Mission: Books 22/25
A Book Based on a True Story: South: The Endurance Expedition by Ernest Shackleton.
As the first world war broke out across Europe, Shackleton's expedition to the South Pole became trapped by ice. Their ship, the Endurance, was crushed and the men were forced to survive in and escape from one of the world's most hostile environment. Traversing glaciers, scaling cliffs and crossing treacherous seas in open boats, all the time threatened by brutal cold and hunger, the men, through their own strength and Shackleton's leadership, all made it to safety. This story makes the efforts of latterday adventurers pale in comparison.
I really didn't know much about the Shackleton expedition apart from the very basics.
The book starts out quite dry, though I found the passages at the begining about securing funding for the expedition and the outbreak of war almost derailing it before it started really helped add details. The tone may be dry but it's by no means flat or emotionless, and the details and observations are so interesting that after a dozen or so pages I no longer cared. I was too interested in the descriptions of wind conditions affecting the ice, the geologists constant disappointment at not having anything to observe, dog races and penguin chasing, and near-death escapes. The man who played his violin with one string, the man who was nearly crushed by an enormous block of ice, the carpenter who built amazing things on the fly. It continues on like that, triumphs and hardships described in a dry and exact, but never emotionless voice, interspersed with amusing little asides concerning how people wanted their tea, cooking adventures with sometimes only one or two ingredients, and falling into the water chasing penguins. There are also passages throughout written not by Shackleton but by the men who went with him.
Even as the mood slowly slips downwards, as things become more difficult after the loss of the Endurance, hard decisions are made, and they spend long stretches at sea and on floating chunks of ice, there's still a compelling sort of restrained respect and wonder for the environment they found themselves in, for all its unpredicatable moments (where the cold, ice, thirst or killer whales tries to murder them.) But what definitely comes through is the absolute determination not to let any of the men fall into despair, which Shackleton goes to great and often unnoticed lengths to ensure. Then the eventual rescue of every one of his party. Also I have developed a love for the underused word 'inspiriting' which he seems very fond of.
The last third of the book outlines the fate of the Ross sea party which was supposed to lay provisions for the second half of Shackleton's journey. Which was plagued by illness, frostbite, scurvy and inexperience and ended much less happily. And the last mentions of members from both teams who were soon after wounded or killed in the first world war.
I'm absolutely glad that I read this book. Stupid explorers making me have feelings.