Into the White: Scott’s Antarctic Odyssey

Joanna Grochowicz

Allen & Unwin (NOVEMBER) Softcover $12.99 (288pp) 978-1-76029-365-9

Into the White is a thoughtful and satisfying account of the the Terra Nova expedition to the South Pole.

Into the White tells the harrowing and tragic tale of Robert Falcon Scott’s Terra Nova expedition to Antarctica. The book brings the deadly adventure to life, sharing details of the struggles that these explorers faced as they fought to complete their journey.

In June of 1910, sixty-five men set sail from Wales aboard the Terra Nova. Their team was full of hardworking, capable men, if few had faced the hardships like those they were about to encounter. Only five would ultimately attempt to reach the South Pole. Into the White follows their path, relating the conditions and the decisions that, in retrospect, ultimately led to their failure.

The book is accessible to a wide audience. Its historical events are superbly recounted, and the wonder and beauty of the Arctic is well relayed. So too are the realities of the incredibly dangerous environment, where temperatures dipped as low as negative fifty degrees Celsius.

Details—such as of a case of frostbite with fluid-filled blisters that froze solid—illustrate great suffering. The difficult decisions that had to be made—like killing horses for food—show the extremes that explorers had to go to in their quest to survive. The story format will be particularly appealing to young-adult audiences; it evades the dry, straightforward presentations in much of nonfiction.

Amazing photographs from the expedition are very useful in driving home the reminder that, though this is presented as a story, it is not a fictional account. Three appendices, describing the Amundsen expedition that beat Scott’s team to the South Pole, Scott’s earlier Discovery expedition, and the Shackleton expedition, finish this fascinating book, along with a brief glossary and a short but useful bibliography.

Into the White is a thoughtful account of the Terra Nova expedition. Anyone wanting to learn more about the brave souls who first journeyed through the barren landscape of the South Pole will find it very satisfying.

Details—such as of a case of frostbite with fluid-filled blisters that froze solid— illustrate the explorers’ great suffering. The difficult decisions that they had to make show the extremes that explorers go to in their quest to survive. Amazing photographs from the expedition are useful in driving these points home.