{"product_id":"ships-of-wood-and-men-of-iron-a-norwegiancanadian-saga-of-exploration-in-the-high-arctic-9781897045060","title":"Ships of Wood and Men of Iron: A Norwegian-Canadian Saga of Exploration in the High Arctic","description":"\u003cp\u003eIn the barren lands of Canada far north of the Arctic circle  summers are quick and cool  mere short interruptions in the true business of the polar regions  winter. Winters there can be dangerous with temperatures that plunge to awesome depths during the long  lonely hours of Arctic darkness. Powerful blizzards shriek across the land for days at a time  causing all animal life to seek shelter from the cutting blast  essentially putting a temporary end to normal activities of life  such as travelling and eating. It is an unforgiving land that does not easily suffer fools. Over 100 years ago  in June 1898  Captain Otto Sverdrup and 15 crewmen put out to sea aboard the schooner Fram from the Norwegian city today known as Oslo. When they returned to Norway four years later  they came back with a record of geographic and scientific discovery  the richness of which is unparalleled in the annals of Arctic exploration. The first section of this book is the story of those four heroic years spent in the High Arctic and their impact on Canadas subsequent efforts to ensure Canadian sovereignty in the area of the Norwegian discoveries. The second section of the book deals with the Canadian Arctic expeditions between 1903 and 1948  led by intrepid men such as A.P. Low  Joseph E. Bernier  Vilhjalmur Stefansson and Henry Larsen. \"For anyone interested in the recent history of the Canadian North and why we even call it the Canadian North Ships of Wood and Men of Iron is a must read. Kenney persuasively nominates a shortlist of new national heroes for a country badly in need of them.\"  - Randy Boswell  CanWest News Service \"In my view  this book will be an important document about Canada-Norway relations in the North  especially considering the increased international emphasis now on circumpolar relations in the North.\"  - Shirley Wolff Serafini  Canadian Ambassador to Norway \"This book is a well deserved recognition of one of Norways most famous polar explorers and his invaluable contributions to the exploration and development of science in the Canadian Arctic. Gerard Kenneys book also sheds an interesting new light on the history of the final settlement of Norways territorial claim of the Sverdrup Islands.\"  - Ingvard Havnen  former Norwegian Ambassador to Canada\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"My Store","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":45794231386165,"sku":"ByrdShop_1897045069","price":333.78,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0627\/8139\/0901\/files\/9781897045060.jpg?v=1784825563","url":"https:\/\/atxbooks.com\/products\/ships-of-wood-and-men-of-iron-a-norwegiancanadian-saga-of-exploration-in-the-high-arctic-9781897045060","provider":"ATX Books","version":"1.0","type":"link"}