title: In the Kingdom of Ice: The Grand and Terrible Polar Voyage of the USS Jeannette
author:  Hampton Sides 
description: "<b>Enthralling</b> <i>In the Kingdom of Ice </i>is <b>a brilliant explosion of narrative non-fiction</b>: detailed, moving, harrowing, <b>as gripping as any well-paced thriller but a lot more interesting because it is also true</b> Too often American heroism is presented at one-dimensional success against the odds This is a much more subtle and rewarding book, an account of magnificent disaster, of courage devoted to attempting something that could not be done."<br />--<b><i>The Times of London </i></b><br /><br /><br /><b></b>As our knowledge of the world increases, it must be difficult for audacious explorers to find terra incognita to match their passion. Surely the same frustration holds true for writers in that worthy genre, exploration literature: Havent all great stories been told? Never underestimate the ingenuity of a first-rate author. Hampton Sidess <i>In the Kingdom of Ice</i>: <i>The Grand and Terrible Polar Voyage of the USS Jeannette,</i> which recounts the astonishing tribulations of a group of seafarers determined to be the first men to reach and reconnoiter the North Pole, is <b>a splendid book in every way</b> It would be malicious to ruin the suspense about the fate of the Jeannettes crew <b>The book is</b> <b>a marvelous nonfiction thriller</b>.<br />--<b><i>The Wall Street Journal</i></b><br /><br /><br />"<b>Compelling</b>....Sides spins a <b>propulsive</b> narrative from obscure documents, journals and his own firsthand visits to the Arctic regions visited by the Jeannette and its crew.<i> In the Kingdom of Ice</i> makes for <b>harrowing</b> reading as it recounts the grim aspects of the explorers' battle for survival: illness, crippling frostbite, snow-blindness and the prospect of starvation. As grisly as the details are, you <b>keep turning pages</b> to find out how DeLong and his men pull themselves past each setback  even though there's always another one looming ahead."<br /><b><i>--USA Today<br /><br /></i></b><br /><b></b>[Sides] brings vividness to <i>In the Kingdom of Ice</i>, and in the tragedy of the Jeannette hes found a story that epitomizes both the heroism and the ghastly expense of life that characterized the entire Arctic enterpriseWith an eye for the telling detail, he sketches the crew members as individualsThe bare facts of what happened to the Jeannettes crew are easily Googleable, but if you dont already know the story, <i>In the Kingdom of Ice </i><b>reads like a first-class epic thriller</b>. De Long and his companions became explorers of not only unknown geographical territory but also extremes of suffering and despair. <b>In his stoic endurance of disappointment and pain, De Long rivals Louis Zamperini, the hero of Laura Hillenbrands <i>Unbroken</i></b><br />--<b>Lev Grossman, <i>Time </i>Magazine</b><br /><br /><br /><b>First-rate polar history and adventure narrative</b>...<b>wonderfully evocative</b>.... Sides vividly recounts the horrors [of the voyage].<i>In the Kingdom of Ice </i>is <b>a harrowing story, well told</b>.<br /><b><i>--The New York Times Book Review<br /></i></b><br /><br /><b>Unforgettablea pulse-racing epic of endurance set against an exceedingly bizarre Arctic backdrop</b>[Sides] descriptions of the physical challenges the men face and the eerie landscape that surrounds them are masterful. As De Long and his crew attempt to save themselves, the story grows in suspense and psychological complexityMore strange and fantastic turns follow, involving uncharted and uninhabited lands, and it pains me that I cannot describe them without spoiling the pleasure of those who have not yet read <i>In the Kingdom of Ice</i>. Sides book is <b>a masterful work of history and storytelling</b>.<br />--<b><i>The Los Angeles Times<br /></i></b><br /><br />Americas own brush with epic polar tragedy, the subject of Hampton Sides<b> phenomenally gripping</b> new book, is a less well-known affairWhat ensued  a struggle to survive and a nearly 1,000-mile trek across the Arctic Ocean and into the vastness of Siberia  stands as one of the most perilous journeys ever. Sides works <b>story-telling magic</b> as he evokes the pathos and suffering of what unfolded: De Long and his crew endured hardships that boggle the mind. But there is also beauty here [Sides] writes superbly on the geography of Siberia and the Arctic, and the abundant bird and animal life the explorers encountered on their travels, which took them across ice, storm-tossed seas, treacherous tundra, rocky seacoasts, and volcanic islands.<br /><b><i>--The Boston Globe<br /></i></b><br />harrowing and impeccably paced.<br /><b>--<i>The New Yorker</i><br /></b><br />"A dazzling page-turner.....<br />--<b>Nathaniel Philbrick, <i>New York Times</i> bestselling author of <i>In the Heart of the Sea, Bunker Hill</i> and <i>Sea of Glory</i></b><br /><br />[A] stunningly vivid account.....<br /><b>--Mark Bowden,<i>New York Times</i>Bestselling author of<i>Black Hawk Down</i></b><br /><br />An astonishingly good story....<br />--<b>Candice Millard, <i>New York Times</i> bestselling author of <i>The Destiny of the Republic </i>and <i>The River of Doubt<br /></i></b><br />"Hampton Sides conjures the doomed<i>USS Jeannette</i>and her courageous crew with haunting power...."<br />--<b>Caroline Alexander, <i>New York Times</i> bestselling author of <i>The Endurance </i>and <i>The Bounty<br /></i><br /></b>"A spellbinding tale....<br /><b><i>--</i>David Grann, <i>New York Times</i> bestselling author of<i> The Lost City of Z<br /></i></b><br />"Hampton Sides is one of Americas most expansive and engaging storytellers, and he proves it again with the incredible saga of the USS<i>Jeannette</i>...."<br />--<b>Scott Anderson, <i>New York Times</i> bestselling author of <i>Lawrence in Arabia</i></b><br /><br />"A<i></i>vivid tale of exploration setin a howling, deadly wilderness."<br />--<b>T.J. Stiles,Pulitzer Prize winning author of<i>The First Tycoon: The Epic Life of Cornelius Vanderbilt</i></b>
zlib_text: Beyond the Great South Wall 
  
  0 
  �eyo.nd 
  The 
  Great South Wall: 
  �bt �tCttt Of tbt antarctic 
  Bv 
  FRANK 
  SAVILE 
  Author of "The Blessing ofEsau," "John Ship, Mariner," Etc. 
  WITH SUNDRY GRAPHIC ILLUSTRATIONS 
  P A I N T E D 
  B Y 
  0 N E 
  R 0 B E R T L. 
  M A S 0 N 
  G R OSSE T 
  & 
  D U N
  L
  AP 
  PUBLISHERS
  : 
  NEW 
  YORK 
  <:./'101. 
  
  CoPYaiGBT, IC)OI, 
  BY 
  �JW 4NST�RJ>AI4 BOOK COMPANY 
  
  CONTENTS 
  CIUP'RR 
  P�G· 
  I. 
  A GREAT I>BPRBSSION, 
  . 
  1 
  II. 
  THE TALE OF A COINCIDENCE, 
  18 
  III. 
  THE TBsTDIONY oF Sm JoHN DoanmcoUKTB, 
  KNT., 
  so 
  IV. 
  WHAT BAINES KNEW, 
  44 
  v. 
  PltoFBSSOR LESSAUTION's OPINION, 
  • 
  59 
  VI. 
  WE SAIL SoUTH, 
  78 
  VII. 
  A LIGHT IN THE DARKNESS, 
  93 
  VIII. 
  BEFORE THE GALE, 
  109 
  IX. 
  THE LEAPING OF THB WALL, 
  • 
  . 
  128 
  X. 
  BEHIND THE BAJUUBR, 
  . 
  150 
  XI. 
  A GLACIER CAVE AND WHAT LAY T!m:RBIN, 
  166 
  XII. Tim GREAT GoD CAY, 
  . 
  184. 
  XIII. 
  A CLosED DooR, 
  198 
  XIV. 
  IN THE NINTH CIRCLE, 
  . 215 
  XV. 
  THE MoUNTAIN WAKES, 
  236 
  XVI. 
  THE TEMPLE AND THE LADl OF CAY, 
  . 
  . 
  252 
  XV