Very interesting, but tries to fit too much into a short space, which makes trying to get to grips with what the book is about rather difficult. Could have used more space to expand on one topic rather than rushing things.

Hot damn who knew there was so much to learn about the history of the North Pole. Intensely interesting if a bit dry at points.

Hyperborea was a supposed continent at the North Pole. This book spends much time discussing the Pole Star, what ancients thought about it, why it was reliable for navigation. Then the continent that might lie at the north, and trigonometry.

I am not disputing the scholarliness of the author or work; I did find it somewhat dry and a huge amount - more than half - concerns itself with legend, early philosophy and cartography, without getting near Polar exploration. So, for readers who want to dive into the deep background, this will be a perfect read, but for the majority of readers I suspect the pace will be too slow.

We enter the twentieth century by page 170, with incredibly brave and underprepared sailors proving whether or not there was open ocean, or any routes, north. Remember, the book isn't looking at the north-west passage. The author then goes back to a lesser known Jules Verne book 'The Purchase of The North Pole', 1891, which supposes land including the North Pole is put up for sale, and claims in the book include that Greenland should belong to America. Mineral rights are at the heart of the matter.

By contrast the twentieth / twenty-first century achievements of various people in reaching the Pole by various means are given scant coverage. Peary, Stefansson, the native Inuit peoples who subsisted on the fringes of ice. I hadn't known of retired nurse Barbara Hillary who skied to the Pole in 2007 and four years later to the South Pole, making her the first African American (man or woman) to reach both Poles. A film called 'Sea Blind' by Sarah Robertson is referenced. The last few pages get in quick mentions of receding sea ice, plastics, pollution; but I really felt the author wasn't interested in this century. He ends by revisiting his classical texts and a Seamus Heaney poem.

References P225 - 240. Index 245 - 254. I counted 25 names in the references and seven names in the index which I could be sure were female.
I read this ARC book from Net Galley and the photos did not download. However, there are many photos and I am sure they will come out properly in the print book. This is an unbiased review.

I wouldn't normally go for a book like this but the description intrigued me and I have to say it didn't disappoint in the slightest. Bravo writes in an accessible and compelling fashion so even the more academic parts within the sections didn't feel tool overwhelming. The book covers a lot of ground, from the North Pole's place in mythologies of civilisations to philosophical thought - as well as everything else in between.

While the Bravo does tend to name drop a bit and I was bit put out that there wasn't at least a small section covering the Pole's extremely hardy plant life, it's easy to overlook given the sheer amount of information on offer.

Recommended.

With thanks to the Publisher and Netgalley for the ARC.

Exhaustively researched, this new book on the North Pole provides a comprehensive discussion of the topic beginning from the ancient Greeks to the present. Many illustrations and photographs are included. This is a book for the true "polar geek." The style of writing was a bit too dry for the average reader.

I've been obsessed with the Arctic since I visited Svalbard in the summer of 2018. So when I saw this book, I knew I needed to read it.

And it did not disappoint! This is a detailed history of the north pole. Discussed is how it was discovered and how people before the discovery viewed the north pole. A very fun and interesting story is of the airship Italia, the second dirigible that reached the north pole. Unfortunately it crashed right after reaching the pole. The politics and history of this ill-fated event is very interesting and worth checking out.

This book has beautiful pictures and maps, that helps the story come to life. The final chapters are a little more recent, and tells of women reaching the north pole. I love that the author put that in the book, it's a nice change to read about other explorers too.

So, if you're into the Arctic, and especially the history, check out this book! You will not be disappointed.

North Pole, written by scholar and all-around authority in this field, Michael Bravo, is unlike anything you will ever have read before on this topic as it takes a whole different approach to a subject that has fascinated many, including myself, for centuries. It charts the evolution of the North Pole in the human mind and spirit, including those of the general public, geographers, academics, philosophers and political leaders. The air of mystery that surrounds a place that many will only ever see in pictures or on television has developed over time leaving many craving information and photography of the area. The images included in this book are alluring and breathtakingly beautiful. There are photographs of expeditions, maps, portraits and politicised cartoons.

Often the writing in these types of books can be very dry and tedious, but the writing here is eminently readable. That said, there is a section that is rather esoteric for those who haven't any specialist knowledge of the Arctic, but there is no question I learned a lot throughout the whole book. There's no book that better Illustrates the ever-changing relationship between humans and the North Pole and the history of it. It is both a comprehensive and excellent piece of writing. Without a doubt, this is a must-read for anyone intrigued by the North Pole.

Many thanks to Reaktion Books for an ARC.

North Pole: Nature and Culture by Michael Bravo is a history of the North Pole from ancient to modern times. Bravo is the University Senior Lecturer and Fellow of Downing College Convenor of Circumpolar History and Public Policy Research, Scott Polar Research Institute. Member of the Department of Geography's Natures, Cultures, and Knowledges Thematic Research Group. Research Associate in the Department of the History and Philosophy of Science.

I picked this book up thinking it would be a geography or environmental studies book. Instead, it is a detailed history of the North Pole. From the ancient Greeks to the Induits, the pole proved mysterious place. It could be an Eden or a window to the firey interior of the earth. Even 19th-century writer Mary Shelley thought of it as a mysterious place to start and end her book Frankenstein. The pole affected map making too. The Cordiform projection of the world was widely used after the Middle Ages its heart shape not only presented the earth as the heart of the universe, it also kept the pole area intact to display what may be there. 

The North Pole is the axis that the earth spins on which is different than the magnetic north pole that lodestones and compass needles point to. Even the North pole itself does not seem like a fixed location. Since there is no land under the ice sheet at the pole, the position on the ice appears to move; there can be no permanent marker on the ice.

Early explorers had a difficult time fighting against the elements and organizing logistics in reaching the pole. The race to the pole was something almost mythical; it rivaled the much more economically important Northwest Passage. Today GPS, lightweight sleds, and other technology make reaching the pole easier. In fact, every year there is a marathon ran at the North Pole. It is a place that is much more accessible than the South Pole. Bravo presents an excellent history of the North Pole and the people who lived there, explored there, or dreamed of the pole.  The book is nicely illustrated with maps, portraits, expedition photos, and even newspaper cartoons.