Shipwreck at the Bottom of the World

Shipwreck at the Bottom of the World
By Jennifer Armstrong
Crown, 1998. 133 pgs. Young Adult Nonfiction

In 1914, Ernest Shackleton and his crew set sail on the Endurance, headed for Antarctica, where they planned to be the first people to ever cross the entire continent. However, they never even reached land; the water was particularly icy that year, and the ship became trapped in the ice. Although they survived and were pulled along with the ice flows, when the ice finally began to thaw, the huge ice flows and icebergs proved treacherous; the Endurance was crushed and sank, leaving the men stranded with only three small lifeboats and no way to let anyone know they needed help. However, Shackleton was determined that they would survive.

This is a fascinating piece of history; Shackleton's story is certainly exciting and Armstrong's writing really makes it come alive for readers. This is jam-packed with interesting information as well--did you know that there are more than 80 kinds of ice? Or that the most fertile ecosystem in the world is at the Antarctic Convergence, where the polar water mixes with warmer water from the north? With a riveting story, captivating details, and lots of photographs, this is a first-rate piece of nonfiction.

AE