Terra Incognita: Travels in Antarctica

by Sara Wheeler

Release Date: 16 March, 1999

Edition: Paperback

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A Rare Breed of Travel Book

There have been many, many travel books written, but so few actually remain with you, actually transform you. Terra Incognita is one of those books.

No matter how Sara Wheeler got there, her 7-month trip through Antarctica unfolds beautifully between the eccentric and fun "beakers" she meets along the way and the intense splendor of the continent. Because of her mode of travel (spending a few days or weeks here or there, until her final 2-month stay in a shack during her last trip to see the coming of summer), Wheeler most likely got to see more of Antarctica--it's various bases, landscapes, and people--than just about anyone alive.

Added to this is a great amount of Antarctic exploration history, which makes the book seem more than just a seven-month journey . . . more like 100 years of attempts to figure out this hypnotic and enigmatic continent; reading it encourages you to do your own further research on this subject. While I do agree that there could have been more maps included, just have a globe or atlas nearby if you want to follow her travels more closely!

In my opinion, the downfall of most travel books is that the author focuses too much on him- or herself to the exclusion of everything else. Wheeler does include her thoughts, feelings--how she sees herself changing with each experience. These are never intrusive, however. The only other book that comes to mind with this sort of balance is Matthiesen's The Snow Leopard--another fantastic travel read. This book is quiet but never empty and never dull. Read it and be transported.

A compelling introduction to Antarctica.

If you're only going to read one book about Antarctica, it should be this one. Wheeler knows her Antarctic history, but she also conveys a strong sense of the culture and lives of those living on the continent today. And though the details of day to day life that she describes seem small at first, in the end they add up to a compelling, unforgetable portrait of the highest, driest, windiest place on earth.