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Escape from the Antarctic
Although Shackleton's (1874-1922) epic expedition to reach the South Pole was a complete disaster, it was rescued from absurdity by his heroic, terrifying crossing of the Southern Ocean in a small boat to a whaling station on South Georgia. Through one of the greatest recorded feats of navigation and of leadership, he overcame almost impossible odds and rescued every one of his men from otherwise certain death. "Great Journeys" allows readers to travel both around the planet and back through the centuries - but also back into ideas and worlds frightening, ruthless and cruel in different ways from our own. Few reading experiences can begin to match that of engaging with writers who saw astounding great civilizations, walls of ice, violent and implacable jungles, deserts and mountains, multitudes of birds and flowers new to science. Reading these books is to see the world afresh, to rediscover a time when many cultures were quite strange to each other, where legends and stories were treated as facts and in which so much was still to be discovered.
90 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1919
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About the author
Ernest Shackleton
81 books121 followersSir Ernest Henry Shackleton (1874-1922) was an Anglo-Irish merchant naval officer who made his reputation as an explorer during what is known as the Heroic Age of Antarctic Exploration, a period of discovery characterised by journeys of geographical and scientific exploration in a largely unknown continent, without any of the benefits of modern travel methods or radio communication.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 35 reviews
May 8, 2014
My favorite bit, very near the end: The street of [Port Stanley] is about a mile and a half long. It has the slaughterhouse at one end and the graveyard at the other. The chief distraction is to walk from the slaughterhouse to the graveyard. For a change one may walk from the graveyard to the slaughterhouse.
Begins as a fairly dry, formal report of the efforts to reach safety and send back a ship to rescue the party members left behind on Antarctica but slowly develops into a keenly observed and wickedly human memoir of a terrifying ordeal ... with British upper lip kept resolutely stiff.
Begins as a fairly dry, formal report of the efforts to reach safety and send back a ship to rescue the party members left behind on Antarctica but slowly develops into a keenly observed and wickedly human memoir of a terrifying ordeal ... with British upper lip kept resolutely stiff.
February 24, 2019
‘One feels the ‘dearth of human words, the roughness of mortal speech’ in trying to describe things intangible…’
The explorer’s bizarre desperation to conquer Antarctica, to cross the continent in one go, always seems to end in disaster or at least a near miss - Shackleton’s 1914 expedition is no exception. Even to this day, no one’s managed it.
Whilst his account maintains that prerequisite British stoicism, it’s also unexpectedly well-written (concise, but unsparing in the details) and funny. It’s a tale of extraordinary resilience, leadership, camaraderie and a journey that almost defies belief; a team of six men navigating 800 miles of seething Antarctic sea in no more than a tiny modified lifeboat, all to secure a rescue mission for the twenty two men they left stranded on Elephant Island. And what’s more, they managed it. They went back for the boys, and no fatalities.
How such an expedition was sanctioned during early WW1 (well, they thought it would all be over by Christmas, I guess), and whether Shackleton was particularly equipped to even attempt it remains beyond me.
The explorer’s bizarre desperation to conquer Antarctica, to cross the continent in one go, always seems to end in disaster or at least a near miss - Shackleton’s 1914 expedition is no exception. Even to this day, no one’s managed it.
Whilst his account maintains that prerequisite British stoicism, it’s also unexpectedly well-written (concise, but unsparing in the details) and funny. It’s a tale of extraordinary resilience, leadership, camaraderie and a journey that almost defies belief; a team of six men navigating 800 miles of seething Antarctic sea in no more than a tiny modified lifeboat, all to secure a rescue mission for the twenty two men they left stranded on Elephant Island. And what’s more, they managed it. They went back for the boys, and no fatalities.
How such an expedition was sanctioned during early WW1 (well, they thought it would all be over by Christmas, I guess), and whether Shackleton was particularly equipped to even attempt it remains beyond me.
May 12, 2011
in the shack's own words. Shackleton, besides being an audacious leader, was a good writer, but also note, this is just a few pages long, so its just excerpts, but enough to whet one's freezing-to-death-in-the-Antarctic appetite. I'm not really sure why Penguin even decided to do this recent series (penguin great journeys, all super abbreviated at less than 100 pages), for screen-heads with short attention spans i suppose.
August 27, 2024
Difficult to find the right words. To think these men did what they did with the equipment they had is difficult to get the modern mind around.
I find it rather ironic that I was admiring the bravery of these men from the comfort of my warm house.
I would definitely recommend this book for any adventure lover.
I find it rather ironic that I was admiring the bravery of these men from the comfort of my warm house.
I would definitely recommend this book for any adventure lover.
October 28, 2025
What an incredible journey, Shackleton’s determination and resilience, and the faith his crew had in him is absolutely unparalleled - an inspiration!
March 20, 2016
Poor old Ernest. I started reading this a couple of months or so ago, put it down, after which it got hidden under other bits, and I only rediscovered it last night. I left Ernest fighting for survival in a little boat being thrashed on the Antarctic high seas for several weeks.
This is part of a 20 book issue by Penguin. It is a good idea and a frustrating idea, as these are all excerpt books rather than the full deal. So with some you finish it and it's simply not enough. Some you feel were good, but you've had enough now. And for a couple it's more of a case of, way too much even with an excerpt!
This book probably falls into the second category for me. This is a fight for survival in a landscape that really, truely isn't meant for people at all. This certainly isn't an aspirational travel book that makes you want to go there.
This book starts off in 1916 (I think) with the ship having been crushed by ice and the crew marooned on Elephant Island (anything but tropical) in the Antartic. Taking the lifeboat, Shackleton and a small select crew including the carpenter who seems to be able to make anything out of anything, set back off on the icy violant seas to travel across the deadly seas several hundred miles to another tiny island, South Georgia, where there is a whaling station and hope of rescue. Thus follows the worst time spent in a boat at sea (almost - there is no cannibalism in this adventure). Amazingly, and hats off to those navigators and adventurers, they make it to the island, which is a dangerous mass of glaciars, ice cliffs, mountains and frozen lakes. Sadly, the only inhabited bit is the whaling station village itself, the rest too dangerous for man to travel upon. Sadly for the crew, they land on the wrong bit. So splitting again into two parts, Shackleton and two fellas start to walk across the island to the station. And they make it! What's more, the Norwegians nip around the island on the boat and rescue the other three guys who are also all well. A number of months and abortive attempts to reach Elephant island, with much help from the South Americans, in particular the Chileans and the Uruguayans, pass, at the end of which they finally make it through the ice to the island, and all the guys there are still alive and come running on board!
After reading this, I truely do not understand the explororer's need to conquer Antarctica. I just don't get it.
This is part of a 20 book issue by Penguin. It is a good idea and a frustrating idea, as these are all excerpt books rather than the full deal. So with some you finish it and it's simply not enough. Some you feel were good, but you've had enough now. And for a couple it's more of a case of, way too much even with an excerpt!
This book probably falls into the second category for me. This is a fight for survival in a landscape that really, truely isn't meant for people at all. This certainly isn't an aspirational travel book that makes you want to go there.
This book starts off in 1916 (I think) with the ship having been crushed by ice and the crew marooned on Elephant Island (anything but tropical) in the Antartic. Taking the lifeboat, Shackleton and a small select crew including the carpenter who seems to be able to make anything out of anything, set back off on the icy violant seas to travel across the deadly seas several hundred miles to another tiny island, South Georgia, where there is a whaling station and hope of rescue. Thus follows the worst time spent in a boat at sea (almost - there is no cannibalism in this adventure). Amazingly, and hats off to those navigators and adventurers, they make it to the island, which is a dangerous mass of glaciars, ice cliffs, mountains and frozen lakes. Sadly, the only inhabited bit is the whaling station village itself, the rest too dangerous for man to travel upon. Sadly for the crew, they land on the wrong bit. So splitting again into two parts, Shackleton and two fellas start to walk across the island to the station. And they make it! What's more, the Norwegians nip around the island on the boat and rescue the other three guys who are also all well. A number of months and abortive attempts to reach Elephant island, with much help from the South Americans, in particular the Chileans and the Uruguayans, pass, at the end of which they finally make it through the ice to the island, and all the guys there are still alive and come running on board!
After reading this, I truely do not understand the explororer's need to conquer Antarctica. I just don't get it.
November 7, 2015
This Penguin Great Journeys book is an excerpt from Shackleton's South: the Endurance Expedition.
In this excerpt we join the twenty eight men on Elephant Island, after the Endurance has been crushed by ice, and the men are marooned on the island with only a couple of small boats. The James Caird, a 20 foot ship's waler was the vessel chosen for Shackleton and the other 5 men to attempt to reach a waling station and rescue for the men who remained on Elephant Island.
540 miles, in a small boat, in treacherous seas, followed by a land crossing to reach help. It is a well enough known story, but Shackleton tells it well, and this excerpt is well selected. It has pace and excitement, is packed with careful detail and demonstrates amazing spirit and resilience of these men.
It is a real story of survival against the odds, and well worth a read.
In this excerpt we join the twenty eight men on Elephant Island, after the Endurance has been crushed by ice, and the men are marooned on the island with only a couple of small boats. The James Caird, a 20 foot ship's waler was the vessel chosen for Shackleton and the other 5 men to attempt to reach a waling station and rescue for the men who remained on Elephant Island.
540 miles, in a small boat, in treacherous seas, followed by a land crossing to reach help. It is a well enough known story, but Shackleton tells it well, and this excerpt is well selected. It has pace and excitement, is packed with careful detail and demonstrates amazing spirit and resilience of these men.
It is a real story of survival against the odds, and well worth a read.
September 17, 2014
This adventure of a ship-wrecked crew in the Antarctic takes place during World War I. Ernest Shackelton's crew is trapped on a island off the Antarctic coast and he and four other crew members decide to try a an 800 mile trip to South Georgia in one of the boat's twenty foot lifeboats. This autobiographical story is one of the most daring and successful attempts at survival that I know of. This story means even more to me because in 1997 I made the trip in a 250 foot icebreaker with 32 birdwatching companions. Only three of us avoided spending the entire trip outside of the bathrooms due to the violent seas. The thought of making this trip in a twenty foot boat and returning to save the remaining crew defies belief.
August 4, 2021
Of the nine out of twenty books I've read so far in this, the Great Journeys series, I've rated six of them ** {'It was OK'} and two of them *** {'Liked it'}.
Whilst I don't do star ratings on my blog {Pen and Paper} per se, compelled to do so on other sites, I'm doing so here today as a matter of comparison ...
Rated **** {'Really liked it'}, Escape From Antarctica is my favourite book in the Great Journeys series ... so far.
An extraordinary tale told with a typical British stoicism, reads as a what I'd describe as a fairly formal report but oh my goodness ...
Told in 100 pages, keenly observed and with a dry humour, what turned out to be a compelling memoir of an 800 mile rescue mission, the likes of which put me in mind of one of those Boy's Own Adventure Stories.
Whilst I don't do star ratings on my blog {Pen and Paper} per se, compelled to do so on other sites, I'm doing so here today as a matter of comparison ...
Rated **** {'Really liked it'}, Escape From Antarctica is my favourite book in the Great Journeys series ... so far.
An extraordinary tale told with a typical British stoicism, reads as a what I'd describe as a fairly formal report but oh my goodness ...
Told in 100 pages, keenly observed and with a dry humour, what turned out to be a compelling memoir of an 800 mile rescue mission, the likes of which put me in mind of one of those Boy's Own Adventure Stories.
September 16, 2008
In which Shackleton tells the story about how Frank Worsley, Tom Crean, and him are tougher than anyone else, all the while wearing Burberry and Abercrombie. How's that for gangsta? He makes 50 Cent look like a punk. The best part? After escaping from the Antarctic, he goes back to save the rest of the boys.
October 28, 2009
Read it one day when it rained. An exemplary adventure story. I know better then to take Shackleton at his word at many points in the text but, it is great fun and dramatically inspiring. I did not know the outcome of this story and was thrilled to the very end. A page turner. A nail biter. An adventure.
June 25, 2024
All I can say is I can’t imagine journeying through 800 miles of sea, buffeted by snow and ice, clinging onto the fragile hope of reaching safe land.
It takes a special kind of resoluteness to brave and survive the Antarctic like Ernest Shackleton did over a century ago.
Reminded me once more that I am small, the earth is big and blue.
It takes a special kind of resoluteness to brave and survive the Antarctic like Ernest Shackleton did over a century ago.
Reminded me once more that I am small, the earth is big and blue.
November 27, 2014
A fascinating read; I knew nothing of this expedition beforehand, and found Shackleton's writing very easy to read. The story is incredible - it's amazing that anyone survived, and Shackleton's attribution of their success to Providence doesn't seem out of place.
January 17, 2009
Another one from the Penguin Classics Great Journeys collection. I have seen pictures of Shackleton's camp and heard stories about what happened but reading it in his own words makes it much more real.
December 5, 2007
Will redefine the way you think of 'hardcore' and 'adventure'...best of all it's true!
November 21, 2011
Was reading this book while i was in Antarctica, short and sweet and great to carry along since it's not heavy at all.
June 27, 2021
Escape from the Antarctic is a selection from Ernest Shackleton's book South, describing the most remarkable part of Shackleton's disastrous expedition to the Antarctic in 1914-17. Escape tells the portion of the story where Shackleton and his men have been marooned with few supplies on an Antarctic island after their ship is crushed by pack ice, and his decision to set out across 800 miles of forbidding ocean – "the most tempestuous storm-swept area of water in the world" (pg. 3) – in a small boat with a handful of men to the tiny island of South Georgia. On this island, the exhausted men then traverse a glacier thought impassable to find aid at a whaling station.
It is an incredible feat, and for the most part Shackleton's prose matches it. It is quite a dry account, with only the occasional flair, but the feats described are remarkable no matter how they are told. It is impossible when reading not to be intimidated by the cold, terror and brute force of Antarctic nature, and impossible not to be staggered by the ability of weak, exhausted men to resist it. Anyone who can tell first-hand of crashing ice, howling hurricanes and gigantic waves – "so small was our boat and so great were the seas that often our sail flapped idly in the calm between the crests of two waves" (pg. 15) – is always going to find ears for his story.
It is an incredible feat, and for the most part Shackleton's prose matches it. It is quite a dry account, with only the occasional flair, but the feats described are remarkable no matter how they are told. It is impossible when reading not to be intimidated by the cold, terror and brute force of Antarctic nature, and impossible not to be staggered by the ability of weak, exhausted men to resist it. Anyone who can tell first-hand of crashing ice, howling hurricanes and gigantic waves – "so small was our boat and so great were the seas that often our sail flapped idly in the calm between the crests of two waves" (pg. 15) – is always going to find ears for his story.
June 10, 2019
One of the greatest tales of courage, and the will to survive, overcoming fear and adversity.
You will feel as if you are there with these men as their ship is crushed in a sea of shifting ice, and they scavenge the things they will carry with them on their historical trek for survival.
Shackleton is the story of how one man rescued an entire crew - not only from the Antarctic - but from their own fears.
You will feel as if you are there with these men as their ship is crushed in a sea of shifting ice, and they scavenge the things they will carry with them on their historical trek for survival.
Shackleton is the story of how one man rescued an entire crew - not only from the Antarctic - but from their own fears.
March 27, 2024
I’ve enjoyed a lot of this series and this appealed to me the least. However I was enthralled and it’s spurned me on to read further. Whilst I was vaguely aware of this expedition I had no idea of the brutality. The spirit is a hard thing to break and even a 36 hour trek in thise conditions seem miraculous, when you consider the run up, lack of food lack of proper exercise and malnutrition they must have suffered previous, shows they really were made of tough stuff.
December 24, 2025
Interesting true story about a crew who survived an early expedition through Antarctica. The details are harrowing, but it's written so dryly, as if he's just logging precise details of each moment that passes, that it's very boring. Lots of trekking through arctic wasteland, trying to stay warm, looking for food and water. It definitely drags on. I am now wondering what albatross stew might taste like.
August 27, 2018
Shackleton and his team showed the utmost endurance and perseverance. Never have a series of such blistering colds alighted such burning passions as they did here.
The writing is concise and never superfluous, and the minutiae - details of foodstuffs prepared - are perfectly interwoven throughout.
The writing is concise and never superfluous, and the minutiae - details of foodstuffs prepared - are perfectly interwoven throughout.
December 30, 2022
This was interesting, lots of different words to look up and learn about the Antarctic and they're journey to seek rescue. Some of it was a bit dry to read, it made me sleepy but some bits were quite interesting.
February 19, 2024
This short little book is part of the journal Shackleton kept of one of his Antarctica explorations detailing his efforts to save his crew. Mildly interesting but would probably have appreciated a longer piece to know how the crew found themselves caught in the ice.
December 31, 2019
The perfect book to end 2019 and think back on at the beginning of a new year. Shackleton's description of endurance, hope, and perseverance is a story to continually inspire.
July 18, 2020
10/10. Unbelievable story. Hard to imagine that all of this really happened 100 years ago. It’s only 90 pages but every paragraph contains almost unbelievable details and events.
September 14, 2020
A fascinating piece of history.
January 3, 2024
Astonishing account of struggle and fortitude.
December 25, 2025
Random af read from me but entertaining in the end
March 30, 2015
I first learned about Shackleton from an impressive dramatisation of his Antarctic exhibition of 1914 which starred Kenneth Branagh. This book consists of excerpts from Shackleton's account of the same trip, a tome entitled South:The 'Endurance' Expedition.
Shackleton describes his experiences very well, capturing both the physical environment and emotional responses to his journey. It is a very immersive book which gives the reader the feeling of accompanying the expedition, the greatest achievement which can be made by a piece of travel writing. It was quite inspiring to read, you can't help but marvel at the author's stoicism, determination and ability to endure extreme discomfort. That he also maintained good spirits whilst facing arduous circumstances was quite amazing. His concern for his fellow crew members displayed a humane side to his character as well, a touching aspect of his account. This is an exciting adventure, and even more impressive, a true story. I enjoyed reading this and am now interested in finding out more about the author. A good introduction to Shackleton for those unfamiliar with his life.
Shackleton describes his experiences very well, capturing both the physical environment and emotional responses to his journey. It is a very immersive book which gives the reader the feeling of accompanying the expedition, the greatest achievement which can be made by a piece of travel writing. It was quite inspiring to read, you can't help but marvel at the author's stoicism, determination and ability to endure extreme discomfort. That he also maintained good spirits whilst facing arduous circumstances was quite amazing. His concern for his fellow crew members displayed a humane side to his character as well, a touching aspect of his account. This is an exciting adventure, and even more impressive, a true story. I enjoyed reading this and am now interested in finding out more about the author. A good introduction to Shackleton for those unfamiliar with his life.
November 24, 2008
It's 1916 and Sir Ernest Shackleton and his crew are marooned on a rocky, desolate island hundreds of miles from civilization. With winter approaching and supplies running low, Shackleton must leave behind most of his crew as he and two other men set sail in a tiny boat for aid 800 miles away. Shackleton's courageous trek across storm-ravaged Antarctic seas will take you completely out of your environment and make you feel as though you, too, are traveling with him on this terrifying adventure.
'Escape from the Antarctic' is just one of 19 books in Penguin's Great Journeys series, a beautifully-designed line of adventure tales published by Penguin Classics UK.
'Escape from the Antarctic' is just one of 19 books in Penguin's Great Journeys series, a beautifully-designed line of adventure tales published by Penguin Classics UK.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 35 reviews