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Endurance
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Endurance

Shackleton's Incredible Voyage

Alfred Lansing
Basic Books, 2015

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Editorial Rating

9

Qualities

  • Applicable
  • Engaging
  • Inspiring

Recommendation

Alfred Lansing’s absorbing, timeless account of Ernest Shackleton’s 1914 expedition to Antarctica is a gripping true-adventure tale offering a detailed case study of effective crisis management during a relentless, ongoing emergency. Shackleton and his crew sailed to Antarctica in the ship Endurance with the intention of crossing the continent on foot. But the forces of nature at the edge of the world had other ideas. With their ship crushed in a dense ice pack, Shackleton and 27 men set up camp on an ice floe and, later, on an inhospitable island. Finally, Shackleton and a crew of five took one lifeboat on an 850-mile journey through the globe’s most violent seas to reach a remote outpost of civilization, and then returned to rescue those still on the island. Anyone interested in this history of exploration, the Antarctic region or how a great leader stimulates motivation, resourcefulness and teamwork will find Shackleton’s saga highly illuminating. 

Take-Aways

  • In 1914, Ernest Shackleton led an expedition in an attempt to become the first to cross Antarctica on foot.
  • The expedition’s ship, the Endurance, froze into the ice pack off the Antarctic coast.
  • The crew lived on board until the pressure of the ice crushed the ship. 

About the Author

Alfred Lansing (1921–1975) was the editor of a weekly newspaper in Illinois, and later worked for the United Press and Collier’s.

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