth about Scott’s final days. It’s a fascinating journey, eked out with snippets of history drawn from diaries and other accounts of the famous Antarctic explorers – Shackleton, Amundsen, Scott and their friends. It’s a well-researched story in which you will learn a lot about what happened on those expeditions.
But it’s more than this. It’s an exploration of being in love, of being a writer and an artist. It’s a love story and it’s a meditation on the fear of failure and the challenge of pursuing your dreams.
The journey into the Antarctic is at once a testament to and a test of Adam’s love for Birdie.
“Everything we’ve talked about that’s happened here in this real world,” Adam muses as they approach that great, white, frozen continent, “has some sort of parallel out there, has somehow been touched by what’s happened out there.”
Scott was beaten to the South Pole. He never made it back. Still, we celebrate Scott’s achievement. Why? It’s largely to do with the beauty of his words and feelings. He articulates the nobility of human endeavour. The diaries he left move us to tears.
Adam’s journey is not quite so heroic. He is an ordinary man. His poetic sensibility is evinced in mundane details – the appreciation of a piece of fabric, his observation of the sugar beet harvest, his sensitivity towards Birdie’s quixotic moods. It is through the accumulation of subtle, everyday details that we come to know and understand Adam as a man. Birdie is more elusive. She is anorexic, idealistic, obsessed. It is her quest that drives them to Antarctica. Adam is a passenger and an observer, totally under her spell.
But they are both under the spell of Scott. The myths and mysteries that surround Scott’s voyage are still, one hundred years after he died, a source of tremendous fascination. Dead Men captures the lure of his otherworldly charm in prose that is elegant and spare. The novel weaves together past and present, fact and fiction, in complex narrative threads that are surprisingly easy to read. It’s an ambitious novel but it wears its ambition lightly. As a first novel, it’s astonishing. For a work that takes failure as one of its themes, it’s a resoundingly triumphant debut.
When Adam falls in love with Birdie Bowers, there can be no compromises. It’s all or nothing. “I knew it would have to be forever, or not at all,” he tells us. Without her he is numb, like a dead man.
So it is when you write a novel – especially your first. It can be so daunting that many of us never get started. We quail before that limitless expanse of white space. We buckle under all that emotion. We wonder if we will ever find our voice. We are fearful that our voice might turn out to be small and insignificant. It is the ultimate test of character. Like going into a vast, white, inhospitable wilderness. “Those of us with no talent,” writes Adam, “will be lost in the drifts of history.”
Dead Men articulates this fear, which is really the fear of being alive, with unostentatious clarity. It’s a very self-aware book. Adam and Birdie are embarking on a journey into the Antarctic to uncover the truth about Scott’s final days. It’s a fascinating journey, eked out with snippets of history drawn from diaries and other accounts of the famous Antarctic explorers – Shackleton, Amundsen, Scott and their friends. It’s a well-researched story in which you will learn a lot about what happened on those expeditions.
But it’s more than this. It’s an exploration of being in love, of being a writer and an artist. It’s a love story and it’s a meditation on the fear of failure and the challenge of pursuing your dreams.
The journey into the Antarctic is at once a testament to and a test of Adam’s love for Birdie.
“Everything we’ve talked about that’s happened here in this real world,” Adam muses as they approach that great, white, frozen continent, “has some sort of parallel out there, has somehow been touched by what’s happened out there.”
Scott was beaten to the South Pole. He never made it back. Still, we celebrate Scott’s achievement. Why? It’s largely to do with the beauty of his words and feelings. He articulates the nobility of human endeavour. The diaries he left move us to tears.
Adam’s journey is not quite so heroic. He is an ordinary man. His poetic sensibility is evinced in mundane details – the appreciation of a piece of fabric, his observation of the sugar beet harvest, his sensitivity towards Birdie’s quixotic moods. It is through the accumulation of subtle, everyday details that we come to know and understand Adam as a man. Birdie is more elusive. She is anorexic, idealistic, obsessed. It is her quest that drives them to Antarctica. Adam is a passenger and an observer, totally under her spell.
But they are both under the spell of Scott. The myths and mysteries that surround Scott’s voyage are still, one hundred years after he died, a source of tremendous fascination. Dead Men captures the lure of his otherworldly charm in prose that is elegant and spare. The novel weaves together past and present, fact and fiction, in complex narrative threads that are surprisingly easy to read. It’s an ambitious novel but it wears its ambition lightly. As a first novel, it’s astonishing. For a work that takes failure as one of its themes, it’s a resoundingly triumphant debut.
March 15, 2012
As young children, in a tiny rural primary school, we used to listen rapt to the Master as he told us stories of great adventurers both mythical and real. Forty years on, I still vividly recall the three “heros” who impressed me the most – Abraham Lincoln, Laura Ingalls Wilder and Captain Scott. The story of Scott’s ill-fated journey to the South Pole, only to be thwarted by Amundsen, has always fascinated me so I was delighted to get the opportunity to read a new novel about Scott especially in this, the centenary year of his and his colleagues’ death.
It’s a fairly compact novel, just short of 300 pages but it gives just enough detail to hook the reader from the opening pages where Scott, Wilson and Bowers are discovered in their tent, having starved to death. There is a dual time-frame narrative as past events told in the third person involving Scott, Amundsen, his wife amongst others are balanced with a contemporary storyline in the present tense involving a girl obsessed with finding the current location of the explorers’ bodies and some clue as to how they perished only 11 miles away from a base which could have provided them with the food and shelter they needed to survive. The girl is Birdie Bowers, whose parents named her after one of their heros who was Scott’s companion in both life and death. She enlists the help of Adam Caird, a would-be suitor, to assist her in her quest to lay some ghosts to rest – her single-mindedness is on a par with that of Scott and his team but there’s a recklessness there too which cranks up the tension and drama.
My favourite parts of the novel are those set in the Antarctic, both past and present, as the writer really captures the beautiful desolation of the landscape – an environment which could turn on you and kill you without warning. There’s an eerie, haunting atmosphere, the feeling of being watched by the ghosts of the past, be they malevolent or benign but this never spills over into farce or fantasy.
Highly recommended if you are already intrigued by Antarctic adventure and have a respect for nature. Those who enjoyed Dark Matter by Michelle Paver will equally enjoy the polar parts here.
It’s a fairly compact novel, just short of 300 pages but it gives just enough detail to hook the reader from the opening pages where Scott, Wilson and Bowers are discovered in their tent, having starved to death. There is a dual time-frame narrative as past events told in the third person involving Scott, Amundsen, his wife amongst others are balanced with a contemporary storyline in the present tense involving a girl obsessed with finding the current location of the explorers’ bodies and some clue as to how they perished only 11 miles away from a base which could have provided them with the food and shelter they needed to survive. The girl is Birdie Bowers, whose parents named her after one of their heros who was Scott’s companion in both life and death. She enlists the help of Adam Caird, a would-be suitor, to assist her in her quest to lay some ghosts to rest – her single-mindedness is on a par with that of Scott and his team but there’s a recklessness there too which cranks up the tension and drama.
My favourite parts of the novel are those set in the Antarctic, both past and present, as the writer really captures the beautiful desolation of the landscape – an environment which could turn on you and kill you without warning. There’s an eerie, haunting atmosphere, the feeling of being watched by the ghosts of the past, be they malevolent or benign but this never spills over into farce or fantasy.
Highly recommended if you are already intrigued by Antarctic adventure and have a respect for nature. Those who enjoyed Dark Matter by Michelle Paver will equally enjoy the polar parts here.
March 23, 2012
Many, many years ago – far more than I care to remember – I was given a small hardback book by my father. I can’t remember the title or the publisher but the subject matter has remained with me to this very day – The Race to the South Pole – Scott versus Amundsen. I vividly remember the book patriotically siding with Scott and despite his failure to reach the Pole ahead of the Norwegian he was the true hero of the story, or at least that’s how the book portrayed the race. It was – and still is – a captivating and romantic story.
Dead Men by Richard Pierce - is an extraordinary debut, it works on so many levels and is incredibly emotive for numerous reasons. Written to celebrate the 100th anniversary marking Scott’s death on the 29th March 1912 the book charts Birdie Bowers’ efforts to solve the mysterious deaths of Scott’s party and why they failed to return home to safety.
Robert Falcon Scott, along with Oates, Bowers, Wilson and Evans arrived at the South Pole on the 19th January 1912 to discover Roald Amundsen had beaten the British explorer by 33 days on December 14th 1911. Exhaustion and a lack of fuel led to their deaths and the British group died just eleven miles outside a food depot and safety. Amundsen and his team returned to Framheim on January 25th, just four day before Scott succumbed to the elements.
I am just going outside and may be some time – Lawrence Oates 16th March 1912
Dead Men is a story of two timelines, that of 1912 and 2012, a tale of hope, intrigue, exploration and love. The narrative, told mostly through the eyes of computer expert Adam Caird, is magical and taut - such a wonderful surprise given this marks an authorial debut for Pierce, the work is assured and the research sublime, a credit to this historical race of endurance and speed. It’s fairly obvious to me that this is a work of passion, Pierce is captivated with both Scott and the South Pole and that clearly comes across, the author leaving his soul deeply embedded in this manuscript.
Full Review on my blog:- http://www.milorambles.com/2012/03/23...
Dead Men by Richard Pierce - is an extraordinary debut, it works on so many levels and is incredibly emotive for numerous reasons. Written to celebrate the 100th anniversary marking Scott’s death on the 29th March 1912 the book charts Birdie Bowers’ efforts to solve the mysterious deaths of Scott’s party and why they failed to return home to safety.
Robert Falcon Scott, along with Oates, Bowers, Wilson and Evans arrived at the South Pole on the 19th January 1912 to discover Roald Amundsen had beaten the British explorer by 33 days on December 14th 1911. Exhaustion and a lack of fuel led to their deaths and the British group died just eleven miles outside a food depot and safety. Amundsen and his team returned to Framheim on January 25th, just four day before Scott succumbed to the elements.
I am just going outside and may be some time – Lawrence Oates 16th March 1912
Dead Men is a story of two timelines, that of 1912 and 2012, a tale of hope, intrigue, exploration and love. The narrative, told mostly through the eyes of computer expert Adam Caird, is magical and taut - such a wonderful surprise given this marks an authorial debut for Pierce, the work is assured and the research sublime, a credit to this historical race of endurance and speed. It’s fairly obvious to me that this is a work of passion, Pierce is captivated with both Scott and the South Pole and that clearly comes across, the author leaving his soul deeply embedded in this manuscript.
Full Review on my blog:- http://www.milorambles.com/2012/03/23...
March 22, 2012
This intriguing novel uses as its starting point Captain Scott’s ill-fated Antarctic expedition of 1910-13. Scott led a team of British explorers to the South Pole which, after a great deal of planning, expense and suffering, he reached on 17 January 1912, only to find that Amundsen’s Norwegian expedition had been there five weeks earlier. Their achievements and tragedies are recorded in a swath of letters, journals and photographs, not to mention in the very clothes, artefacts, preserved foodstuffs and tools they used, now on display at museums like the Scott Polar Research Institute. Scott himself didn’t make it back, neither did several of his most trusted colleagues, including Captain Oates (“I am just going outside and I may be some time”) and Henry ‘Birdie’ Bowers, which brings me to Richard Pierce’s novel and his main character.
Birdie Bowers is a woman in the present day obsessed with her historic namesake. She’s an interesting choice of leading lady; erratic, irrational, prone to risky behaviours and a bit of a flake. Though written from the point of view of Adam, Birdie is the character who really drives this story. Adam, by comparison, smokes too much, drinks too much, and his interest is initially in her rather than her elaborate plans to walk in the footsteps of Terra Nova. At first their relationship is painfully unequal; Adam pines for her from a distance and (here comes that word again) obsesses over her as unattainable, while fantasising about having a home and family with her.
And here I had a little realisation. Dead Men isn’t really about Scott’s mission, it’s about obsession in its various forms: Scott’s obsession with the pole; Birdie’s obsession with history; Adam’s obsession with Birdie. It’s about the insane lengths we’re willing to go to satisfy our pride, curiosity and lust.
Antarctic aficionados may find Dead Men a little thin. This novel is not a retelling of events already captured in true accounts, such as Captain Scott’s Journals, and Cherry-Garrard’s The Worst Journey in the World. Rather, Dead Men riffs off these so that Pierce’s novel is something entirely new. Historians, biographers and researchers who read this book will relate to Birdie and Adam’s fixation: the hours spent in libraries and institutions; the meticulous planning to go on a fieldtrip; the bureaucratic brick walls and, most rare of all, the magical discovery – the euphoria of intuition and effort rewarded.
Throughout the novel are little vignettes from the past dealing with the emotional fallout of Scott’s thwarted ambition. Atkinson, Cherry-Garrard, Amundsen, Kathleen Scott and others are briefly brought to life, then fade away again. And yet they’re never really absent from the page. The voices of the dead men calling across the Ice, like sirens on the rocks, are incredibly eerie and very satisfying.
Dead Men is an emotional adventure and an unsettling ghost story. It’s an exploration of those two opposing magnetic forces – the one pulling us onward, and the one pulling us home – and a sympathetic salute to the flawed and foolhardy human spirit.
Birdie Bowers is a woman in the present day obsessed with her historic namesake. She’s an interesting choice of leading lady; erratic, irrational, prone to risky behaviours and a bit of a flake. Though written from the point of view of Adam, Birdie is the character who really drives this story. Adam, by comparison, smokes too much, drinks too much, and his interest is initially in her rather than her elaborate plans to walk in the footsteps of Terra Nova. At first their relationship is painfully unequal; Adam pines for her from a distance and (here comes that word again) obsesses over her as unattainable, while fantasising about having a home and family with her.
And here I had a little realisation. Dead Men isn’t really about Scott’s mission, it’s about obsession in its various forms: Scott’s obsession with the pole; Birdie’s obsession with history; Adam’s obsession with Birdie. It’s about the insane lengths we’re willing to go to satisfy our pride, curiosity and lust.
Antarctic aficionados may find Dead Men a little thin. This novel is not a retelling of events already captured in true accounts, such as Captain Scott’s Journals, and Cherry-Garrard’s The Worst Journey in the World. Rather, Dead Men riffs off these so that Pierce’s novel is something entirely new. Historians, biographers and researchers who read this book will relate to Birdie and Adam’s fixation: the hours spent in libraries and institutions; the meticulous planning to go on a fieldtrip; the bureaucratic brick walls and, most rare of all, the magical discovery – the euphoria of intuition and effort rewarded.
Throughout the novel are little vignettes from the past dealing with the emotional fallout of Scott’s thwarted ambition. Atkinson, Cherry-Garrard, Amundsen, Kathleen Scott and others are briefly brought to life, then fade away again. And yet they’re never really absent from the page. The voices of the dead men calling across the Ice, like sirens on the rocks, are incredibly eerie and very satisfying.
Dead Men is an emotional adventure and an unsettling ghost story. It’s an exploration of those two opposing magnetic forces – the one pulling us onward, and the one pulling us home – and a sympathetic salute to the flawed and foolhardy human spirit.
July 15, 2017
While the premise and Richard Pierce's original take on the historical Scott expedition provided an interesting basis for this book, unfortunately I found that the different aspects of Dead Men never coalesced synergistically enough to produce a truly great story.
As far as re-imagining the story of Captain Scott and his race against Amundsen goes, the author handles this with creativity and sensitivity, exploring the hidden thoughts of the crew, even of their families waiting for them to return and going through grief and acceptance of the events. Hopefully without spoiling the plot, I will say that towards the end the whole story took on some darker, psychotic undertones, which I felt detracted from all the previous groundwork. To me it seemed an attempt to create a twist in the story which wasn't really necessary, particularly given how the rest of the novel, artistic license included, had been so respectful to the canonical tale.
I loved Birdie as a character, passionate, unpredictable, impulsive, but absolutely loyal to her cause. On the other hand, Adam seemed more of an author's unrealised fantasy - older, unremarkable, lonely man who miraculously runs into a young, attractive woman and she somehow drags him into her life and falls in love with him for no great reason. Perhaps the one redeeming feature here is that the author doesn't even try to hide Adam's nature, blatantly showcasing his impure intentions from the start to the finish. Sadly, his presence is like a raincloud, covering up the shining character that is Birdie.
Overall, Dead Men was a fun read, and opened my eyes to an interesting historical event, but the shortfalls cast too much of a shadow over the rest of the book.
As far as re-imagining the story of Captain Scott and his race against Amundsen goes, the author handles this with creativity and sensitivity, exploring the hidden thoughts of the crew, even of their families waiting for them to return and going through grief and acceptance of the events. Hopefully without spoiling the plot, I will say that towards the end the whole story took on some darker, psychotic undertones, which I felt detracted from all the previous groundwork. To me it seemed an attempt to create a twist in the story which wasn't really necessary, particularly given how the rest of the novel, artistic license included, had been so respectful to the canonical tale.
I loved Birdie as a character, passionate, unpredictable, impulsive, but absolutely loyal to her cause. On the other hand, Adam seemed more of an author's unrealised fantasy - older, unremarkable, lonely man who miraculously runs into a young, attractive woman and she somehow drags him into her life and falls in love with him for no great reason. Perhaps the one redeeming feature here is that the author doesn't even try to hide Adam's nature, blatantly showcasing his impure intentions from the start to the finish. Sadly, his presence is like a raincloud, covering up the shining character that is Birdie.
Overall, Dead Men was a fun read, and opened my eyes to an interesting historical event, but the shortfalls cast too much of a shadow over the rest of the book.
December 10, 2013
I've always been more of a Shackelton girl myself, but this book has well and truly sparked my interest in Scott, and Amundsen, too - I will have to go and get books about them, instead of reading all about Shackleton (again).
I loved this book, absolutely loved it, and read it in a couple of days. At first I thought I wouldn't like the fact that much of it is about Birdie and Adam and their quest to find the frozen grave of Scott, Wilson & Bowers, but even though I wasn't particularly interested in the to-ings and fro-ings of their relationship, I really understood Birdie's obsession. One bit I did like very much was the relationship between Adam and his friend John.
I'm going to repeat the word 'loved' over and over again in this review, but never mind - I LOVED the bits about what happened to Cherry, the emotions he went through. Loved reading about Kathleen, about the dark side of Amundsen, and the ghostly presence felt by everyone in Scott's hut. I wanted to be out there with them all (the modern day ones, not Scott and co!), seeing it all for myself, and experiencing the beautiful emptiness of the Antarctic. I found myself thinking about the book when I wasn't reading it; I've just finished it, and I know I will be thinking about it some more.
Anyone who has any interest in polar exploration will enjoy this book as much as I did - and, apart from the fact that it's about a subject by which I am fascinated, Pierce is one hell of a writer, too! I am looking forward to reading more from him, would love to know more about the research that went into this book, and recommend it most highly.
I loved this book, absolutely loved it, and read it in a couple of days. At first I thought I wouldn't like the fact that much of it is about Birdie and Adam and their quest to find the frozen grave of Scott, Wilson & Bowers, but even though I wasn't particularly interested in the to-ings and fro-ings of their relationship, I really understood Birdie's obsession. One bit I did like very much was the relationship between Adam and his friend John.
I'm going to repeat the word 'loved' over and over again in this review, but never mind - I LOVED the bits about what happened to Cherry, the emotions he went through. Loved reading about Kathleen, about the dark side of Amundsen, and the ghostly presence felt by everyone in Scott's hut. I wanted to be out there with them all (the modern day ones, not Scott and co!), seeing it all for myself, and experiencing the beautiful emptiness of the Antarctic. I found myself thinking about the book when I wasn't reading it; I've just finished it, and I know I will be thinking about it some more.
Anyone who has any interest in polar exploration will enjoy this book as much as I did - and, apart from the fact that it's about a subject by which I am fascinated, Pierce is one hell of a writer, too! I am looking forward to reading more from him, would love to know more about the research that went into this book, and recommend it most highly.
June 7, 2012
Adam Caird is an unassuming sort of guy who spots an interesting woman on a train. When she ends up fainting, he helps her and takes her for something to eat, looking after her partially because he finds her interesting and in need of looking after and also because he finds her attractive. The woman is Henrietta “Birdie” Bowers, named for Antarctic explorer Henry “Birdie” Bowers by her explorer-obsessed father. For her whole life, Birdie has lived, breathed and obsessed over Antarctica. She and her father had booked a trip, convinced they could find the explorer’s resting place, forever under the ice in the shifting continent but her father died before their trip could come to fruition. A passionate artist, Birdie paints to fundraise for her trip to the South Pole and now that her father has gone, she substitutes Adam in his place. But first Adam has to prove himself to her, by brushing up on his history of Antarctica and ‘feeling’ the obsession. He either will find it, or he won’t – and Birdie isn’t interested unless he does.
There isn’t much Adam wouldn’t do for her, even though he knows her so little. He is so drawn to her and his obsession is first with her rather than the explorers but through his research he becomes passionate about it, sucked into the story of the men racing for the South Pole. The ‘original Birdie’ Bowers was part of Scott’s team, competing against a team led by an explorer named Roald Amundsen for bragging rights as the first to the South Pole. It’s hard not to get drawn into the mystery – why did Scott and his men perish so close to a depot that promised food and shelter? What happened to them in their last days on Earth? It’s not something that anyone knows for sure, but Birdie thinks that she can find out. She’s driven to find out – and luckily Adam is a computer programmer and he’s been tinkering around with a program that he thinks can pinpoint the location where the tent, encased in ice, would be now. So they have a starting point.
Dead Men tells the modern day story of Adam and Birdie and their quest to travel to the frozen wasteland of Antarctica to find the bodies of Captain Scott, leader of the expedition and the men who died with him. Woven into this are stories of history, the discovery of Scott’s body and his companions by fellow team members and their efforts to give them an ice burial and the fate of Roald Amundsen. Through the authors eyes, the reader is given an insight into early 1900′s exploration in Antarctica and what it must have been like to be held captive by this landscape.
Dead Men caught my eye because of the cover – that vast expanse of white and the tiny figure situated at the centre of geographical lines drawn on the page to depict the South Pole. I’m fascinated by Antarctica – who isn’t? It’s beautiful, primitive, mostly untouched thanks to The Antarctica Treaty which bans military activity, nuclear testing, nuclear waste disposal, weapons testing and mining. It’s promoted as a peaceful space, where research and science are given high priority. After reading this book, I googled flights to Antarctica (there are flyovers that leave from my city of Melbourne) so taken was I with the story of Birdie and Adam journeying there. I can’t see myself doing what they did, staying in tents and digging in the ice (I don’t like the cold!) but the idea of doing a flyover or something fascinates me! Unfortunately the prices quickly brought me back down to Earth and I’ve had to file that away in the “If I Ever Win Lotto” drawer.
But back to the book! It was hard not to get drawn into this story line here. Birdie is an interesting character, almost bi-polar in her mood swings (either very ‘up’ or very ‘down’) and she’s often childishly churlish but with a vibrant energy that somehow manages to redeem her, especially in Adam’s eyes. He puts up with a lot from Birdie, at times it was almost hard to imagine someone taking that much and coming back for more! This is balanced out by Adam being quite lonely, an isolated character who is fascinated and bewitched by Birdie’s personality. It took me a while to ‘get’ Birdie, I think that it wasn’t until they were well on their way to fulfilling their dream of going to Antarctica that I began to understand her and to see how she ticked. My sympathies were often with Adam, but by the end I enjoyed them a lot together and thought they complimented each other very well.
Interspersed with the story of Adam and Birdie are snippets from Captain Scott’s expedition and the men in his party who were left behind from the final trek to the South Pole, who discovered them when they failed to return, as well as interesting tidbits and explorations on Amundsen, the explorer who did reach the South Pole first and was later killed in a plane crash whilst going in to rescue a fellow explorer in distress. A blend of fact and speculation, these chapters certainly helped to flesh out the story line, to build the love and obsession for the wild, shifting ice that is Antarctica. It also helps highlight just what the conditions down there are like.
If you have even a passing interest in Antarctica, I’d recommend this book! I was interested because I always enjoy reading books set in places ‘outside the norm’ – I try and visit as many places through literature as I can. I think the blend of realism and fictional embellishment will also appeal to those who like their fiction grounded in truth when it deals with real events and real people.
There isn’t much Adam wouldn’t do for her, even though he knows her so little. He is so drawn to her and his obsession is first with her rather than the explorers but through his research he becomes passionate about it, sucked into the story of the men racing for the South Pole. The ‘original Birdie’ Bowers was part of Scott’s team, competing against a team led by an explorer named Roald Amundsen for bragging rights as the first to the South Pole. It’s hard not to get drawn into the mystery – why did Scott and his men perish so close to a depot that promised food and shelter? What happened to them in their last days on Earth? It’s not something that anyone knows for sure, but Birdie thinks that she can find out. She’s driven to find out – and luckily Adam is a computer programmer and he’s been tinkering around with a program that he thinks can pinpoint the location where the tent, encased in ice, would be now. So they have a starting point.
Dead Men tells the modern day story of Adam and Birdie and their quest to travel to the frozen wasteland of Antarctica to find the bodies of Captain Scott, leader of the expedition and the men who died with him. Woven into this are stories of history, the discovery of Scott’s body and his companions by fellow team members and their efforts to give them an ice burial and the fate of Roald Amundsen. Through the authors eyes, the reader is given an insight into early 1900′s exploration in Antarctica and what it must have been like to be held captive by this landscape.
Dead Men caught my eye because of the cover – that vast expanse of white and the tiny figure situated at the centre of geographical lines drawn on the page to depict the South Pole. I’m fascinated by Antarctica – who isn’t? It’s beautiful, primitive, mostly untouched thanks to The Antarctica Treaty which bans military activity, nuclear testing, nuclear waste disposal, weapons testing and mining. It’s promoted as a peaceful space, where research and science are given high priority. After reading this book, I googled flights to Antarctica (there are flyovers that leave from my city of Melbourne) so taken was I with the story of Birdie and Adam journeying there. I can’t see myself doing what they did, staying in tents and digging in the ice (I don’t like the cold!) but the idea of doing a flyover or something fascinates me! Unfortunately the prices quickly brought me back down to Earth and I’ve had to file that away in the “If I Ever Win Lotto” drawer.
But back to the book! It was hard not to get drawn into this story line here. Birdie is an interesting character, almost bi-polar in her mood swings (either very ‘up’ or very ‘down’) and she’s often childishly churlish but with a vibrant energy that somehow manages to redeem her, especially in Adam’s eyes. He puts up with a lot from Birdie, at times it was almost hard to imagine someone taking that much and coming back for more! This is balanced out by Adam being quite lonely, an isolated character who is fascinated and bewitched by Birdie’s personality. It took me a while to ‘get’ Birdie, I think that it wasn’t until they were well on their way to fulfilling their dream of going to Antarctica that I began to understand her and to see how she ticked. My sympathies were often with Adam, but by the end I enjoyed them a lot together and thought they complimented each other very well.
Interspersed with the story of Adam and Birdie are snippets from Captain Scott’s expedition and the men in his party who were left behind from the final trek to the South Pole, who discovered them when they failed to return, as well as interesting tidbits and explorations on Amundsen, the explorer who did reach the South Pole first and was later killed in a plane crash whilst going in to rescue a fellow explorer in distress. A blend of fact and speculation, these chapters certainly helped to flesh out the story line, to build the love and obsession for the wild, shifting ice that is Antarctica. It also helps highlight just what the conditions down there are like.
If you have even a passing interest in Antarctica, I’d recommend this book! I was interested because I always enjoy reading books set in places ‘outside the norm’ – I try and visit as many places through literature as I can. I think the blend of realism and fictional embellishment will also appeal to those who like their fiction grounded in truth when it deals with real events and real people.
March 23, 2012
I pre-ordered Dead Men back in February when Richard Pierce first shared news of the book's imminent release. Richard is a friend of mine since our Authonomy days, and I was thrilled that one of his books was finally going to be released. Needless to say, I looked forward to being able to sit back with my own copy of his Antarctic-set work and read it at my leisure at long last.
The only problem with reading something written by a friend is that it can be hard to separate the friendship from the reading itself. It's only natural – and human, I suspect – to give a bit of leeway to a writer you know personally. As a writer myself, it's a concern I have when my writer friends read and review my work, or when I in turn read and/or review theirs. I do my best to keep my reading objective and unbiased, and sometimes that's quite a struggle to do.
However, with Dead Men, this wasn't a problem at all. From the very first pages I was swept up into the story, and found myself moved to tears before I'd gotten through the first chapter.
The novel alternates between scenes from the past which detail events during Captain Scott's expedition in 1912 and the aftermath of its sobering end, and scenes set in the modern day which tell the story of a pair of seemingly mis-matched lovers who meet by chance on the London Underground.
The surest proof I was involved in the story (aside from my emotional reaction to how Pierce details the passing of the men at various points in the book) was the fact I wasn't sure how to feel about Birdie Bowers, the woman with the dead man's name. Her often careless and contrary – almost spiteful – nature bothered me at first. Perhaps this was because I'd already found myself identifying with Adam Caird and feared that this bothersome woman would hurt him in spite of his consuming devotion to her. His tender, sensitive nature made me afraid that no good end could possibly come from this pairing.
In time, I realized that Birdie – obsessed with understanding the circumstances in which her namesake perished alongside Captain Scott – was merely a reflection of that obsession. In fact, over the course of her life, she has come to resemble the land where he died – unpredictable, harsh and hauntingly beautiful, and utterly compelling for those same reasons.
Watching Adam change and grow through the story was also heartening. It's done subtly, not overtly, and with a natural grace, like all of Pierce's writing. Initially timid and introverted, the challenge of loving tempestuous Birdie – and understanding whether or not the effort is worth anything in the long run – forces him to make decisions which lead him to a greater inner strength. This becomes most clear when the pair make their own journey to Antarctica in search of the truth Birdie believes Scott's tent (now buried beneath 100 years of snow and ice) contains.
Pierce describes Antarctica itself in a beautifully detailed but not overwhelming way. He has travelled there himself and it shows. He is able to paint the landscape so the reader has the feeling of the stark beauty and the deceptive dimensions of the place. In fact, just about every setting is described with a precision and skill which places the reader there, in the moment, so when one closes this book after reading the final pages (and that oh-so-perfect final paragraph), one comes away with a sense of having been there.
There are elements of the story which lean toward the supernatural, but all of them are events which are subtle and believable. It's a fine balance which Pierce handles deftly; he never overdoes these moments, but instead conveys them in a powerfully understated manner which borders on being poetic.
If the reader is like me, they will also come away from this book with a sense of satisfaction and melancholy for a number of reasons. For me, my reasons included: having finished the book too soon; Birdie and Adam's final decisions; the appreciation of what those brave and foolhardy Dead Men did, not so very long ago, and why they did it; and then, finally, a sense of gratitude for Richard Pierce having shared this story with us.
I highly recommend this book.
The only problem with reading something written by a friend is that it can be hard to separate the friendship from the reading itself. It's only natural – and human, I suspect – to give a bit of leeway to a writer you know personally. As a writer myself, it's a concern I have when my writer friends read and review my work, or when I in turn read and/or review theirs. I do my best to keep my reading objective and unbiased, and sometimes that's quite a struggle to do.
However, with Dead Men, this wasn't a problem at all. From the very first pages I was swept up into the story, and found myself moved to tears before I'd gotten through the first chapter.
The novel alternates between scenes from the past which detail events during Captain Scott's expedition in 1912 and the aftermath of its sobering end, and scenes set in the modern day which tell the story of a pair of seemingly mis-matched lovers who meet by chance on the London Underground.
The surest proof I was involved in the story (aside from my emotional reaction to how Pierce details the passing of the men at various points in the book) was the fact I wasn't sure how to feel about Birdie Bowers, the woman with the dead man's name. Her often careless and contrary – almost spiteful – nature bothered me at first. Perhaps this was because I'd already found myself identifying with Adam Caird and feared that this bothersome woman would hurt him in spite of his consuming devotion to her. His tender, sensitive nature made me afraid that no good end could possibly come from this pairing.
In time, I realized that Birdie – obsessed with understanding the circumstances in which her namesake perished alongside Captain Scott – was merely a reflection of that obsession. In fact, over the course of her life, she has come to resemble the land where he died – unpredictable, harsh and hauntingly beautiful, and utterly compelling for those same reasons.
Watching Adam change and grow through the story was also heartening. It's done subtly, not overtly, and with a natural grace, like all of Pierce's writing. Initially timid and introverted, the challenge of loving tempestuous Birdie – and understanding whether or not the effort is worth anything in the long run – forces him to make decisions which lead him to a greater inner strength. This becomes most clear when the pair make their own journey to Antarctica in search of the truth Birdie believes Scott's tent (now buried beneath 100 years of snow and ice) contains.
Pierce describes Antarctica itself in a beautifully detailed but not overwhelming way. He has travelled there himself and it shows. He is able to paint the landscape so the reader has the feeling of the stark beauty and the deceptive dimensions of the place. In fact, just about every setting is described with a precision and skill which places the reader there, in the moment, so when one closes this book after reading the final pages (and that oh-so-perfect final paragraph), one comes away with a sense of having been there.
There are elements of the story which lean toward the supernatural, but all of them are events which are subtle and believable. It's a fine balance which Pierce handles deftly; he never overdoes these moments, but instead conveys them in a powerfully understated manner which borders on being poetic.
If the reader is like me, they will also come away from this book with a sense of satisfaction and melancholy for a number of reasons. For me, my reasons included: having finished the book too soon; Birdie and Adam's final decisions; the appreciation of what those brave and foolhardy Dead Men did, not so very long ago, and why they did it; and then, finally, a sense of gratitude for Richard Pierce having shared this story with us.
I highly recommend this book.
August 19, 2012
They meet, accidentally, on the Tube. She is Birdie Bowers. And although she has the same first and last name as one of the men who died with Robert Scott on his journey back from the South Pole, she is not related to the famous dead man. Birdie’s parents were obsessed with the Antarctic and knowingly gave her the name. Now she’s obsessed with a certain aspect of the fatal mission and on the way to the Royal Geographic Society as part of her research when they meet.
He is Adam Caird and it’s Birdie who has to explain to him that the ‘Caird’ surname also has connections-to Antarctic because Ernest Shackleton sailed away to save his marooned men in the tiny lifeboat James Caird.
Soon enough, Birdie pulls Adam into her pursuit for understanding a critical aspect of the doomed mission. Although quickly smitten with the skinny Birdie, it’s not Adam’s thing.
Birdie is an enigma. She is also an artist who goes to her own shows incognito, it turns out. In fact, she’s a graffiti artist known for her abstract renditions of E.A. Wilson’s Antarctic sketches.
So from the outset, Pierce sets a pretty high bar for covering lots of story—getting these two to form an odd-couple team, getting these two to form an odd-couple couple, getting these two to come up with a plan to find the tent where Scott and two others died, getting them to Christchurch to make arrangements, and, finally, getting these two in position to answer all of Birdie’s questions.
Birdie is strong, temperamental, eccentric—and alluring.
It might be a bit of a stretch to imagine that a graffiti artist has the wherewithal to pull off this expedition, but in Pierce’s sure style you can gently suspend disbelief and go for the ride. Pierce does a great job building Birdie’s three-dimensional personality and “Dead Men” gains an inexorable undertow that is hard to resist. Adam Caird is along for the ride and it’s easy to imagine being pulled into Birdie’s quest.
Caird stands in as our skeptic at first and we succumb right alongside him as he falls—although why he spends so many nights alone is a bit of a puzzle. (This love story is rated PG.)
In the end, I was struck by Birdie’s desire to answer her question—whether or not Scott and his men perished due to a prolonged blizzard—and her desire to answer it for the sake of information and nothing else, including fame. It’s the same way she treated her art. Birdie is a truth seeker.
Despite its thriller-esque title, “Dead Men” is very much a love story disguised just a bit as an adventure story. It’s about two very different people coming together to find truth buried in the Antarctic ice over 100 years ago.
He is Adam Caird and it’s Birdie who has to explain to him that the ‘Caird’ surname also has connections-to Antarctic because Ernest Shackleton sailed away to save his marooned men in the tiny lifeboat James Caird.
Soon enough, Birdie pulls Adam into her pursuit for understanding a critical aspect of the doomed mission. Although quickly smitten with the skinny Birdie, it’s not Adam’s thing.
Birdie is an enigma. She is also an artist who goes to her own shows incognito, it turns out. In fact, she’s a graffiti artist known for her abstract renditions of E.A. Wilson’s Antarctic sketches.
So from the outset, Pierce sets a pretty high bar for covering lots of story—getting these two to form an odd-couple team, getting these two to form an odd-couple couple, getting these two to come up with a plan to find the tent where Scott and two others died, getting them to Christchurch to make arrangements, and, finally, getting these two in position to answer all of Birdie’s questions.
Birdie is strong, temperamental, eccentric—and alluring.
It might be a bit of a stretch to imagine that a graffiti artist has the wherewithal to pull off this expedition, but in Pierce’s sure style you can gently suspend disbelief and go for the ride. Pierce does a great job building Birdie’s three-dimensional personality and “Dead Men” gains an inexorable undertow that is hard to resist. Adam Caird is along for the ride and it’s easy to imagine being pulled into Birdie’s quest.
Caird stands in as our skeptic at first and we succumb right alongside him as he falls—although why he spends so many nights alone is a bit of a puzzle. (This love story is rated PG.)
In the end, I was struck by Birdie’s desire to answer her question—whether or not Scott and his men perished due to a prolonged blizzard—and her desire to answer it for the sake of information and nothing else, including fame. It’s the same way she treated her art. Birdie is a truth seeker.
Despite its thriller-esque title, “Dead Men” is very much a love story disguised just a bit as an adventure story. It’s about two very different people coming together to find truth buried in the Antarctic ice over 100 years ago.
December 4, 2013
A slim book makes a nice change after the last few books I have been reading.
I have a considerable interest in polar exploration, with particular focus on the late Victorian period. I was drawn to this novel which mixes a modern love story with Scott's last expedition.
I could do without the love story, which had slightly creepy overtones between a middle aged man and a small, frail and pale young woman.
The woman is named Birdie after one of the explorers that died with Scott 11 miles from potential safety. She is obsessed with the story and wonders what really happened in those last ten days blizzard bound in the tent. She is a wealthy artist who likes to remain anonymous. This artistic aspect never truly rings true.
Illusions to the past are neatly woven into the story set in the present.
At times the book wears its research lightly at other times it feels slightly forced into the text. Then you wonder why the well informed modern Birdie did not know the fate of the penguin eggs collected by Cherry-Garrard.
The passages of the book dealing with the aftermath of the expedition through the eyes of Cherry were enjoyable to read and had a sense of a man broken by survivor guilt. Generally the author seemed to handle the past better than the present.
Equally the scenes in a variety of museums felt true
Perhaps the pace was deliberately slow, mimicking the march back from the pole. The two central characters had yet to see ice halfway through the book as their relationship became more odd.
No other character in the book seems bothered by the relationship so after a point it became a background distraction.
About 200 pages in the book I thought I was reading threatened to be another sort of book entirely. A supernatural theme began to exert itself.
The scenes on the ice were well written and it felt true to the memory of those early explorers.
Without the polar theme I would not have bothered with this book but I am very happy to have read it.
I have a considerable interest in polar exploration, with particular focus on the late Victorian period. I was drawn to this novel which mixes a modern love story with Scott's last expedition.
I could do without the love story, which had slightly creepy overtones between a middle aged man and a small, frail and pale young woman.
The woman is named Birdie after one of the explorers that died with Scott 11 miles from potential safety. She is obsessed with the story and wonders what really happened in those last ten days blizzard bound in the tent. She is a wealthy artist who likes to remain anonymous. This artistic aspect never truly rings true.
Illusions to the past are neatly woven into the story set in the present.
At times the book wears its research lightly at other times it feels slightly forced into the text. Then you wonder why the well informed modern Birdie did not know the fate of the penguin eggs collected by Cherry-Garrard.
The passages of the book dealing with the aftermath of the expedition through the eyes of Cherry were enjoyable to read and had a sense of a man broken by survivor guilt. Generally the author seemed to handle the past better than the present.
Equally the scenes in a variety of museums felt true
Perhaps the pace was deliberately slow, mimicking the march back from the pole. The two central characters had yet to see ice halfway through the book as their relationship became more odd.
No other character in the book seems bothered by the relationship so after a point it became a background distraction.
About 200 pages in the book I thought I was reading threatened to be another sort of book entirely. A supernatural theme began to exert itself.
The scenes on the ice were well written and it felt true to the memory of those early explorers.
Without the polar theme I would not have bothered with this book but I am very happy to have read it.
December 18, 2014
Antarctic exploration and Robert Falcon Scott go together like helium blimps named Hindenberg and static sparks. Both, ironically, carry quite a romantic charge. Pierce’s first novel intersperses imagined little episodes of Scott and his fellow explorers with growing-up-into-I-am-going-to-be experiences of a loner, sad sack-esque, computer networky nerdy dude. Adam is besotted on sight with this skinny little chick who turns out to be a famous artist. She’s obsessed with the Antarctic and wants to get to the bottom of the mystery about the doomed Scott expedition‚ they were 11 miles away from a food depot and didn’t make it. Why*? Adam proves steadfast and loyal to a fault to Birdie, who proves inconstant, fickle, variable, and unreliable, a skinny little bitch on wheels. Part of what kept me reading is why? What magic power does she have over him? Is it similar to the power my sweetie has over me? The Antarctic expedition and the romance are alike in that they both depend on the charisma and charm of one person and the blind, dogged loyalty of others to make it happen. Or (ahem) not happen, as was the case with Scott.
*Lots of reasons, some of which are: they were wearing clothing that wouldn’t get 90 percent of you through a New York City winter; they were eating about half of what they should; they were man-hauling sleds (called sledging) for 800 freaking miles, carrying everything they had, including 30 pounds of ROCKS for science.
Find reviews of books for men at Books for Dudes, Books for Dudes, the online reader's advisory column for men from Library Journal. Copyright Library Journal.
*Lots of reasons, some of which are: they were wearing clothing that wouldn’t get 90 percent of you through a New York City winter; they were eating about half of what they should; they were man-hauling sleds (called sledging) for 800 freaking miles, carrying everything they had, including 30 pounds of ROCKS for science.
Find reviews of books for men at Books for Dudes, Books for Dudes, the online reader's advisory column for men from Library Journal. Copyright Library Journal.
July 12, 2018
The parts of the book that go back in time and dramatise some of the conversations and last moments of Captain Scott's trek to the South Pole are great, along with some of the moments in the present day out looking for last resting place of the three men in their tent.
The way the Antarctic is given a feeling of otherworldly life, how it calls those who venture to stay without being sinister is interesting.
The big let down for me is the relationship between the two protagonists. It's a very cliche and predictable scenario of much older man falls for young woman, who needs his grounding presence to reign in her "eccentric, flighty" moods and behaviour. Frankly I found parts of it rather uncomfortable, as his thoughts, as the reader hears them, constantly fixate on her physical appearance in a very sexual manner, how her clothes fit and reveal her body.
It would have been more interesting if it had been from her perspective instead or they didn't have a romantic relationship at all. For being the driving force behind the expadition, being an internationally successful artist and highly intelligent, she is written in a very infantile manner. Frankly, as a person, the man does not contribute much at all to the endeavor, apart from tagging along and cooking. Meanwhile she goes from being an independent woman with her own life, to suddenly deciding she wants to settle down and have babies.
That whole part is kind of awful to be honest.
The way the Antarctic is given a feeling of otherworldly life, how it calls those who venture to stay without being sinister is interesting.
The big let down for me is the relationship between the two protagonists. It's a very cliche and predictable scenario of much older man falls for young woman, who needs his grounding presence to reign in her "eccentric, flighty" moods and behaviour. Frankly I found parts of it rather uncomfortable, as his thoughts, as the reader hears them, constantly fixate on her physical appearance in a very sexual manner, how her clothes fit and reveal her body.
It would have been more interesting if it had been from her perspective instead or they didn't have a romantic relationship at all. For being the driving force behind the expadition, being an internationally successful artist and highly intelligent, she is written in a very infantile manner. Frankly, as a person, the man does not contribute much at all to the endeavor, apart from tagging along and cooking. Meanwhile she goes from being an independent woman with her own life, to suddenly deciding she wants to settle down and have babies.
That whole part is kind of awful to be honest.
May 31, 2012
I have enjoyed stories of exploration, so I was excited to read this book and see how Pierce mixed actual Antarctic exploration with a modern-day fictional story. The novel is a first-person narrative from a man who falls in love with a stranger, and through her develops a love for the Antarctic (and those who explored there long ago).
The first-person writing works well to convey emotions. I was surprised to see that the book is really more about self-discovery than a mystery about long-dead explorers. The narrator is basically in a mid-life crisis and becomes himself through his obsession with a beautiful stranger.
I was hoping for more content about the past and less about the internal struggles. The first-person story isn't bad or anything - it's just not what I was primarily hoping for. I didn't really get hooked until about a little over halfway, but once I reached a certain point (which I won't spoil), I wanted to sit down and finish the book in one reading.
I have to admit that the only Antarctic explorer I've read about is Shackleton. I'm going to go have to read about Scott now.
I received a free copy from the publisher as part of a Goodreads First Reads giveaway.
The first-person writing works well to convey emotions. I was surprised to see that the book is really more about self-discovery than a mystery about long-dead explorers. The narrator is basically in a mid-life crisis and becomes himself through his obsession with a beautiful stranger.
I was hoping for more content about the past and less about the internal struggles. The first-person story isn't bad or anything - it's just not what I was primarily hoping for. I didn't really get hooked until about a little over halfway, but once I reached a certain point (which I won't spoil), I wanted to sit down and finish the book in one reading.
I have to admit that the only Antarctic explorer I've read about is Shackleton. I'm going to go have to read about Scott now.
I received a free copy from the publisher as part of a Goodreads First Reads giveaway.
July 9, 2012
I really enjoyed reading this book. It was like a combination adventure/mystery and romance with the quirky Birdie obsessed with discovering what happened to her namesake (who perished with explorer Scott in the Antarctic just 11 miles from safety) and Adam, an older fellow who never thought he'd discover someone who loved and needed him. the chapters that went back and forth between the present story of Birdie and Adam and the past history of Scott and his fellow explorers wove the story together in a magical way. I've read several books about Shackleton and his explorations of the Pole, and this book made me want to read the history of Amundsen and Scott and their race to the South Pole. The descriptions of the eerie voices heard in the wind and the cold made me forget the heat of summer in Florida!
October 8, 2012
When Adam meet Birdie Bowers (yes, named after the explorer), he quickly realizes that she is obsessed with the Terra Nova Expedition (1910-1918) and the fate of Scott, Bowers, and Wilson. (The men died and their bodies were discovered 11 miles from a supply depot.) Adam agrees to assist Birdie on an expedition to Antarctica to find the remains of the dead explorers.
The novel is told alternating between the expedition and present day. Anyone familiar with the story of Amundsen and Scott and their race to be first to the South Pole will be intrigued by this novel.
Also read Last Place on Earth by Roland Huntford and watch the BBC adaptation. I also recommend The Birthday Boys by Beryl Bainbridge.
The novel is told alternating between the expedition and present day. Anyone familiar with the story of Amundsen and Scott and their race to be first to the South Pole will be intrigued by this novel.
Also read Last Place on Earth by Roland Huntford and watch the BBC adaptation. I also recommend The Birthday Boys by Beryl Bainbridge.
November 21, 2018
For my full review please go to my blog at ladybookdragon.com.
This book is a wonderful read and a beautiful love story and I got to learn some history as well. It really got me interested in the Scott expedition and I fully intend on doing some more reading about Scott and Amundsen. At just under 300 pages this book packs a lot of punch and you get a great deal of content in such a small book. I highly recommend this book to everyone, especially if you are a fan of books with history, love and the power of nature.
This book is a wonderful read and a beautiful love story and I got to learn some history as well. It really got me interested in the Scott expedition and I fully intend on doing some more reading about Scott and Amundsen. At just under 300 pages this book packs a lot of punch and you get a great deal of content in such a small book. I highly recommend this book to everyone, especially if you are a fan of books with history, love and the power of nature.
June 3, 2012
The first chapter of Dead Men draws you in to the Antarctic past vivid enough to be there.
a Modern day adventure by the two main characters "Birdie and Adam" set out in chapter two retracing the past as the timeline shifts from past to present in alternating chapters.
Adam is a character I thought to "soft" for an adventure/explorer in a general sense and some of his emotions seemed odd in the beginning but is part of the humanity conveyed through the book.
Once out on the "ice" the the story is a real page turner.
Part adventure part romance with a hint of a ghost story this was an unusual tale of exploration and overall enjoyable.
a Modern day adventure by the two main characters "Birdie and Adam" set out in chapter two retracing the past as the timeline shifts from past to present in alternating chapters.
Adam is a character I thought to "soft" for an adventure/explorer in a general sense and some of his emotions seemed odd in the beginning but is part of the humanity conveyed through the book.
Once out on the "ice" the the story is a real page turner.
Part adventure part romance with a hint of a ghost story this was an unusual tale of exploration and overall enjoyable.
August 31, 2013
While I initially was not too fond of this book, I found it grew on me. Part of the problem is that I went in expecting the love story to be more compelling than it was. On the other hand, I found myself much more drawn into the mystery of what happened to Captain Scott and his men than I had expected, which is what ultimately bumped my rating up from 2 to 3 stars. Once the story moved past the initial relationship formation and into the planning for the Antarctic, I had difficulty putting the book down. It just took a little while to get to that point.
Disclaimer: Received this book for free through Goodreads' First Reads giveaway program.
Disclaimer: Received this book for free through Goodreads' First Reads giveaway program.
May 2, 2016
Who said literary works tend to be boring? This debut novel by Richard Pierce proves a poetically written narrative can also be riveting and engrossing. Dead Men is the story of Captain Robert Falcon Scott’s ill-fated race to the South Pole. This is not a lengthy novel and the author uses every word, sentence, and verbal image to craft his themes, for there are many layers here. This is a love story, a historical novel, a polar expedition, and a ghostly tale. At first it appears improbable, but page after page one is drawn in until the hook is set. This is the author’s first effort at a full-length fiction and is a notable success. I highly recommend this novel.
December 27, 2012
Dead Men will surprise you.
RP weaves time seamlessly.
Thanks to RP I now want and have to read all I can about Scott & Co. He writes with conviction and knowledge so that the reader can believe in the story.
I would usually give any novel with a big love story a wide berth so I was a little hesitant, but it is well done and I did like the themes it explored.
My only critique would be, that for me, less love story and more Antarctic.
I have already recommended Dead Men to family and friends.
RP weaves time seamlessly.
Thanks to RP I now want and have to read all I can about Scott & Co. He writes with conviction and knowledge so that the reader can believe in the story.
I would usually give any novel with a big love story a wide berth so I was a little hesitant, but it is well done and I did like the themes it explored.
My only critique would be, that for me, less love story and more Antarctic.
I have already recommended Dead Men to family and friends.
June 7, 2012
I was expecting an antarctic adventure book, but this is really a love story. Either way, it was good. The book blends the history of Antarctic exploration with a present day love story. For a debut novel, it is very good. I won this book in the Goodreads giveaway.
August 29, 2013
Great historical fiction piece. The writing was engaging and you felt what the characters felt. Anyone interested in Antarctic exploration and the expeditions of Scott and the rest should check it out. A romantic history mystery with a touch of ghost story.
July 26, 2016
An interesting read although it confirms I prefer reading the facts rather than fictions. I found it hard to take to Henrietta, and by extension to Adam, so I didn't get caught up in their lives. What this has left me with is a renewed desire to read The Worst Journey in the World.
April 11, 2018
I found this book tedious, weird and inconsistent. Can't believe I actually Finished it. Was expecting more of a history.
November 24, 2012
Overall I was disappointed by this novel. Pierce uses the Scott story to write a romantic adventure story, with adventure n brackets. I am not sure this environment suits romance.
I have read a lot about polar exploration, so expect a lot. I have read no good novels on the subject, except the outstanding "The Terror" by Simmons. So in the future I will stick with non-fiction and pass that recommendation to others.
I have read a lot about polar exploration, so expect a lot. I have read no good novels on the subject, except the outstanding "The Terror" by Simmons. So in the future I will stick with non-fiction and pass that recommendation to others.
January 4, 2013
The main female character I found annoying and it had a silly ending. Interesting facts about history though.
April 21, 2013
I read about 100 pages for book discussion group but couldn't get into it. After we met I renewed but never did get back into it.
April 23, 2014
Worst book on Earth!
March 22, 2012
I read this book in a single sitting, straight through a night shift. It's a fantatic blend of easy readbility, the realistic relationship observation skills of Nick Hornby with some heart-warming and thought-provoking history. I didn't know a damn thing about the antarctic expeditions and you dont have to. The history doesn't outweigh the present storyline, but adds to it and highlights how we mark ourselves by the endeavours of those who have come before.
I can't recommend this highly enough. Waiting in anticipation for Pierce's next book!
I can't recommend this highly enough. Waiting in anticipation for Pierce's next book!
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