![]() Any review I write would not do justice to such a superb book. The final dramatic journey of these two ships to the Arctic takes up the final third of the book & is both sad & uplifting. Palin charts the successful earlier voyages of Erebus & Terror to the Antarctic & evokes a gripping account of their explorations. I even learnt that Terror was built in Topsham, a place just a few miles from where I live & where my wife & I often walk! Somehow I had previously known little of this historic & significant piece of real life history.Īlthough Palin's book mainly focuses on Erebus he finds time to tell of her sister ship HMS Terror. ![]() I first became interested in these two ship's Arctic adventure after watching the partly fictionalised TV series The Terror & reading the novel by Dan Simmons. ![]() Palin provides a wonderful story of the ship's history & early voyages before her ill fated journey to look for the North West Passage with HMS Terror. By chance he became fascinated with HMS Erebus & her fatal Arctic voyage with HMS Terror in 1845, & this excellent book is the result. I first became interested in these two ship's Arctic adventure after watchin When epic traveller & comedian Michael Palin completed his final lice performances with the Monty Python team he naturally felt deflated. When epic traveller & comedian Michael Palin completed his final lice performances with the Monty Python team he naturally felt deflated. I also liked the way he places the importance of the expedition in contemporary Canadian politics, bringing the story right up to date. Palin, for me, comfortably passes a test that most celebrities fail – that of being someone you would enjoy an evening in a pub with. I also enjoyed his charming eye for the strange and humorous. He is clearly an intelligent and thoughtful man, able to offer his own insights into the story from his various travels. Palin is a gifted story-teller with a fresh and interesting style. While a book like this is sure to be enjoyed by someone like me, it has a much more general appeal. It is solidly researched with at best a couple of tiny technical errors to annoy the nautical pedant. Erabus proved to be a well written book about an important ship with a fascinating story to tell. But a family member lent me their copy, and on a subsequent holiday in France I dived in. It is solidly researched with at best a couple of tiny technical erro As an enthusiast for the age of sail who earns his livelihood writing and lecturing about ships and the sea, my heart sank at first when I heard that an aging celebrity comedian had written a history of the Erebus. As an enthusiast for the age of sail who earns his livelihood writing and lecturing about ships and the sea, my heart sank at first when I heard that an aging celebrity comedian had written a history of the Erebus.
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