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Rating: 
Summary: Review of "At the ends of the Earth"
Review: In this slim volume of some two hundred and forty-one pages, Kieran Mulvaney has successfully melded historical documentation,
traditional narratives, environmental concerns and global policy
issues. There are those who will quibble that such a range of subject matter cannot be meaningfully covered in such a spare package; however, what Mulvaney has achieved by deliberately opting for the streamlined shark rather than the weightier sperm whale is to produce a work which enables direct juxtaposition of Arctic and Antarctic characteristics and issues and to do so in an accessible and eminently readable fashion.
As one who has spent some time in the Arctic and has read widely
on northern exploration and development, I welcome this text which permits me to experience, however vicariously, the "other" end of the earth.
For people who enjoy reading about the environment brought to life by historical and political insights or enjoy reading history quickened by their relationship to todays ecological and political issues, this is a book which they will find both refreshing and informative.
Rating: 
Summary: A meandering hodgepodge of stories and facts
Review: Kieran Mulvaney's "At the Ends of the Earth" is a strong candidate for this year's most misleading subtitle award. The subtitle states that the book is "A History of the Polar Regions," a pretty hefty task, especially for a book that clocks in at a mere 245 pages of text. Of course, it is not a comprehensive, or even a very complete history. Instead, the book is really a essay on the environmental damage man's presence has caused in both the Arctic and Anarctic. Stories of famous explorers like Admundsen, Scott, Cook, Peary and the like get mentions ranging from a couple of sentences to a few paragraphs. The majority of the book concerns such subjects as whaling, seal hunting, oil exploration, the effects of civilization on eskimos and so forth. Were the book as well written and as focussed and balanced as recent environmental tomes such as "Oceans End" and "Earth Odyssey," it would still be a worthwhile read. Instead, Mulvaney spends most of his time regurgitating facts and statistics until they become numbing. His leftist environmental stance is also hard to take by anyone who doesn't share his zealous views. He comes off as the kind of environmentalist who would rather see human civilization collapse than have it do anything to further exploit natural resources. In the end, I suspect that his book will have little impact, as he will find himself preaching only to the already committed.
Rating:
Summary: A meandering hodgepodge of stories and facts
Review: Kieran Mulvaney's "At the Ends of the Earth" is a strong candidate for this year's most misleading subtitle award. The subtitle states that the book is "A History of the Polar Regions," a pretty hefty task, especially for a book that clocks in at a mere 245 pages of text. Of course, it is not a comprehensive, or even a very complete history. Instead, the book is really a essay on the environmental damage man's presence has caused in both the Arctic and Anarctic. Stories of famous explorers like Admundsen, Scott, Cook, Peary and the like get mentions ranging from a couple of sentences to a few paragraphs. The majority of the book concerns such subjects as whaling, seal hunting, oil exploration, the effects of civilization on eskimos and so forth. Were the book as well written and as focussed and balanced as recent environmental tomes such as "Oceans End" and "Earth Odyssey," it would still be a worthwhile read. Instead, Mulvaney spends most of his time regurgitating facts and statistics until they become numbing. His leftist environmental stance is also hard to take by anyone who doesn't share his zealous views. He comes off as the kind of environmentalist who would rather see human civilization collapse than have it do anything to further exploit natural resources. In the end, I suspect that his book will have little impact, as he will find himself preaching only to the already committed.
Rating: 
Summary: History of polar exploration
Review: Mulvaney has prepared an extremely well written history of polar exploration and exploitation with emphasis on environmental problems and challenges of the last 50 years. The early history--ancient Greek to the 20th century--is comparatively brief. The sections on whaling and marine mammal exploitation, and especially the recent history leading up to the ozone "hole" and global warming effects, carry the imprint of Rachel Carson's Silent Spring. The struggle for Antarctic environmental protection is especially well treated as are the nasty details of Arctic oil exploitation. The book is a first-rate introduction to the realities of the polar regions and their interconnectedness with the rapidly evolving 21st-century world. There are a few surprising omissions; e.g., the Soviet Union's extensive use of the Northeast Passage. There is also an unfortunate US bias, particularly pronounced in the derogatory remarks about Robert Falcon Scott compared with the praise afforded Admiral Byrd, who, regardless of the author's admiration, appears to have faked his claim of flying over the South Pole. Regardless, this book deserves a wide readership. All levels.
Rating:
Summary: we came, we saw, then what happened...
Review: Polar literature is exploding, seems like every week there is another book out about struggles to reach the poles, or simply struggles to cross and chart the fragile yet savage lands at the ends of the earth. Many of these books make for fine reading, but most of then simply tell the tale. Kieran Mulvaney's "At the Ends of the Earth" makes the effort to look at what happens to some special places after they are discovered and mapped. Unfortunately this isn't always a pretty picture. As someone who has spent a great deal of time in some of the northern reaches of North America, and who dreams of Antarctica I greatly enjoyed the kernals of information Kieran includes. He does an excellent job of finding and highlighting some little know events in polar exploration and development. This book makes a fine addition to any library of polar science and discovery, right along side "The Mystery of the Ice," and "The Quiet Margin of the World."
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