The Story of Shackleton's Last Expedition in the Antarctic (South) - Softcover

This first-person account of the Endurance crew's famed odyssey across the frozen Antarctic is one of the most amazing adventure stories ever. In the summer of 1914, Sir Ernest Shackleton and his men set our to make the first sea-to-sea crossing of the most inhospitable continent on earth. One year later, halfway, to their objective and their ship destroyed by ice, the expedition began an unbelievable journey back to the fringe of civilization. "South" is their story of battles against incredible obstacles for nearly two years, surviving on ice floes, sailing hundreds of miles on tumultuous seas, battling the unimaginable cold of the Antarctic winter, enduring debilitating hunger, injury, and misfortune, and finally overcoming improbable odds to reach help.As Shackleton himself wrote at the time of the book's original publication in 1920, this is "a book of high adventure, strenuous days and lonely nights, unique experiences, and, above all, records of unflinching determination, supreme loyalty, and generous self-sacrifice on the part of my men". It is a story that resonates to this day as the classic tale of survival, resolve, and leadership. Alfred Lansing's Endurance made the journey famous; Shackleton's book brings it dramatically to life.

In August 1914, twenty-eight men aboard the ship Endurance began what was to be the "last of the great explorations" - the crossing of the vast Antarctic land mass. It turned into one of the most remarkable survival stories ever recorded.In this reprint of the original 1920 edition, Sir Ernest Shackleton, the legendary leader of the expedition, eloquently describes their fabled two-year odyssey in one of the most inhospitable regions on earth - the devastating crushing of the Endurance in a sea of ice, the crew's impossible journey over the barren, frozen wasteland of the Antarctic, their navigation across nearly a thousand miles of tumultuous seas in an open boat, and their ever-constant struggles against unimaginable cold, hunger, hardship, and despair as they struggled toward rescue. Filled with more than eighty-five photographs and [map] illustrations from the journey, Shackleton's account is a distinctive tale of high adventure. It is also a lasting testament to his leadership and courage, as well as a moving statement about the human will to survive. (6 X 9, 404 pages, b&w photos, maps)