Icebound

Reviews

'An epic tale of exploration, daring and tragedy told by a fine historian - and a wonderful writer' 'The name of William Barents isn’t that familiar to us these days…but this enthralling, elemental and literally spine-chilling epic of courage and endurance should change all that’ 'Gripping...One of the great epics of human endurance' 'A fascinating modern telling of Barents’s expeditions...Pitzer presents a compelling narrative situated in the context of Dutch imperial ambition' 'Andrea Pitzer's worthy and superb account keeps us enthralled to the last chilling word' 'Engrossing...Andrea Pitzer brigns Barents' three harrowing expeditions to vivid life' 'For the 21st-century reader who’s seen one too many photos of emaciated polar bears loping across melting permafrost, Icebound can read a little like paradise really, really lost... Pitzer writes with care about the Arctic landscape Barents encountered... Icebound is a reminder that there was once a time when things were unknown.' 'A gripping adventure tale that deserves an honoured place in the long bookshelf of volumes dealing with Arctic shipwrecks, winter ordeals, and survival struggles.' 'Once Barents heads for the northern tip of Nova Zembla for the third time in May 1596, the story becomes dramatic, and dire... Still, the journey is filled with wonders: optical phenomena and mysteries unravelled, such as where European songbirds go each summer. Ms Pitzer’s descriptions of the region sing.' 'Narratives of frozen beards in polar hinterlands never lose their appeal. Most of the good stories have been told, but in Icebound Andrea Pitzer fills a gap, at least for the popular reader in English, with the story of the 16th-century Dutch mariner William Barents... Pitzer’s prose is robust, clear and sometimes elegant.' Expand reviews