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Fiction: Mikko Lensu: Varatohtori Virta Etelänavalla (Teos, 2006) This the sequel to Mikko Lensu’s first polar children’s book, Varatohtori Virta Pohjoisnavalla. Although this book suffers from the usual sequel problem of recycled jokes, it was more fun to read. The fantastic parts didn’t seem quite so forced and the general Continue Reading

Fiction: Marie Darrieussecq: White (Faber & Faber, 2006) One of the rare Antarctic novels I’ve read that’s proper, high-brow literature and not a genre excercise. It’s a slim, compact novel, a simple love story with a very effective, stream-of-consciousness voice. It’s about the weight of the past and deals with Continue Reading

Film: John Sturges: Ice Station Zebra (U.S.A. 1968) A Cold War thriller about a secret mission to the North Pole on a nuclear submarine. The underwater imagery of the sub is cool,  and it looks like a big budget production for its time. Unfortunately, it feels like the people who Continue Reading

Fiction: Mikko Lensu: Varatohtori Virta Pohjoisnavalla (Teos, 2005) A children’s book about an expedition through the polar sea. The author makes an effort towards whimsy, but his style doesn’t really stretch that far. It reads like someone in the natural sciences trying to be lighthearted and failing. On the upside, Continue Reading

Fiction: William Dietrich: Ice Reich (Warner Books 1998) A competent thriller / love story set during the second World War, Ice Reich takes as its starting point the historical Nazi Antarctic expedition. Dietrich has chosen to discard all historical detail except the name of the expedition ship, Schwabenland. It may Continue Reading

Poetry: Chris Orsman: South (1996/1999, Faber and Faber) A New Zealand poet, Orsman travelled to Antarctica in 1998. He has a tenuous (but funny) family connection to Robert Falcon Scott, and this poetry collection is about Scott’s ill-fated expedition to be the first to the South Pole. The poems never Continue Reading