Product Description

Ernest Shackleton was the quintessential Edwardian hero. A contemporary - and adversary - of Scott, he sailed on the 'Discovery' expedition of 1900, and went on to mount three expeditions of his own. Like Scott, he was a social adventurer; snow and ice held no particular attraction, but the pursuit of wealth, fame and power did. Yet Shackleton, and Anglo-Irishman who left school at 16, needed status to raise money for his own expeditions. At various times he was involved in journalism, politics, manufacturing and City fortune-hunting - none of them very effectively. A frustrated poet, he was never to be successful with money, but he did succeed in marrying it. At his height he was feted as a national hero, knighted by Edward VII, and granted GBP20,000 by the government for achievements which were, and remain, the very stuff of legend. But the world to which he returned in 1917 after the sensational 'Endurance' expedition did not seem to welcome surviving heroes. Poverty-stricken by the end of the war, he had to pay off his debts through writing and endless lecturing. He finally obtained funds for another expedition, but dies of a heart attack, aged only 47, at it reached South Georgia.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #26267 in Books
• Published on: 1996-01-18
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 789 pages

Review
This is an utterly absorbing biography ... moves one to tears of relief, joy and blind wonder' Allan Massie 'Expertly handled and written ... makes extensive uncensored use of the diaries written at the time' ECONOMIST 'Unlikely to be superseded' Robert Fox, LISTENER 'Magnificent ... Huntford has done justice to this great and complex man. That, in itself, is a triumph' SUNDAY TIMES 'The adventures of this complex character make exciting reading.' SUNDAY TELEGRAPH 'Outstanding...remains a definitive work...an unmissable book.' THE TIMES 'This prize-winning biography is an excellent account of a quintessential English hero.' DAILY EXPRESS 'Huntford's stirring biography is a fitting tribute to an inspirational and genuinely heroic man.' MAIL ON SUNDAY

ECONOMIST
'Expertly handled and written ... makes extensive uncensored use of the diaries written at the time'

Robert Fox, LISTENER
'Unlikely to be superseded'

Customer Reviews

Another great Polar Biography.
Another excellent Polar book from Huntford, covering the life and times of Ernest Shackleton in fairly extensive detail. The majority of the book is based round his three expeditions in 1902, 1907 and 1914, which are covered in detail (Discovery more so than in previous books) but the description of his life in between is also fascinating. Like Huntford's book on Scott/Amundsen, it is warts and all, not simply wishing to paint a heroic picture, but Shack comes over as a fighter, albeit narrow minded in some ways particularly relating to transport. If he had taken dogs on his 1907 expedition he surely would have been first at the pole.

I read this book on a transatlantic flight and the time flew. Highly recommended.

Flawed Leaders
I have been intrigued by shackleton since reading Alfred Lansings Endurance, since then I've been lapping up anything I can get on Shackleton. I've left till last Huntfords biography and not been disapointed. Huntford whose experience in the subject matter adds much to the telling at last unviels for me the icon of Leadership. It's great to find he is after all human with his faults of many as well as his proven ability to lead men. The tale kept my attention all through what is a large book even throwing in some mischief in the connection with the Irish crown jewels. The life so encapsulates an era of honour and get rich quick scheme's, where class was everything, you get the impression that if Shackleton hadn't had a vision he could have ended up a drunk and a loser, always only one step away from his brother. This book may not have the best description of the actual Endurance adventure (though surprisingly good) but for sheer breadth of interest this has to be the seminal piece.

Brilliant epic adventure from a time that made heroes.
Shackleton, by Roland Huntford, has changed the way I walk. Carrying this 697 page epic around London's underground has accentuated the beginnings of a starboard list. Aye aye cap'n, tis a whopper and no mistake. But big is not boring in this case, or I would not have chugged through it on full throttle.

The book is not overweight, it has had a hard workout and carries no excess flab. But it does cover Shackleton's life comprehensively. The author makes good use of primary sources, including extracts from both Shackleton and his rival, Captain Scott's diaries on the 1902 Discovery expedition to the South Pole. He describes the battle of wills between two very different characters, culminating in Scott's decision to invalid Shackleton off the expedition. The disintegrating relationship between Scott and Shackleton threads through the first part of the biography with Huntford painting Scott as the gloomy backdrop to Shackleton's brighter outline.

The main body of the book focuses on Shackleton's Nimrod attempt to reach the pole in 1908, and the Endurance expedition of 1914. In the first, Huntford describes how Shackleton came within 97 miles of his goal in January 1909, beating Scott's furthest South at the time by 360 miles. Despite getting so close, Shackleton and his companions were forced to turn back in "one of the bravest acts in the history of exploration". Huntford juxtaposes Shackleton's selfless treatment of his men with the later demise of Scott's team just short of the pole. On his return home, Shackleton rightly received a heroic welcome. Not only had he cut a new path to the pole, later used by Scott and the Norwegian explorer Roald Amundsen who finally bagged the Pole in 1911, but more important Huntford stresses that he brought his men back alive.

If the Nimrod expedition is heroic, the Endurance expedition is awe-inspiring. With the party forced to winter in Antarctic pack ice as their boat becomes stuck and then crushed beneath the ice, Huntford shows Shackleton's full comprehension of their predicament, and ability to weigh out the right decision for his men. This care extends even to the mundane routine of their life waiting for the thaw, as Shackleton enforces exercise and activity to keep the team from psychological decay. But the most thrilling part of Huntford's account has to be the open boat journey between Elephant Island and South Georgia in a 22 foot open boat, followed by a three day march across the island's interior to reach help. This has to be one of the most remarkable feats of humankind and a true beacon to the spirit.

You cannot accuse Huntford of hero worship. He includes plenty of primary material from Shackleton's critics and recognises a definite dark streak in the explorer's character. From the point of view of wife and children, for instance, Huntford tells a different story. Shackleton's own crew admitted to preferring him offshore to on, where he could escape to the desolation of ice and sea from a succession of failed business enterprises, and, sadly, his wife's unquestioning devotion and domesticity, which only mystified and frustrated him.

Shackleton's achievements speak for themselves, and whether that makes him a hero or not doesn't really matter. It is a big book for a man who achieved much. Strange to think the world has developed too far and fast in less than a century for anyone ever to face the same challenges. I think it very much worth the read, if you have time and ballast enough.