Book Review From Rick’s Library: The White Darkness

⏱️ 7 min read                             

Imagine standing alone in the coldest, most unforgiving place on Earth. The winds howl, temperatures plummet, and all that lies ahead is endless ice. This is where British explorer Henry Worsley found himself—pushing his body and spirit to the absolute limit in a daring solo trek across Antarctica. What drove him to face such unimaginable isolation?

In this book review of The White Darkness, we’ll talk about the breathtaking story of obsession, courage, and one man’s pursuit to conquer the last frontier." 

Welcome to That's Life, I Swear. This podcast is about life's happenings in this world. Happenings that conjure up such words as intriguing, frightening, life-changing, inspiring, and more. I'm Rick Barron, your host. 

That said, here’s the rest of this story

Abstract of the book   

The central figure in The White Darkness is Henry Worsley, a devoted husband, father, and highly decorated officer in the British special forces. Worsley’s life was defined by his deep sense of honor and sacrifice, yet it was also shaped by an intense obsession. His fixation was with Ernest Shackleton, the famed polar explorer of the early 20th century who made heroic, though ultimately unsuccessful, attempts to reach the South Pole and later cross Antarctica on foot. Shackleton’s expeditions, though incomplete, are remembered for his exceptional leadership, particularly in saving his men from near-certain death. Worsley admired Shackleton as one of history's greatest leaders.

Worsley’s connection to Shackleton ran deep. He was a descendant of Frank Worsley, one of Shackleton’s trusted crew members, and he spent a considerable amount of money collecting artifacts from those legendary Antarctic expeditions. He modeled his military leadership after Shackleton’s renowned skills and set himself a goal: to complete the Antarctic journeys that Shackleton could not, thus proving his own endurance in the planet's harshest environment.

Grann’s book centers around Worsley’s expeditions, highlighting his incredible drive to push beyond where Shackleton had been forced to stop. One particularly symbolic moment came when Worsley visited Shackleton’s gravesite on the remote shores of South Georgia Island in the southern Atlantic, paying homage to the explorer who had become his idol.

Worsley’s major Antarctic adventures began in 2008, when he led an expedition through the Transantarctic Mountains, coming within 98 miles of the South Pole. This journey commemorated the 100th anniversary of Shackleton's Nimrod Expedition. Henry returned to Antarctica in 2011, leading a six-man team to retrace Roald Amundsen’s historic 1912 route to the South Pole, covering 870 miles. With this accomplishment, Worsley became the only person to have successfully completed the routes taken by Shackleton, Robert Falcon Scott, and Amundsen.

In 2015, Worsley embarked on another expedition to Antarctica with a new, even more daunting goal—but to learn the gripping conclusion of his story, you'll need to pick up the book.

David Grann masterfully narrates Worsley’s extraordinary life with the same intensity and insight that have earned him recognition as one of the finest narrative nonfiction writers today. The White Darkness is richly illustrated with over fifty stunning photographs from both Worsley’s and Shackleton’s expeditions, making it not only a breathtaking visual keepsake but also a compelling tale of courage, love, and one man’s relentless pursuit of the limits of human endurance.

About the author  

David Grann is an American journalist, author, and staff writer for The New Yorker magazine. He was born on March 10, 1967, in New York City, and grew up in a suburb of White Plains, New York. Grann graduated from Connecticut College with a degree in English and from Columbia University with a master's degree in International Relations.

Grann started his career in journalism as a police reporter for The Hill, a small newspaper in Washington, D.C. He then worked as a general reporter at The New Republic and as a senior editor at The Hill. In 2003, he joined The New Yorker magazine as a staff writer.

Grann's first book, The Devil and Sherlock Holmes: Tales of Murder, Madness, and Obsession, is a collection of his magazine articles. It was published in 2010 and was a New York Times bestseller. His second book, “The Lost City of Z: A Tale of Deadly Obsession in the Amazon”, was published in 2009 and was also a New York Times bestseller. Grann's third book, “Killers of the Flower Moon”: was adapted into a movie in 2016. 

In addition to his book awards, Grann has also received numerous journalism awards, including the George Polk Award, the Selden Ring Award, and the Overseas Press Club Award.

He lives with his wife and children in New York.

What drew my interest in reading this book? 

What makes The White Darkness so compelling is Grann’s gift for memorable detail. When, in 2004, Worsley joins an expedition to the South Pole to mark the 100th anniversary of Shackleton’s first attempt, he and his fellow explorers train by tying tractor tires around their waist and dragging them through fields to emulate pulling a heavy sled. Grann is such an expert at making readers feel as if they are on the journey with the team.

In straightforward but evocative prose, Grann captures the drama and sheer audacity of  Worsley’s travels into very grim places – where one of the many ways to die is simply to get wet. 

Grann recounts in sometimes gruesome detail the hardships Worsley endured as he attempted to cross the continent by himself — blistered and bruised feet, fingers numb with frostbite, a tooth broken from eating a frozen energy bar, a body wasting away no matter how much he ate.

What can we learn from this book? What's the take away?  

This comprehensive book by David Grann is a profound exploration of human endurance, the allure of exploration, and the complex motivations that drive individuals to pursue extreme challenges. It serves as both a tribute to Worsley's remarkable life and a thoughtful examination of the broader implications of such ambitious undertakings.

Well, there you go my friends, that’s life I swear.

For further information covered in this episode, I invite you to visit my website, which you can find on Apple Podcasts/iTunes, for show notes and the episode transcript.

As always, I thank you for the privilege of you listening and your interest. 

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