Ninety Degrees North

£9.99

The atlas of the mid 1800's was covered in blank spaces. In the mid 19th century, people decided to discover what lay at the top of the world. "Ninety Degrees North" chronicles this race for the North Pole and examines what it was that people expected to discover when they got there. Fleming expertly details the eclectic mix of characters that sailed, walked, skied, sledged and ballooned their way towards this polar grail. Legandary figures such as Kane, Hayes, Hall, the Duke of Abruzzi, Cook and Peary are brought to life animatedly. Accounts of their quests are playfully and incisively related as they battle storms, scurvy, the interminable arctic winter, accidents and the regular loss of fingers and toes, guaranteeing that the book is elevated above simply being a list of extraodinary expeditions.