Endurance: Shackleton's Incredible Voyage to the Antarctic

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The British didn’t take the news of the Norwegians reaching the South Pole before them lightly. Their record for exploration “had been perhaps unparalleled among the nations of the earth,” and now they had to take “a humiliating second-best” to a much less-renowned country. Whatever his mood—whether it was gay and breezy, or dark with rage—he had one pervading characteristic: he was purposeful.” That happened in December 1911, when a highly prepared Norwegian expedition led by Roald Amundsen decisively beat the (ironically) better-remembered one led by a British Royal Navy Officer named Robert Falcon Scott.

For a reason: during the Heroic Age, no less than 17 major Antarctic expeditions were launched from 10 different countries of the world. Though some of them had scientific interests, the primary object of most of these expeditions was, interestingly, to become the first expedition to reach the geographic South Pole. This, then, was the Drake Passage, the most dreaded bit of ocean on the globe—and rightly so. Here nature has been given a proving ground on which to demonstrate what she can do if left alone. The”

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Then look no further: Alfred Lansing’s classic Endurance is its best and most spellbinding account.

Making use of crew member journals, many of which have never been published, Alexander writes a compelling story of boldness and courage in the face of impossible odds. She boldly and succinctly captures the terrible landscape and the men’s characters as they persevered and fought for their lives. All across the USA, people are showing up dead. The deaths don't appear to be connected in any way until one particular death occurs and gets the Secretary of Defense's attention. He arranges for a task force to investigate. In that instant they felt an overwhelming sense of pride and accomplishment. Though they had failed dismally even to come close to the expedition's original objective, they knew now that somehow they had done much, much more than ever they set out to do.”The Endurance is trapped in the Antarctic ice. The ship’s condition worsens by the minute. Engineers are desperately trying to keep up with the rising water levels and failing pumps, but they know that it won’t be long before there’s no hope left for them or their comrades on board.