Our recent vacation in Norway was bookended by visits to two very fine polar exploration museums, the Fram Museum in Oslo and the Polar Museum in Tromsø. It was clear from both of them that Fridtjof Nansen was the most compelling character in the annals of Arctic explorers. He approached his expeditions with a scientific mindset and introduced many innovations in polar travel; he was charismatic but lacked leadership skills. Beyond his adventuring, he made significant contributions in neurology and oceanography, evangelized the sport of skiing, was a good artist, and won the Nobel Peace Prize for helping with the refugee crisis that followed the First World War and the Russian Revolution.
Huntford does a great job of capturing Nansen's depressive temperament and complicated relationships without resorting to imaginative psychologizing. He places Nansen's achievements in the context of the times. The heart of the book details the (first) Fram expedition, using material from the diaries of several participants to build a well-rounded portrait.
The idea behind the Fram expedition, by the way, was to purposely get frozen into the pack ice and drift to the North Pole with the natural current. It didn't happen, but they were able to prove that the Arctic Ocean was deep, without any land at the center, in contrast to Antarctica. Nansen eventually left the ship with one companion to attempt to reach the Pole by custom-designed sledge; the rest of the crew was happy to see him and his moods go. He reached the farthest north for the time, and coasted on his fame and success for the rest of his life. All subsequent expeditions consulted with Nansen for his insights into the design of sledges and skis, avoiding scurvy, or just to get his blessing for fundraising purposes.
While Huntford does a solid job of describing Nansen's routes and innovations, I would have liked more illustrations and better maps. The sections covering Nansen's post-expedition political career were less compelling. Perhaps that was inevitable, but I felt like Huntford's prose regressed to the mean of biography writing. Norwegian independence, the League of Nations, and the Russian Revolution are dealt with in a somewhat cursory manner, with the typical parade of names and dates.
Fascinating if a bit draining at times.
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