by David Grann (2018)
A haunting account of British officer Henry Worsley, an explorer obsessed with Ernest Shackleton, who set out in 2015 to become the first human to cross Antarctica completely alone and unsupported.
Alfred Lansing
The astonishing adventure of Sir Ernest Shackleton's 1914 expedition to Antarctica, where his ship Endurance was trapped and crushed in pack ice, leaving 28 men marooned on drifting ice floes for months before completing a harrowing open-boat ocean crossing.
Srinath Perur
"This delightful travelogue around ten conducted tours is full of rich experiences: hanging on to a camel in the Thar, rediscovering music on the trail of Kabir, joining thousands on an ancient pilgrimage in Maharashtra, crossing living root bridges near Cherrapunji, and more. As much about people as places, the book is also a reflection on the nature of popular travel today marked by the packaging of experiences, the formation of tourist economies and compulsive picture-taking. How this influences tourists comes through vividly: in their creating a mini- India in a bus, while racing through treasured sights in Europe; in their perfunctory devotion while hopping from temple to temple in Tamil Nadu; in their enjoying with sex workers far away from home. Deeply felt, ironic, and often comic, the book entertains and enlightens, and becomes an idiosyncratic portrait of India and her people"--Dust jacket.
A.G. Riddle
"The world's past and future rests in the hands of five unwitting strangers in this definitive edition of A. G. Riddle's time-traveling, mind-bending speculative thriller. En route to London from New York, Flight 305 suddenly loses power and crash-lands in the English countryside, plunging a group of strangers into a mysterious adventure that will have repercussions for all of humankind.Struggling to stay alive, the survivors soon realize that the world they've crashed in is very different from the one they left. But where are they? Why are they here? And how will they get back home? Five passengers seem to hold clues about what's really going on: writer Harper Lane, venture capitalist Nick Stone, German genetic researcher Sabrina Schroeder, computer scientist Yul Tan, and Grayson Shaw, the son of a billionaire philanthropist.As more facts about the crash emerge, it becomes clear that some in this group know more than they're letting on--answers that will lead Harper and Nick to uncover a far-reaching conspiracy involving their own lives. As they begin to piece together the truth, they discover they have the power to change the future and the past--to save our world. or end it. A wildly inventive and propulsive adventure full of hairpin twists, Departure is a thrilling tale that weaves together power, ambition, fate, memory, and love, from a bold and visionary talent"--
John J. Newkirk
"On June 22, 1939, nineteen-year-old Jack Newkirk straddled a well-worn Harley-Davidson VL Big Twin and set out to see the 1939 New York World's Fair and the San Francisco Golden Gate Exposition. Both the boy and his country were on the brink of an irrevocable transformation. Both would soon be at war. And both would emerge forever changed. But for one last gilded summer, the "World of Tomorrow" promised peace and prosperity to a weary nation." "In The Old Man and the Harley, author John J. Newkirk retraces this epic odyssey with his aging father. Along the way, he discovers the healing power of the road, the faith of the American people, and the inspiration to face some of today's most pressing challenges. Newkirk learns of his father's experience with the Japanese during World War II. He learns the tragic story of his father's cousin, Scarsdale Jack Newkirk, an American hero who inspired millions as Squadron Leader of the legendary Flying Tigers and flew with Greg "Pappy" Boyington of the future Black Sheep Squadron." "The Old Man and the Harley is more than a family history, it is the story of America - her strengths, her challenges, and her sacrifices. It is a story some 350 years in the making - and a poignant farewell to an entire generation."--Jacket.