Cruising in the Antarctic.

Solyanik, A. Moscow: Foreign Languages Publishing House, 1956.
  • Whalemen's Reading
 Preview 

Recounts a whaling journey from Odessa to Antarctica in 1952-53 in a flotilla of 16 ships. Rather typical Soviet narrative with great harmony, a few problems heroically overcome, and excellent discipline:

From Pole to Pole: The Life of Quintin Riley, 1905-1980.

Riley, Jonathan P. Bluntisham, UK: Bluntisham Books, 1989.
  • 1920-22 British Graham Land Expedition.
  • Antarctic Reading: Expeditions
 Preview 

Quinton Riley was the Quarter Master of the British Graham Land Expedition, and this biography includes one full chapter on his participation in the BGLE (p. 55-95). He is described as a good-natured but argumentative colleague, of firm religious convictions, and a valuable member of the expedition staff.

Sir Francis Drake and the Famous Voyage, 1577-1580.

Thrower, Norman J. W., editor. (Berkeley, CA: University of California Press, 1984).
  • 1577-80 English Expedition around the World (Francis Drake commanding The Golden Hind).
  • Global Circumnavigations and Cape Horn Transits.
  • Maritime Reading
 Preview 

An handsome volume celebrating the 400th anniversary of Drake’s voyage to New Albion in 1577, a collection of essays by some of the luminaries of geographic and cartographic history in the later 20th century: John Parry, David Waters, David Quinn, Helen Wallis, and Thrower himself, among others. It is full of puzzles, enigmas, speculations, secrets, etc. There is this intriguing passage at the end of Helen Wallis’ substantial and fascinating essay on “The Cartography of Drake’s Voyage”:

The Race to the White Continent.

Gurney, Alan. New York: Norton, 2000.
  • Antarctic Reading: General
 Preview 

Describes and compares three major Antarctic expeditions of the late 1830s, one French (d’Urville), one British (Ross), and one American (Wilkes).

Soviets in the Arctic: An Historical, Economic and Political Study of the Soviet Advance into the Arctic

Taracouzio, T. A. . New York: Macmillan Co., 1938.
  • Arctic Reading: Russia
 Preview 

Chapter III (p. 73ff) spells out quite explicitly the purpose of this book: The Russian government must be completely Sovietized…. Politically, within the territory geographically located within the boundaries of the U.S.S.R., no tolerance can be shown toward any other form of government than that which was established by Lenin in 1917. The portion of the Arctic to be studied here is part of the Soviet Union.

Silas: The Antarctic Diaries and Memoir of Charles S. Wright.

Wright, Charles S. (Silas). Edited by Colin Bull and Pat F. Wright. Illustrated by Pat F. Wright. Columbus, Ohio: Ohio State University Press, 1996.
  • 1910-14 British National Antarctic Expedition (Scott on Terra Nova).
  • Antarctic Reading: Expeditions
 Preview 

This is a rather thin diary of the Terra Nova expedition, fleshed out by the Editor’s commentary, and diary entries from other diaries for the corresponding dates, and illustrated by charming drawings of hundreds of topical subjects, mostly animals. We know that Wright was a very serious scientist as well as a reader; little of the reading is cited here but there are a few examples:

Sailors’ Life and Sailors’ Yarns

Codman, John . By Captain Ringbolt [pseud.] New-York: C. S. Francis, 1847.
  • Whalemen's Reading
 Preview 

A journalistic kind of composite by a somewhat pious and rather strict naval disciplinarian. The following extracts some may read as the comments of a urbane writer of sound but severe morals; I see them as those of a pompous ass.

Journal of a Residence in the Sandwich Islands during the Years 1823, 1824, 1825….

Stewart, Charles S. With an Introduction … by William Ellis. London: Fisher and Jackson, 1828.
  • 1823-25 American Voyage to Sandwich Islands (aboard HMS Blonde).
  • Maritime Reading
 Preview 

The author is a somewhat sanctimonious American missionary who nonetheless enjoyed a conversation with Lord Byron, a naval officer and cousin of the poet whose morals he detested. There is a good deal of material towards the end of the book on providing religious literature, writing tablets, hymn-books, etc. for Sandwich Island natives in their native language—literacy training for the reading of the Bible.

From Pole to Pole: The Life of Quintin Riley, 1905-1980.

Riley, Jonathan P. Bluntisham, UK: Bluntisham Books, 1989.
  • Arctic Reading: General
 Preview 

Quinton Riley was the Quarter Master of the British Graham Land Expedition, and this biography includes one full chapter on his participation in the BGLE (p. 55-95). He is described as a good-natured but argumentative colleague, of firm religious convictions, and a valuable member of the expedition staff.

Thulia: A Tale of the Antarctic.

Palmer, James Croxall. New-York: S. Colman, 1843.
  • 1838-42 U.S. Exploring Expedition (Wilkes).
  • Antarctic Reading: Expeditions
 Preview 

A narrative poem about the sailing travails of the US schooner Flying-Fish on the US Exploring Expedition (1838-42). An appendix describes the circumstances that the poem portrays. Basically this is doggerel poetry describing two vessels of the Wilkes Exploring Expedition, the Peacock, and the Flying-Fish. An appendix describes the adventures of the latter ship:

The Natural History of the Sperm Whale…, to which is Added, a Sketch of a South-Sea Whaling Voyage.

Beale, Thomas. London: John van Voorst, 1839.
  • Whalemen's Reading
 Preview 

Part I is a scientific and fairly analytic description of the sperm whale, from physiology to diet to reproductive systems. Part II on the voyage begins in October 1830, observing no land between England and Cape Horn, where the Fuegians despite the gloomy terrain and wretched conditions “seem to possess a considerable share of that inestimable blessing—happiness” (p. 200). It is both charming and frightening in its description of certain adventures, and very good at describing the extremes of ennui and excitement.