Ken McGoogan

Very readable, almost a page-turner for non-fiction! Excellent job of ensuring that Inuit folk get the acknowledgement long lacking for the critical importance of their contribution to arctic exploration including the Northwest Passage. Also sets the record straight in John Rae’s central contribution to finding what eventually would be the Northwest Passage over the never-ending emphasis on Franklin. My only criticism is that I wished for a more complete map for reference while reading - show more one all on one page perhaps on one of the inside covers - one that includes the NWT and Greenland. show less

I really got into this history of the search for the Northwest Passage. Very well written, and the author went well beyond the traditional sources of historical knowledge to bring in the perspectives and knowledge of Inuit from Canada and Greenland. I enjoyed their stories as well as learning the roles they played in helping so many European explorers.

I was totally intrigued by the story of Lady Franklin. She was a masterful "spin doctor" or reputation manager for her husband. She ensured show more he was credited with discovering the Northwest Passage (even though he hadn't) and she ensured his place in history by creating several memorials in his name.

The book is thorough but never boring. An excellent read. show less

This is a highly readable account of John Rae, the indefatigable explorer of the Arctic who discovered the first significant proof of what happened to the ill-fated Franklin expedition to the Northwest Passage. However, his report was not welcomed in the UK because the Admiralty refused to credit the accounts of the Inuit, especially when they claimed that they had found evidence of cannibalism. Rae was subsequently discredited, never received a knighthood despite others with lesser show more accomplishments receiving that honour, and was proven right only in the early 20th century. Rae is simultaneously awe-inspiring and irritating by his sheer physical prowess. He thinks nothing of walking 40 miles round-trip in snowshoes, and walks from Hamilton to Toronto to give a lecture and shows no signs of tiredness. He hauls more than his fair share of the loads on his various surveying expeditions, is a talented boatbuilder and skipper, and quickly masters the art of snowhouse building. But it is thanks to him that we have a lot of our initial information about the Northwest Passage, and of course knowing what happened to Franklin. He is well worth reading about, as is the part of the book where Lady Franklin orchestrates her campaign to discredit him -- she is a formidable adversary.

Recommended if you're interested in Canadian history and geographical exploration. Would go nicely with Pierre Berton's The Arctic Grail, a book about the Franklin expedition, or a book about Roald Amundsen's journey to the Northwest Passage -- Amundsen adopts Rae's approach of living off the land and working closely with the Inuit to help him and his crew survive. show less

Lady Jane Franklin is right up there with Freya Stark and Isabella Bird when it comes to fearless lady travelers - except Stark and Bird were barely born before Franklin started her travels. She truly was a pioneer in female expeditions. Although Nancy Pearl doesn't include Franklin in her chapter on the subject in Book Lust, Franklin was the first to venture to far off places such as Russia, Africa and the wilds of Australia at a time when Victorian women were expected to stay at home, be show more dutiful wives and raise docile families. Jane Griffin was different. From a very young age she couldn't be bothered with such domestic pursuits. She wanted an education, an adventure, and to be an outspoken voice. Even after marrying John Franklin and becoming an instant mother to his four year old daughter, Jane Franklin felt no parental responsibility and continued to travel on her "own" (servants and escorts ignored). It was only after her husband, now Sir John Franklin, disappeared in the Arctic that Lady Franklin realized another obsession besides travel - to bring her husband home. She spared no expense and pulled out all the stops to convince high-powered officials that her husband's expedition was worth searching for. At a time when America and Great Britain were not on the best of terms, Lady Franklin worked deals with both countries to send rescue expeditions into unknown waters. She worked tirelessly to keep the missing ships in the minds of everyone. show less