The author led a team to Antarctica to relive the adventures of Robert Scott. I remember reading a story about Antarctic exploration somewhere around fourth or fifth grade. This story did not deliver the same sense of adventure. The illustrations in this one, however, make it a great book to pair up with a story of some of the original Antarctic adventures. ( )

I recommend this nonfiction text to be on your shelf if you're an ELA teacher; it's a fascinating biographical narrative of Rober Swan's experience trying to reach the South Pole, where only one other person had ever been before (and that crew never made it home). This story never got boring, and it is quite a tale of determination and ambition, with many disappointments and trials along the way. I look at these triumphs as unnecessary and insane risks, but I do respect his courage & perseverance as well. One of my students found it interesting; the type of student who also wanted to read Banner in the Sky by Ulman. I sssume that my student was inspired by both Rudi & Swan. So, it's past the student test. Short, perfect reading level for middle school, and full of just enough pictures to really help the reader visualize the quest. ( )

Follows the British adventurer Robert Swan and two other explorers on an exciting and dangerous 900-mile trek to the South Pole, following in the footsteps of Swan's chidhood hero, Robert Falcon Scott, who made the journey exactly seventy-four years earlier.