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Endurance: Shackleton's Extraordinary Voyage
After years of preparation, the world's most experienced Antarctic explorer embarked on the most dramatic adventure of his life. Sir Ernest Shackleton had carefully picked crew and a stout, well-outfitted ship, the Endurance.
But he had no radio, the world was at war, and at the edge of the Antarctic continent, the ship froze in the sea ice. After months of immobility, it was crushed. Then began an impossible journey. With three tiny boats, the crew worked their way across frozen the Antarctic Sea.
This vivid book recounts the story of Shackleton's heroic voyage from South Georgia Island to Antarctica then back to South Georgia. It is a tribute to Shackleton and his crew's ability to fight for survival and one of the most harrowing adventures in history.
But he had no radio, the world was at war, and at the edge of the Antarctic continent, the ship froze in the sea ice. After months of immobility, it was crushed. Then began an impossible journey. With three tiny boats, the crew worked their way across frozen the Antarctic Sea.
This vivid book recounts the story of Shackleton's heroic voyage from South Georgia Island to Antarctica then back to South Georgia. It is a tribute to Shackleton and his crew's ability to fight for survival and one of the most harrowing adventures in history.
120 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 7, 2015
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Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews
February 4, 2025
Endurance! This Title leapt up from Amazon into my burnt-out brain when I retired in 2005. Quickly, I clicked BUY on my Kindle.
Fried and Finished, I yearned for a story about hail-fellow-well-met adventurers in more frigid climes. And this one was touted to be a Peach of an Adventure Yarn.
And it was all true.
Endurance - had I only not been burnt by venturing too close to the Fire! For what was Burnout but God’s Conviction - being a moral man in an amoral job?
The Fire of the Grim, Bald Scorching Facts about my workplace. Took me down a few gadzillion pegs in the end - Right Back to Square One.
When I arrived at Delegate and Disappear I had no clue what I was doing. The system had had ways of blanking my brain. D ‘n D had been Disneyland on the Rideau, and I had been totally sucked in. Rah rah.
Gilles the Poisson had guided me step by step through its mazy subterranean labyrinth, slowly and methodically as you might lead a child. And a child I was, being obstinately Aspie.
Admittedly, I had been a spring chicken about it all, but I had finally, in 2005, faced the Face of Doom. Our business, I saw now, was to Die For. For some, a place to Kill, and so to Survive - if you were lucky.
Some called them the Operators. Others call them the Users, the “trained killers:”
I wasn't. I had fallen Beneath its Wheel too suddenly. I was now dead to rights before my Maker. The operators then SNOWED me by dint of sheer enthusiasm.
Admittedly, I never had known doodlysquat about the grim facts that lived behind the closed doors of my brain. Or senior management’s. I was rah-rah, hoist the flag.
In 31 gruelling years with the Department of Nominal Deterrents I had never needed to know what other people had had to have a Need to Know to know about. I did now, heaven help me!
Intuitively, I had known which domino to put next in the lineup, but never intellectually. I never had a Gut Feel about D And D. I knew zilch.
Asperger's had put my brain in neutral. I was seen and not heard, for safety reasons compartmentalized. Bipolar but able, I had been shamed.
And I had been invisible to no one but myself.
***
So there I was, in 2005, amid the smouldering, charred doorframe of my mind. I had been given deep brain scans. Fear had been injected into my central brain.
There would be time enough in retirement reading to go beyond the wreckage of my mind and of the world!
You can reach other worlds - far beyond your own - in your books, and they were my drug of choice.
In 2005, my broken mind and body screamed, “ESCAPE to your books!”
I would in time be healed by them.
A freshly minted bibliophile, NOW it was time for me to vicariously explore the South Pole…
With four of the Bravest of the Brave.
For it was time for ME to learn to be Brave!
And reclaim that Bravery through my Books.
Not unhappy at last to Live my Life on medicated tenterhooks! Soli Deo Gratia.
Fried and Finished, I yearned for a story about hail-fellow-well-met adventurers in more frigid climes. And this one was touted to be a Peach of an Adventure Yarn.
And it was all true.
Endurance - had I only not been burnt by venturing too close to the Fire! For what was Burnout but God’s Conviction - being a moral man in an amoral job?
The Fire of the Grim, Bald Scorching Facts about my workplace. Took me down a few gadzillion pegs in the end - Right Back to Square One.
When I arrived at Delegate and Disappear I had no clue what I was doing. The system had had ways of blanking my brain. D ‘n D had been Disneyland on the Rideau, and I had been totally sucked in. Rah rah.
Gilles the Poisson had guided me step by step through its mazy subterranean labyrinth, slowly and methodically as you might lead a child. And a child I was, being obstinately Aspie.
Admittedly, I had been a spring chicken about it all, but I had finally, in 2005, faced the Face of Doom. Our business, I saw now, was to Die For. For some, a place to Kill, and so to Survive - if you were lucky.
Some called them the Operators. Others call them the Users, the “trained killers:”
I wasn't. I had fallen Beneath its Wheel too suddenly. I was now dead to rights before my Maker. The operators then SNOWED me by dint of sheer enthusiasm.
Admittedly, I never had known doodlysquat about the grim facts that lived behind the closed doors of my brain. Or senior management’s. I was rah-rah, hoist the flag.
In 31 gruelling years with the Department of Nominal Deterrents I had never needed to know what other people had had to have a Need to Know to know about. I did now, heaven help me!
Intuitively, I had known which domino to put next in the lineup, but never intellectually. I never had a Gut Feel about D And D. I knew zilch.
Asperger's had put my brain in neutral. I was seen and not heard, for safety reasons compartmentalized. Bipolar but able, I had been shamed.
And I had been invisible to no one but myself.
***
So there I was, in 2005, amid the smouldering, charred doorframe of my mind. I had been given deep brain scans. Fear had been injected into my central brain.
There would be time enough in retirement reading to go beyond the wreckage of my mind and of the world!
You can reach other worlds - far beyond your own - in your books, and they were my drug of choice.
In 2005, my broken mind and body screamed, “ESCAPE to your books!”
I would in time be healed by them.
A freshly minted bibliophile, NOW it was time for me to vicariously explore the South Pole…
With four of the Bravest of the Brave.
For it was time for ME to learn to be Brave!
And reclaim that Bravery through my Books.
Not unhappy at last to Live my Life on medicated tenterhooks! Soli Deo Gratia.
April 19, 2016
I wish there had been maps included in the book to show the routes taken by these men
October 15, 2017
I give this four stars, not so much for the writing style of the author, which is not particularly immersive, but for the sheer awesomeness of the content. If this was a work of fiction it would be judged a ludicrously unrealistic plot, yet it actually happened.
With chances of survival slim to none, stranded in one of the most inhospitable regions on the planet, somehow the amazing Shackleton guided his entire crew safely through constant mortal peril in a desperate race for survival which took more than two years to complete. The sheer gumption of the man defies comparison.
Best summed up by the following historic quote by Sir Raymond Priestly, Antarctic Explorer and Geologist:
“For scientific discovery give me Scott; for speed and efficiency of travel give me Amundsen; but when disaster strikes and all hope is gone, get down on your knees and pray for Shackleton.”
With chances of survival slim to none, stranded in one of the most inhospitable regions on the planet, somehow the amazing Shackleton guided his entire crew safely through constant mortal peril in a desperate race for survival which took more than two years to complete. The sheer gumption of the man defies comparison.
Best summed up by the following historic quote by Sir Raymond Priestly, Antarctic Explorer and Geologist:
“For scientific discovery give me Scott; for speed and efficiency of travel give me Amundsen; but when disaster strikes and all hope is gone, get down on your knees and pray for Shackleton.”
July 10, 2015
A factual, unadorned account of Shackleton's incredible story of survival. Although I was keenly interested in the story, this account was factual but very dry and fairly uninteresting. If it had lot been for the incredible tale, the story would have been a real disappointment.
August 25, 2018
The inspiring true story of Shackleton’s 22 month adventure to Antarctica and back, showing man’s incredible bravery and will to live. I love adventure stores and thrillers, but the fact that it really happened made it compelling. The Endurance Expedition in 1914 was to cross Antarctica via the South Pole. His ship, Endurance, was frozen into an ice flow and was eventually crushed. The men dragged 3 small 20 foot boats over ice flows to try to make progress towards land and survive. They lived off meager rations, seals, penguins, and finally their sled dogs. This was before synthetic clothing, so they were clothed in wool caps, wool mittens, and reindeer boots. After crossing ice flows and freezing seas they made Elephant island. Shackleton took 5 men in the 20 foot boat and headed 1,000 miles to South Georgia Island. If he missed, they would be blown into the open Atlantic. They survived 45 foot swells, a tidal wave, ice bergs, freezing sea spray that weighed down the boat until chipped off. After landing on the rocky cliffs, he then miraculously mountaineered over the unmapped mountains and glaciers to make the whaling camp. All 28 men survived. He was knighted by King Edward VII. He was one of the greatest leaders in the Heroic Age of Exploration.
September 16, 2019
Excellent Telling of An Extreme Journey
I thought, before I began reading, that it may be a bit dry. But no, the excitement and anticipation grew as the story unfolded, all the way to the end. Well worth reading the exciting, impossible, willful journey of 28 men who never lost hope. Honor, integrity, struggle against impossible odds, and unfailing resolve are clearly exhibited, showing what man’s capabilities can be when facing certain disaster.
I thought, before I began reading, that it may be a bit dry. But no, the excitement and anticipation grew as the story unfolded, all the way to the end. Well worth reading the exciting, impossible, willful journey of 28 men who never lost hope. Honor, integrity, struggle against impossible odds, and unfailing resolve are clearly exhibited, showing what man’s capabilities can be when facing certain disaster.
February 3, 2024
Shackleton incredible experience is simplified in this book which is probably intended for juvenile readers. There are many books about Shackleton and this is likely the simplest.
Two glaring shortcomings: the absence of any maps and terrible editing. Many typos are spread throughout the book, a simple spellcheck would have caught half and a novice editor would have caught the other half.
Two glaring shortcomings: the absence of any maps and terrible editing. Many typos are spread throughout the book, a simple spellcheck would have caught half and a novice editor would have caught the other half.
September 8, 2017
This was a good book describing the trip. It would have been much, much better if Mr. Bryce brought the story closer by describing in more detail the sufferings of the men; all the book did was chronicling them.
September 9, 2017
Excellent little book. It really captured the essence of this great adventure. Well worth reading. Could easily be used as the text for a extended case study in a leadership class.
September 17, 2017
Excellent short book about this trip. Cannot imagine actually surviving these odds!
August 29, 2018
Good read!
This is a summarized account of the virtually impossible journey Ernest Shackleton took in 1914, and brought back every man that accompanied him. remarkable story.
This is a summarized account of the virtually impossible journey Ernest Shackleton took in 1914, and brought back every man that accompanied him. remarkable story.
May 3, 2020
Definitely needed at least one good map in there. Gripping tale. I’d like to see this book compared to the Alfred Lansing version.
January 3, 2025
Amazing grit.
I could not put this book down. Read it in two settings, and I’m still marveling at what these men went through.
I could not put this book down. Read it in two settings, and I’m still marveling at what these men went through.
June 28, 2025
Wasn’t to bad, found myself drifting out a little bit, I had just come off a big read so was happy to jump into something a bit shorter, the time line on this went quickly. Was more about the journey over drawn out detail
October 18, 2024
An incredible tale. 5 stars if it weren't for a bit of hyperbole e.g. sliding together down a "cliff".
December 23, 2025
Never has a book failed so unceremoniously to do justice to its subject. This book had infinite potential - Shackleton’s disconsolate failed expedition is an incredible story that just about writes itself. Yet this attempt was uninspiring, monotonous, lacked imagination or detail, and was bereft of geographical, historical or political context. Gee a map wouldn’t have gone astray either.
I can’t wait to read a good version of this fascinating voyage - it will banish this poor attempt like the apricity these men so sorely sought.
I can’t wait to read a good version of this fascinating voyage - it will banish this poor attempt like the apricity these men so sorely sought.
July 5, 2015
An amazing story of survival, bravery, and true, inspirational, raw leadership. The writing is simple, stripped down -- which is all it has to be, considering the remarkable material. As a captain and expedition leader, Shackleton demonstrates the deft balancing of both social leadership -- inclusive, inspirational, even humorous -- and the autocratic, authoritative leadership so often required to survive in moments of overwhelming danger and crisis. Just an incredible story.
January 4, 2018
I enjoyed another telling of the extraordinary story of Shackleton’s voyage. I learned a few things that were not in other novels about this adventure. However, there were many typos that even this left brained engineer spotted them.
However, i am glad that I picked the book up.
However, i am glad that I picked the book up.
August 4, 2015
This amazing story never gets old. Shackleton..what a man.
October 10, 2015
Shackleton's Feat
I cannot fathom the perils that Shackleton and his men survived. Just the cold alone would have done me in. A truly amazing story of courage and perseverance
I cannot fathom the perils that Shackleton and his men survived. Just the cold alone would have done me in. A truly amazing story of courage and perseverance
Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews