First published 2015
Alfred Lansing chronicles the extraordinary survival story of Ernest Shackleton and his 27-member crew during the Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition of 1914-1917. Drawing from diaries, interviews, and expedition records, Lansing reconstructs how the ship Endurance became locked in pack ice, was slowly destroyed by crushing ice floes, and left the men stranded on the frozen Antarctic seas. The author details their daily struggles against subzero temperatures, shrinking food supplies, and complete isolation from the outside world. Lansing follows the crew through 634 days of survival, including their eventual escape across treacherous ice and open ocean. The book reveals how ordinary men responded to extraordinary circumstances, showing the practical decisions, leadership challenges, and psychological pressures that determined who lived and who might have died. Readers gain insight into one of history's most remarkable survival stories through Lansing's careful documentation of this polar expedition disaster.
Genres: biography, history, adventure, non-fiction
Vibes: intimate, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: against-the-odds, survival
Setting: Antarctica
Period: 1914-1917
282 pages · Paperback · Carroll & Graf Publishers