When their ship is slowly crushed by ice, explorer Sir Ernest Shackleton and his men are forced to set up camp on the ice, watching helplessly as the ship sinks. They endure tremendous hardship as they drag lifeboats filled with supplies across the ice to water, even being attacked by a ferocious sea leopard. Incredibly, all the men survive the more-than-six-month adventure. The picture-book format, with its short, dated entries and full-page illustrations, works very well to create a page-turning, thrilling experience for readers, but librarians may have to work hard to sell it to its true audience, who may feel above baby books. An afterword contains photographs of Shackleton and some of his companions, explaining what became of them later. A short bibliography is included. Pair this with a modern-day exploration adventure, Will Steger's Over the Top of the World (Reviewed September 15, 1997)

Each double-page spread features an illustration and short block of text tracing the 1914 expedition in which Shackleton's ship was trapped by ice, forcing the explorer and his crew to travel six months by foot and lifeboat to safety. The writing is competent, if uninspired; the illustrations provide a sense of Antarctica's barren vista, but rendered mostly in shades of blue and white, they have a monotonous quality. Bib., ind.

McCurdy (The Old Man and the Fiddle, 1992, etc.) switches from his familiar woodcut style to realistic paintings of landscapes, ice, and ocean in a retelling of Sir Ernest Shackleton's famous expedition. It was 1915 when, during Shackleton's attempt to cross the polar ice cap, the Endurance became trapped in ice, soon to be crushed and sunk. McCurdy covers the desperate problems faced by the crew: how to survive without the ship; how to find food while they waited for open water; how they saved a sleeping crewman when their solid perch cracked in two during the night. Frightening voyages in lifeboats and a near-impossible climb on a snow-covered mountain are part of the story; a party of three makes it to a whaling station on South Georgia Island, and no men are lost. The telling is clear and laced with excellent detail, but the picture-book format is less than ideal, requiring an author's note, foreword, and afterword for many of the details; further, the older audience for which the material has the most appeal may be uncomfortable with the format. Although McCurdy's galvanizing enthusiasm comes across on every page, the pictures- -and the bleak, unchanging landscape—don't communicate the cold nor the toll that time and the elements took on the men's clothing and faces. Still, aspects of this are riveting, and it will certainly lead readers into longer, more detailed accounts of this two-year expedition. (map, bibliography, index) (Picture book/nonfiction. 7-10)"

Gr 4-7--A dramatic introduction to Robert Shackleton and his ill-fated Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition, brought to a chilling halt when their ship, Endurance, was irrevocably gripped by the Weddell ice pack. In the days before easy radio contact and rescue planes, the explorer and his small crew were as remote as modern-day astronauts in a malfunctioning space station--and in an environment almost as hostile. Using journals kept by expedition members and Shackleton's own account, McCurdy presents a chronology of events in the two-year saga of survival as the men coped with bitter cold, fierce storms, semi-starvation, and the certain knowledge that rescue depended solely on their own efforts and the determination of their leader. The low-keyed narration is accompanied by commanding, glacial-toned illustrations, many based on stills taken by Shackleton's photographer. Maps and an informative afterword complete the attractive package. While some readers may be deterred by the large picture-book format, most will find the account gripping and will want to know more about this awesome journey under appalling conditions.--Patricia Manning, formerly at Eastchester Public Library, NY