THE ICEBERG HERMIT

by Arthur Roth ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 30, 1974

Iceberg"" Allan Gordon, who chimed to have spent seven years of his youth -- beginning in 1757 -- marooned on an arctic iceberg, was a kind of polar Robinson Crusoe. And in addition to his resourceful housekeeping in the hull of an inverted icebound whaling ship Gordon reported having tamed a young polar bear, Nancy, who became his hunting partner and constant companion and later, meeting and becoming part of a tribe of pseudo Eskimos who were actually descendants of the lost Greenland Vikings. This amazing, irresistible tale only gains credibility through Roth's muted, unadorned fictionalization, though an acute sense of the arctic cold -- which should have dominated Gordon's consciousness and ours -- is sadly absent. Whether the ethological/anthropological detail is Gordon's or Roth's, loyal Nancy and the blue-eyed Eskimos are completely convincing, and if Gordon misses attaining truly Crusoeish stature few young explorers will pass up a chance to share his seven lost years.

Pub Date: Sept. 30, 1974

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: 176

Publisher: Four Winds

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 1974

Categories: FICTION