Born in Chicago on July 21, 1921, Lansing served the U.S. Navy during the Second World War and received a Purple Heart for being wounded during his service. Afterward, he enrolled at North Park College and later at Northwestern University, where he majored in journalism. Al poco de adentrarse en el mar de Weddell, el Endurance quedó atrapado en una banquisa de hielo. Todos los esfuerzos de salir de esa prisión fueron en vano, después de meses intentándolo, la naturaleza engulló el barco. Así empieza la aventura, así empieza el libro. The environment is expertly portrayed and transports the reader directly into the scene. I drank lots of hot tea during the reading of Endurance. The author also renders an excellent picture of the day-to-day life of these people, including how the men live, pass the time, and work to keep their spirits up when not on the seas.

I'm a wimp. I'm spoiled. I would never make it in a catastrophe. I whine when the air conditioner goes out on a hot day, or the power goes out, leaving me with no lights or stove upon which to cook. When I had finished reading the book, I went online to find the pictures were taken on the voyage and survived. They were amazing and reinforced, even more, the courage and resilience needed to endure this catastrophe. The names of a couple of other members of the crew have gone down in exploration history. Frank Worsley, captain of the Endurance, did a mind-boggling job of navigating first to Elephant Island and then on to South Georgia, using minimal equipment and water-logged charts, and compensating for frequent unintended changes in direction resulting from the 80 MPH winds that roared through the region. And the photos taken by Frank Hurley are gorgeous, bringing a level of reality to an event that may be hard to comprehend. It is no spoiler to say that this is a story of survival – that fact is known to the reader at the outset. The story is well told and conveyed by Lansing, who had access to surviving ships logs and crew diaries – he also interviewed at length surviving members of the crew of the ‘Endurance’.The Antarctic climate was, of course, a challenge. The resultant icy environment sunk their ship. During the spring break-up of ice, the surface below their tents spontaneously fissured and sleeping men plunged into the frigid waters. This book is assigned in schools. We should not be teaching young people that leadership is selfishness, hubris, poor planning, bad decision-making, etc. Saving your own skin in a difficult situation could be admirable resourcefulness, but it's not the best illustration of heroism. Lccn 2014005005 Ocr tesseract 5.2.0-1-gc42a Ocr_detected_lang en Ocr_detected_lang_conf 1.0000 Ocr_detected_script Latin Ocr_detected_script_conf 0.7543 Ocr_module_version 0.0.18 Ocr_parameters -l eng Old_pallet IA-NS-0001513 Openlibrary_edition

Después de una selección de personal un tanto sorprendente, a ojo, este si, este no, el Endurance partió de Plymouth con rumbo Buenos Aires cinco días después de que Gran Bretaña declarase la guerra a Alemania (primera guerra mundial) con 28 tripulantes (+ un polizón) a bordo. I listened to the audiobook and the narration by Simon Prebble was excellent. I delayed this review until I could borrow the 100th edition Endurance. I'm glad that I waited for the ebook, but I almost missed the photographs in the "inserts." Added poignancy came from the images of the men and the animals. Behold...the gentleman whose exploits crushed the last vestiges of manhood from my fragile psyche*: Lansing was a native of Chicago, Illinois, the son of Edward (1896–1949), a Chicagoan who worked as an electrician, and his wife Ruth Henderson (1896–1975), a native of New Jersey. After serving in the U.S. Navy from 1940 to 1946, where he received a Purple Heart, he enrolled at North Park College and later at Northwestern University, where he majored in journalism. [2] He edited a weekly newspaper in Illinois until 1949, when he joined the United Press and in 1952 became a freelance writer. [3] He spent time in New York, writing for the books section of Reader's Digest and Time Inc., eventually returning to Chicago to become the editor of the Bethel Home News. [4] Lansing settled in Bethel, CT where he was the editor of the Bethel Home News. He died there in the mid-1970's. Dogs, Penguins and Sea Leopards...oh my. The only diet these men had for over a year consisted of penguins, one sea leopard and, eventually, their own dogs. This last part was incredibly moving because the men, for all of their hunger, were reluctant to resort to these brave animals that had been their stout companions throughout the ordeal. In the end, they did what they had to and the animal lover in me had zero issue with it. Respectful, sad and necessary.

In March 1916, the ice floe where the Patience Camp is located successfully makes its way to about 60 miles from Paulet Island, but impassable conditions make floating to the island all but an impossible goal. Register that, please. Despite their dire circumstances, not one man was lost or left behind! I can still remember sharing this information with everyone I knew when I first learned about it (undoubtedly causing eyes to glaze over). As to that final feat of mountaineering – no one was able to duplicate it until something like 2013. I often referenced maps of the expedition and ended up researching the various legs of the journey in greater detail—the photos alone are captivating. The whole story is phenomenal, and awe-inspiring—I really can't recommend this enough. Removal of gangrenous appendages. Nuff said I think except for the almost preternatural courage and good humor with which the enterprise was conducted.

The rapidity with which one can completely change one's ideas ... and accommodate ourselves to a state of barbarism is wonderful." The introduction alone was so striking, I listened to it four times. Narrated by Simon Prebble, it reads like the BBC Planet Earth documentaries, beautiful and riveting. The Patience Camp would be the crew’s home for the first third of 1916. While there, they would make a few attempts to sled over the ice, but all of them would prove to be unsuccessful.I listened to his one on audible and the narrator Simon Prebble was excellent, although I cant help wondering if I missed photos, maps etc in the printed copy which I always find adds so much to a book. The mission is not complete, though: there are 22 men still on Elephant Island and they are all waiting to be saved. After six miserable days, the three lifeboats land on Elephant Island on April 15, the first time that the 28 men touch solid ground after precisely 497 days! The book, as the expedition, is a sobering, frightening story of unrelenting suffering, challenges on a super-human scale, seemingly unrelenting and insurmountable obstacles, overwhelming odds against survival; but ultimately it’s very much truly inspirational story of hope, of never giving up. It’s a story about man’s incredible capacity for survival. ContentsprefaceMembers of the Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expeditionpart I chapter 1 chapter 2 chapter 3 chapter 4 chapter 5 chapter 6 chapter 7 chapter 8part II chapter 1 chapter 2 chapter 3 chapter 4 chapter 5 chapter 6part III chapter 1 chapter 2 chapter 3 chapter 4 chapter 5 chapter 6part IV chapter 1

If there is one genre that you'll see me run away screaming from, that's survivalist non-fiction. I may hate poetry, but the worst it can do to me is make me fall asleep. Survival stories on the other hand, will stay with me for eons on end, strategically rearing their ugly head while I'm planning my next holiday retreat. Not that I've been anywhere without a 4-star hotel in its relative vicinity... That being said, ever since I've joined a book club two years ago, I've been steadily eating my words. For a reason: during the Heroic Age, no less than 17 major Antarctic expeditions were launched from 10 different countries of the world. Though some of them had scientific interests, the primary object of most of these expeditions was, interestingly, to become the first expedition to reach the geographic South Pole. Alfred Lansing’s writing is first rate and the book’s structure is impeccable, especially toward the end where the author presents first the story of the 22 men on Elephant Island, and then relates what happened on the trip to South Georgia and the rescue efforts. I listened to an audio version, and Simon Prebble’s narration was spot-on. Before the Endurance sank into the frigid waters on November 21, 1915, they had salvaged 3 smaller boats. After spending the summer camping on ice, they knew that they wouldn't survive an Antarctic winter. In mid-April 1916, they took their 22-foot boats into open waters to search for land. I appreciate what Dr Dobson has tried to do by re-publishing this as a "special Christian edition." But the reality is that this is not a Christian book and believing that the men "must have sought God" as they daily faced imminent death does not prove that they actually did this or that any were Christians. From the various journal entries and comments included it seems sadly likely that they were not Christians and an attempt to re-write the reality although well-intended seems to me to be a bit odd. Dr Dobson has also included an Afterword. He attempts to use an analogy from Endurance to explain end times theology yet he makes the point that his analogy will only probably be understood by those who are acquainted with Biblical prophecy. I don't understand the purpose of this, if it is for those who are already saved then it is not evangelistic so why form an ill-fitting analogy to try and link this story to the Christian faith?

Select Format

Tragically, the Endurance crashes into some ice and takes on water. This occurs somewhere in the Weddell Sea. Somehow most of the crew manages to launch escape boats before the ship sinks, but some men are forced to leap overboard and are lost to the ice. Those who make it into the boats drift among the ice floes for over a year, gradually trying to make their way to land. Saltwater Boils (aka pips or pigeons)...a condition where grit and dirt from clothing (usually around the wrists) create small abrasions that become infected and cause severe pain if not treated. These things were mentioned as a casual, passing comment and all I could think was “they had to suffer through those for months with no medical attention and only making them worse.” [No photos of this. A little too gross] Therefore, here are some highlights and photos that offer just a taste of what these men went through: