Empire Antarctica: Ice, Silence, and Emperor Penguins,Used

It is difficult to read this engaging memoir without a smile on ones face . . . moments of sheer joy . . . [a] mesmerizing and memorable book. The EconomistChosen as a Book of the Year by the Scotsman, the Financial Times, and the Sunday Herald.Gavin Francis fulfilled a lifetimes ambition when he spent fourteen months as the base camp doctor at Halley, a profoundly isolated British research station on the Caird Coast of Antarcticaso remote that it is said to be easier to evacuate a casualty from the International Space Station than it is to bring someone out of Halley in winter.Antarctica offered a year of unparalleled silence and solitude, with few distractions and a rare opportunity to live among emperor penguins, the only species truly at home in the Antarctic. Following penguins throughout the yearfrom a summer of perpetual sunshine to months of winter darknessFrancis explores the world of great beauty conjured from the simplest of elements, the hardship of belowzero temperatures and the unexpected comfort that the penguin community brings. Empire Antarctica is the story of one mans fascination with the worlds loneliest continent, and the emperor penguins who weather the winter with him.Includes maps and illustrationsPart travelogue, part memoir, part natural history book, a fascinating, lyrical account of one of the strangest places on earth and its majestic inhabitants. EsquireHighly readable, enjoyable . . . the author writes vividly of auroras, clouds, stars, sunlight, darkness, ice and snow . . . A literate, stylish memoir of personal adventure rich in history, geography and science. Kirkus Reviews