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alanburch79's review against another edition
4.0
A thrilling tale, of a moment in time, when three different men set out to conquer the edges of the earth. (The south pole, the north pole, and K2 in the Himalayas)
Through harrowing adventures you relive the exploits of these men as they try to go farther than anyone had gone before.
Very good read!
Through harrowing adventures you relive the exploits of these men as they try to go farther than anyone had gone before.
Very good read!
labtracks's review against another edition
3.0
Oh dear me.... I picked this up because it sounded quite interesting. I have read books on these subjects before but this one seemed different. This author clearly has a genuine interest in all of this and has spent hours and hours in research. This may be interesting to some, but for me I was lost in the intricacies and nuances of everything that was written... way too much detail for me to continue to really care about what I was reading. This likely would not be a turn off for some, but for me I could barely slog through it.
abrown_be's review against another edition
2.0
Torn between 2 and 3 stars. On one hand it’s frustrating to hear turn of the century white men speak their mind (especially Peary), but on the other hand all of the Antarctic journey portions were very interesting. In the end, I think the author glorifies his subjects far too much.
clarrry's review
adventurous
challenging
informative
inspiring
medium-paced
3.25
Very informative and interesting but dragged on in parts. Could have done without the copious bowel movement discussions. Kind of found myself wanting to go on an adventure despite being the least outdoorsy person I know.
bluesleepy's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
informative
inspiring
tense
medium-paced
3.0
jeremyanderberg's review against another edition
3.0
In the late 19th and early 20th century, explorers were worldwide celebrities. It was called the golden age of exploration — before technology made mapping the earth and roaming its unmapped regions much easier.
"Firsts" were all the rage — they were all striving to be the first to do something. In 1909 specifically, attempts were made for three of those firsts: first to the North Pole, first to the South Pole, first up the world's second tallest peak (K2).
The men who were making these attempts — Robert Peary, Ernest Shackleton, and the Duke of Abruzzi — came from very different backgrounds, had very different approaches to their feats, and came away less known for their specific accomplishments (which in these cases weren't really achieved) than their remarkable journeys and expeditions.
While textbooks will tell you the facts of who discovered what first (though in the case of the North Pole it's hotly disputed to this day), Larson does a great job describing the sheer cold of these explorations. I drank a lot of tea reading this book.
In covering three narratives, there's not much room for Larson to delve into a whole lot of detail, so To the Edges of the Earth is a book that functions as more of an overview for the general history fan, or as something to whet the whistle into deeper reading on polar exploration.
"Firsts" were all the rage — they were all striving to be the first to do something. In 1909 specifically, attempts were made for three of those firsts: first to the North Pole, first to the South Pole, first up the world's second tallest peak (K2).
The men who were making these attempts — Robert Peary, Ernest Shackleton, and the Duke of Abruzzi — came from very different backgrounds, had very different approaches to their feats, and came away less known for their specific accomplishments (which in these cases weren't really achieved) than their remarkable journeys and expeditions.
While textbooks will tell you the facts of who discovered what first (though in the case of the North Pole it's hotly disputed to this day), Larson does a great job describing the sheer cold of these explorations. I drank a lot of tea reading this book.
In covering three narratives, there's not much room for Larson to delve into a whole lot of detail, so To the Edges of the Earth is a book that functions as more of an overview for the general history fan, or as something to whet the whistle into deeper reading on polar exploration.