Scan barcode
madswag27's review against another edition
3.0
I was interested in the places, the people, and the themes of this book, so on the whole this was an illuminating read... but there was something off-putting to me about the narrative voice, so I didn't love it, either.
eringow's review against another edition
4.0
This is a terrifying book, and I am not referring to the gulag stories, but to the depiction of a shrinking Artic. The fact that most stuck with me when I closed the cover was that people living furthest from pollution (in the remote Artic) are most affected by it. The build up of toxins in animals, the change in fragile ecosystems due to climate change and pollution, and the erosion of native culture, show up unavoidably in every segment of the story throughout all the author's travels. It is difficult not to take away a pessimistic message from this insight, and yet the narration is not pessimistic and the author is not solely condemnatory. The blend of history, science, and travelogue makes for truly interesting reading.
schopflin's review against another edition
4.0
I love Sara Wheeler's writing and approach. Here she combined an evocative sense of place with a nuanced understanding of the often depressing human story. However I was uncomfortable with some of the more cartoonish depictions of the people she meets. To be fair, she does this with a range of people, and to some extent even herself, but it felt very othering ('laugh at the Arctic person') and jolted what I thought was otherwise a sympathetic portrayal of the high northern latitudes.
fionamo's review
3.0
In the first few pages of this book, the author describes what happens when the temperature reaches the coldest experienced on earth. Apparently at that temperature, trees explode, and your exhaled breath tinkles to the ground as ice crystals.
After reading that, I knew that I would enjoy this book, particularly as a mental antidote to a particularly humid summer.
After reading that, I knew that I would enjoy this book, particularly as a mental antidote to a particularly humid summer.
skinnypenguin's review
3.0
Interesting book detailing life above the Arctic Circle. The author travels all over from Russia thru the US, Canada, Norway and Finland looking at how the inhabitants of these areas survive. She also tells a lot of history about explorers in the area and the first settlers. She gets into environmental changes and challenges.
Very interesting. She is quite the adventurer.
Very interesting. She is quite the adventurer.
debnanceatreaderbuzz's review
4.0
The Magnetic North by Sara Wheeler
Wheeler takes her readers places no one has been, places no one really wants to go except via books. This time, she guides us through the frozen north, the lands and waters north of the Arctic Circle. She's an ideal guide, one who seeks out all the coolest (in both senses of the word) spots and who finds all the best of the Arctic stories, and relates her tales with a delightfully literate vocabulary.
Wheeler takes her readers places no one has been, places no one really wants to go except via books. This time, she guides us through the frozen north, the lands and waters north of the Arctic Circle. She's an ideal guide, one who seeks out all the coolest (in both senses of the word) spots and who finds all the best of the Arctic stories, and relates her tales with a delightfully literate vocabulary.
More...