ENDURANCE

Alfred Lansing wrote this in 1959, but its popularity has been revived recently when PBS broadcast a documentary on the book. It tells the story of how Ernest Shackleton led a crew of 27 on an exploratory expedition to the South Pole in 1914.

My recommendation is that you read this book in the summer, outside in a hammock, drinking lemonade, with the warm breeze blowing your hair. After all, Shackleton and his men are experiencing extreme, bitter cold, and this book has the capacity to make you feel cold even on a hot day. However, if you want to get the full experience, go to a walk-in cooler at someplace like Costco, and read it in short sleeves.

You won’t be able to put this book down, so don’t start it until you are sure you won’t compromise your work or family obligations. I suggest you wait until you get influenza, or perhaps take a trip to Mexico. Whatever you do, don’t read it while you have influenza in Mexico. That would be a little over the top.

My favorite part was their encounter with a rogue wave. The worst part was so bad that I can’t discuss it. The best news is that Shackleton brought all his men home alive.

This book is an excellent study of leadership. Shackleton had an uncanny ability to know the strengths and weaknesses of his men. He was able to control the troublemakers, and that is no small feat when you are crowded in total darkness for months at a time in the bottom of a wooden ship. Remember, they hadn’t invented antiperspirants yet.

Read and enjoy!