ELISHA KENT KANE: Arctic Challenger
By
The author's careful research is evident in the exciting, poignant descriptions of Kane's explorations of the Arctic. A person who seemed driven towards ecklessness even as a boy, Kane could not be satisfied to remain a physician after erving in the navy. He was a member of two Grinnell expeditions in the 1850's, one of which he led. The frosty Arctic silence hangs over Kane's life-- a silence which he saw as an inexplicable beauty, and the author has realistically recreated the bitter struggles as well as the glories of the two arctic expeditions. Boys especially will be captivated by this fine biography of Peary's predecessor.