Race for the South Pole: The Expedition Diaries of Scott and Amundsen

This was a very informative way to present this story, and I got a lot out of the side by side look at the daily details, having been familiar with the overall tale of one inexperienced amateur versus one well-prepared professional. From his diary, I was surprised that expedition leader Scott kept saying how healthy & fit everyone looked once they were on the polar plateau, even suggesting they could get by on less food ! But the South Pole group photos tells a different story; these look like human wrecks. Their frostbitten faces show pure despair, in the face of great pain and suffering. Those poor man-haulers did the work and made the distance but it took too long and all were soon exhausted & 'caught out', too late in the season. Scurvy, frostbite, a starvation diet, and leaky fuel cans all played a part. Like so many good books on the Amundsen-Scott expeditions, it is hard to put this book down, once engaged with the story.

I, like many of you, had refused to buy the edited version of Robert F. Scott's expedition diary. The unedited version may have been available somewhere, but I discontinued searching for it a long time ago. Finally, we have Scott's unedited expedition diary {edited words are bold and italicized} as well as Roald Amundsen's and Olav Bjaaland's expedition diaries competently translated into English. For those less familiar, Bjaaland was the ski champion on Amundsen's team of five that went to the South Pole. He was also the only one of Amundsen's group that was not specifically a trained navigator, yet expertly proved his 'intuitive mountain sense' throughout the journey. This is a personality revealing book as well as for logistics. For those interested in logistics, all latitude/longitude, temperatures, nautical miles, etc. are covered on a day to day basis. For those interested in personalities, have at it. Just read the expedition diaries alone, and you can decide for yourself. I'll not cover the specifics in this review, let it suffice that there are some formidable players in both parties. The diaries for each day and for each man are side by side. If you have accumulated a small library on the discovery of the South Pole, this book will answer many questions and ensure a solid knowledge about specific characters, time line of events, and of events on a day to day basis. Each depot, location, contents, many useful maps of different scales, illustrations and dozens of photograghs are also here. For the casual reader on this subject, possibly for the first time, a clear chronological story will evolve full of facts and curiously intricate characters. In their own words, ofcoarse.

good book. I grew up in Minnesota and can relate to Amundsen and the way he accomplished his goal. Scott complains and complains about people, horses, snow, wind, food, fuel and eye problems. It was his responsibility to prepare for all. It is like someone from the southern US coming to Minnesota to camp for the winter. Best way to prepare is to ask the people who live in cold climate on the best way to do things. Was he smarter than the Eskimo.

Just returned from Norway and visited a museum regarding these explorations and adventurers. Good book.

For quite a few years the story of the brave noble Scott has been pushed relentlessly. The facts show that the best man won by better planning and leadership.

For me, the diaries were the best part. Yes, we all know that Scott was ill-prepared and sometimes almost delusional. Still, the author's constant bashing of Scott (and of Britain) wore thin quickly. I began to skip his nagging commentary and just read the diaries. I mean, how many times do we have to hear that Scott was stupid?

Great book on the simultaneous effort of Scott and Edmunson to reach the South Pole 100 years ago. Well written insight and background but neatest is the side by side journal entries and efforts. Well done, worthwhile read for any Pole exploring readers.

This book contain original diaries of great explorers Amundsen, his assistant Bjaaland and Scott, that conveniently listed in parallel dates. They show why one expedition ended in full success and other in loss of lives of all members of Polar party.