altlovesbooks
Before I get started, I just want to note that this author is a member of Monty Python. I didn't realize that before I read the introduction, and then I had to do an audible double-take when it came up.
So this is a book about the HMS Erebus, a ship constructed in 1826, left to sit for several years, and was finally scooped up to be used in both the Ross Expedition (1839) headed to Antarctica and the Franklin Expedition (1845) lost on a voyage to the Northwest Passage/Canadian Arctic. We're introduced to the main players in both expeditions, and are treated to first-hand accounts of these early days of the Erebus. Unfortunately, not a lot was found pertaining to the fate of the Franklin expedition, so the portion of the book surrounding that was fascinatingly mysterious.
This is an incredibly well-researched book about a ship I think I'd only heard about peripherally. The entire first three quarters of the book feature all sorts of first hand accounts, letters, etc from people directly on or affiliated with the ship about their time aboard. The section about the Franklin Expedition is, understandably, light on this, as there was, y'know, nobody left to interview and no journals found, but the author does a good job of piecing together the available information at the time of the book's publication and presenting a (few) compelling story(ies) about the fate of the crew.
Just a really interesting book all around. I thought going into it that it would just be about the Franklin Expedition, but was pleasantly surprised with the additional backstory and history behind this ship. Highly recommend for ship/history buffs.
Before I get started, I just want to note that this author is a member of Monty Python. I didn't realize that before I read the introduction, and then I had to do an audible double-take when it came up.
So this is a book about the HMS Erebus, a ship constructed in 1826, left to sit for several years, and was finally scooped up to be used in both the Ross Expedition (1839) headed to Antarctica and the Franklin Expedition (1845) lost on a voyage to the Northwest Passage/Canadian Arctic. We're introduced to the main players in both expeditions, and are treated to first-hand accounts of these early days of the Erebus. Unfortunately, not a lot was found pertaining to the fate of the Franklin expedition, so the portion of the book surrounding that was fascinatingly mysterious.
This is an incredibly well-researched book about a ship I think I'd only heard about peripherally. The entire first three quarters of the book feature all sorts of first hand accounts, letters, etc from people directly on or affiliated with the ship about their time aboard. The section about the Franklin Expedition is, understandably, light on this, as there was, y'know, nobody left to interview and no journals found, but the author does a good job of piecing together the available information at the time of the book's publication and presenting a (few) compelling story(ies) about the fate of the crew.
Just a really interesting book all around. I thought going into it that it would just be about the Franklin Expedition, but was pleasantly surprised with the additional backstory and history behind this ship. Highly recommend for ship/history buffs.