Finding Endurance

by Darrel Bristow-Bovey

Jonathan Ball

When Ernest Shackleton’s ship Endurance was discovered below the Antarctic ice in March 2022, 106 years after it sank, Darrel Bristow-Bovey threw himself into retelling the story of one of the world’s greatest leaders.  He’s drawn on literature, natural history, personal memoir and of course the unbelievable polar adventure that Shackleton and their men not only endured but survived.  It’s a story of unspeakable hardship, and extraordinary human achievement against the greatest odds - nothing short of miraculous.

Present day, he takes us onboard the SA Agulhas  II and introduces us to Knowledge Bengu from Umlazi, the first black man to pilot an icebreaker ship and the man who took her through the Weddell Sea through ice and gyre, and placed her over the spot where they found Endurance.   I promise this will send you down every Youtube rabbit hole and scrolling through everything google offers on the subject!
And through these two extraordinarily heroic stories set more than 100 years apart, Darrel interjects stories of another hero - his father - who died when Darrel was only 10 years old but left him with a lifetime of memories.

Finding Endurance is the most wonderful, warm, carefully researched, slightly quirky read filled with fabulous stories, facts, digressions and charming humour.  You wont be able to put it down!

Stirring and brave. Quite simply one of the best books I've ever read - Michele Magwood

Engaging, absorbing and crammed with marvellous stories, Finding Endurance is a tale about exploring the cold, told with much warmth - Mick Herron, author of Slow Horses