Erebus: The Story of a Ship

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It offered a refreshing take on the Franklin Expedition mystery, offering historical context and insight beyond just the doomed voyage. I always think of Ross (Ice shelf), Weddell (Sea) but now add the unfortunate Crozier to the geography of the frozen areas of the world.

Well, on 09-Sep-2014 the Prime Minister of Canada announced that a Canadian underwater archaeology team had discovered what they believed to be the HMS Erebus that had been lost for almost 170 years on the seabed somewhere in the Arctic. Refitted with a steam engine from a locomotive, among other cutting-edge technological advancements.A year later, the ships were led by John Franklin on the ill-fated attempt on the North West Passage. His journeys have taken him across the world, the North and South Poles, the Sahara desert, the Himalayas and most recently, Eastern Europe. It might be said it was James Cook who defined the Antarctic Region, and James Ross who discovered it’ wrote Captain Scott.

Written] with a wry enthusiasm, bolstered by his own experiences as an eminent explorer and film-maker . My biggest takeaway, afforded by this being such a recent book, is the theory that several of the sailors on the expedition could have been female, judging by absences of Y chromosomes in some remains. Nel 1839, al comando di James Clark Ross, le due navi salpano poi per la gloriosa spedizione in Antartide, dove le due navi, a vela! What we're left with are questions about why it went so badly wrong - was it scurvy or lead poisoning that doomed them; was Franklin the very worst choice of expedition leader; did they abandon the ships too soon or too late; how, why and when did Franklin die and what impact did that have on the crews?And as the insertion of Palin's own thoughts and experience did elevate this book beyond dull textbook-level material for me, I can't ultimately fault him for stretching the limits of what I wanted to hear from him.

He turns up obscure facts, reanimates essential moments, and never shies away from taking controversial positions. When Michael Palin's name is mentioned most members of my generation will think of Monty Python or perhaps his recent travelogue documentaries .I don’t know if you are the same but when you meet the author and have the physical book signed it does make it very special and I seem to enjoy the book even more.

Brings energy, wit and humanity to a story that has never ceased to tantalise people since the 1840s.I had not realised the extent to which interest lay in this particular voyage and its mysterious aftermath. I wouldn't have picked this book up if it wasn't written by Michael Palin, and this book felt like it wasn't written by Michael Palin. It was fascinating to hear about the construction of the ships and their first expedition together, to the Antarctic. Initially, she explored the North Pole and allowed James Clark Ross to claim British discovery of the North Magnetic Pole to the disgust of his uncle, her captain. The ship was filled with fascinating people: the dashing and popular James Clark Ross, who charted much of the ‘Great Southern Barrier’; the troubled John Franklin, whose chequered career culminated in the Erebus 's final, disastrous expedition; and the eager Joseph Dalton Hooker, a brilliant naturalist – when he wasn't shooting the local wildlife dead.