Antarctica: An Intimate Portrait of the World's Most Mysterious Continent by Gabrielle Walker

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What is the book about? (from the hardback)

Antarctica is at first sight the most alien place on Earth, the only part of our planet where humans have never been able to live.  And yet in its silence, its agelessness and the sublime beauty of its landscapes lie the secrets of our past, and of our future.

In Antarctica (1 March 2012) Gabrielle Walker weaves an amazing story of many threads into an intricate tapestry made up of natural history, poetry, science, exploration and epic adventure.

She describes what it feels like to be there in sub-zero temperatures, contemplating the achievements of Amundsen and Scott, Mawson and Shackleton, staring in wonder at the Southern Lights or zipping across the snow on a skidoo - she made five trips between 1999 and 2008 - and why it draws so many different kinds of people back there, again and again.

Delighting equally in the science, the wildlife, the people who run the bases, and above all the sheer wonder of the place, she paints a revealing portrait of the most mysterious of Earth's continents:  the valley of meteorites;  the South Pole astronomers staring through a unique window in space to the origins of the Universe;  waterfalls that run uphill;  and ice cores that hold our planet's climate history in tiny bubbles of ancient air.

There have been many books about Antarctica in the last hundred years, but where most have previously focused on one aspect of the continent, none until now has managed to capture the whole extraordinary story.

The book is divided into three parts:  Part 1 - East Antarctica Coast, Part 2 - The High Plateau and Part 3 - West Antarctica.  Suggestions for further reading at the back of the hardback contains a good medley of books on Antarctica which would suit every appetite.  I would recommend this book for all first-time readers on this most enigmatic continent of Antarctica.

A review by The Telegraph (15 March 2012)

Who is the author?

Gabrielle Walker has a PhD in natural sciences from Cambridge University and has taught at both Cambridge and Princeton universities.  She is Chief Scientist of strategic advisory firm Xynteo, a consultant to New Scientist, contributes frequently to BBC radio and writes for many newspapers and magazines.  In 2009 and 2011 respectively she presented the Planet Earth Under Threat series and Thin Air for BBC Radio 4, and in 2011 she presented The Secret Life of Ice for BBC4.  She lives in London.  Other books under her belt are Snowball Earth (2003), An Ocean of Air (2007), The Hot Topic (with Sir David King) (2008).