Endurance: Shackleton's Incredible Voyage by Alfred Lansing
|
List Price: Our Price: $9.49 You Save: $4.46 (32%) Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Buy Used: from $2.24 (click here) Category: Book See more book details and other editions |
|---|
Book Reviews of Endurance: Shackleton's Incredible Voyage
Book Review: A treasure, that astonishes repeatedly throughout...
Summary: 4 Stars
Utterly astonishing book, that builds and builds, leaving the reader in near disbelief at the display of sheer will-power, persistence---and yes, endurance--of all these heroic survivors. After reading this, I went and read the several negative reviews here, and while at first I was puzzled and of a polar-opposite (pun intended) opinion, I quickly came to see how worthless said reviews are, when considering the sources, with their concomitant, atrocious grammar and spelling. One can only conclude that such reviewers, being more familiar with the "airport fiction" genre, are persons unfamiliar with the reading of history, true-life narratives, or maybe even of reading itself. Seriously, even a fictionalized account could hardly have been more gripping, especially toward the mid-point of the book and onward. The fact that this was real makes the book all the more fascinating and riveting.
Indeed, the book does not begin by suddenly plunging the reader into break-neck-pace action. Rather, there is a deliciously slow build-up---the descriptions of the preparations made for the journey ahead, and of the men and their individual temperament and personalities----which became more fleshed-out as their individual contributions toward survival was told. Yes, the first 1/3 of the book is low on pure action and adventure, since basically the men are merely camping (on an ice flow probably the size of a city), and the book narrates day-to-day life on the flow. But this is indispensable in fleshing-out the personalities of the characters, and in bonding the reader to these men; we truly care about them, as things get dangerously more dicey as the books proceeds.
Once the ice flow breaks-up, and the men take to the boats, there is no end to the excitement and exhilaration in reading this book. The reader will be amazed at how, right to the very end, fate seems to erect constant, seemingly insurmountable, barriers and impediments to their ingenious and courageous efforts at self-preservation.
One small criticism of the book: I wish there was a follow-up, prologue chapter, describing what happened to the men following their rescue---maybe a "where they are now" summary.
Again, I can't, for the life of me, understand how someone could give this a poor rating, unless, as I stated, one concludes such reviewers are ignorant and inexperienced practitioners of the reading and historical arts (again, you be the judge, after noting their misspellings and grammar).
Anyway, I will probably get this in hardcover, if available, as it is a worthy addition to my permanent library collection. And I will likely seek out more books and information on the subject.
Book Review: This is it- The King of adventure books
Summary: 1 Stars
the adventure stories to end all adventure stories. If you like adventure, travel stories then this is the # 1 book of all.
Can you imagine the feeling that Shackleton and the men had when they sighted him and he counted all 22 men alive.
More Customer Reviews:
1 2
1 2