Listen free for 30 days

Listen with offer

Preview
  • An Empire of Ice

  • Scott, Shackleton, and the Heroic Age of Antarctic Science
  • By: Edward J. Larson
  • Narrated by: John Allen Nelson
  • Length: 10 hrs and 35 mins
  • 3.9 out of 5 stars (7 ratings)

£0.00 for first 30 days

Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection - including bestsellers and new releases.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, celeb exclusives, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
£7.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

An Empire of Ice

By: Edward J. Larson
Narrated by: John Allen Nelson
Try for £0.00

£7.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

Buy Now for £18.99

Buy Now for £18.99

Pay using card ending in
By completing your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and authorise Audible to charge your designated card or any other card on file. Please see our Privacy Notice, Cookies Notice and Interest-based Ads Notice.

Summary

Published to coincide with the centenary of the first expeditions to reach the South Pole, An Empire of Ice presents a fascinating new take on Antarctic exploration. Retold with added information, it's the first book to place the famed voyages of Norwegian explorer Roald Amundsen, his British rivals Robert Scott and Ernest Shackleton, and others in a larger scientific, social, and geopolitical context. Efficient, well prepared, and focused solely on the goal of getting to his destination and back, Amundsen has earned his place in history as the first to reach the South Pole. Scott, meanwhile, has been reduced in the public mind to a dashing incompetent who stands for little more than relentless perseverance in the face of inevitable defeat.

An Empire of Ice offers a new perspective on the Antarctic expeditions of the early 20th century by looking at the British efforts for what they actually were: massive scientific enterprises in which reaching the South Pole was but a spectacular sideshow. By focusing on the larger purpose, Edward Larson deepens our appreciation of the explorers' achievements, shares little-known stories, and shows what the Heroic Age of Antarctic discovery was really about.

©2011 Edward J. Larson (P)2011 Tantor
activate_Holiday_promo_in_buybox_DT_T2

Listeners also enjoyed...

To the Edges of the Earth cover art
The Great Polar Fraud cover art
The Great Race cover art
From the Edge cover art
Maverick Mountaineer cover art
Captain John Franklin's Lost Expedition cover art
Limits of the Known cover art
Finding Franklin cover art
The Lost Dinosaurs of Egypt cover art
Great South Land cover art
Off the Edge of the Map cover art
When Your Life Depends on It cover art
Scott's Last Expedition cover art
Emperors of the Ice cover art
Flotsametrics and the Floating World cover art
The Library of Ice cover art

Critic reviews

"Larson succeeds in [his] approach to the popular subject of polar exploration by wrapping the science in plenty of dangerous drama to keep readers engaged." ( Booklist)

What listeners say about An Empire of Ice

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    4
  • 4 Stars
    1
  • 3 Stars
    0
  • 2 Stars
    1
  • 1 Stars
    1
Performance
  • 3 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    1
  • 4 Stars
    2
  • 3 Stars
    0
  • 2 Stars
    1
  • 1 Stars
    1
Story
  • 3.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    2
  • 4 Stars
    1
  • 3 Stars
    1
  • 2 Stars
    0
  • 1 Stars
    1

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Well documented timeline

detailed and well researched telling of the great polar expeditions. Scott is particually well covered and his partys demise rounds of a good listen.
slight irritation was the upper class English voices were a tad over dramtuc at times but overall the narration was very good

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    1 out of 5 stars

A laughable take on the british defeat in the race for the pole

The entire premise of the book is a shameless and petulant continuation of the British response to having been beaten to the Pole. Although the book includes a lot of interesting information about the Heroic Age, it is written in a tone that comes off as a bitter excuse for defeat in the race for the Pole. Science was clearly a red herring to reach the Pole, but this book aims to gloss over that. It seems Amundsen was right when he said the British are a race of sore losers.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!