Bound To Stay Bound

Booklist - 08/01/2017 *Starred Review* Extensively researched and illustrated with engravings and paintings, this account of the 1879 Arctic voyage of the Jeannette serves as an excellent example of how to piece together an intriguing story from a variety of sources. When the Jeannette was sent to explore the Arctic area accessible north from the Bering Strait, little was truly known about the farthest reaches of the sea. Theories held that once past the ice shelves, warm tropical waters eddied around the North Pole, and that there might even be inhabitable land to discover. George Washington De Long, a U.S. Navy captain, aimed to head the expedition that would add a new depth of knowledge to the world. It was not to be. Along with his crew, he instead faced two torturous years of severe weather, and the Jeannette was doomed to be crushed by ice. A trek across hundreds of miles to Siberia ensued, but not all of the crew made it—that any did was sheer luck. Despite all this, however, the records of what the Jeannette’s crew did find, was important and added to prior knowledge. Readers of historical adventure will be drawn to the story and appreciate the crew’s bravery. - Copyright 2017 Booklist.

School Library Journal - 08/01/2017 Gr 5–8—In 1879, Navy officer George Washington Delong had "Arctic Fever," and jumped at the chance to lead an expedition to the North Pole aboard the ship, Jeannette. His route was largely based on an esteemed geologist's theory that a warm Pacific Ocean current would lead them effortlessly to the pole. The lure of adventure was so great that the unproven hypothesis drew 1,200 applicants for the expedition's 24-man crew. Although it was expertly staffed, more powerful, and better equipped than previous ships bound for the North Pole, the Jeannette was no match for the merciless arctic winters; a prologue alerts readers that the harrowing story of survival begins when the ship sinks after months of being stuck in the ice. The crew was divvied into three lifeboats with provisions and sled dogs, but became separated over time. Chief Engineer George Melville and 11 other men survived to tell the tale and, while Delong perished, his meticulous logs and journals pieced together the three-year ordeal. Reproductions of these notes and letters, along with images and maps, underscore the authenticity of the narrative. Most poignant is a photo of the porcelain doll Delong meant for his daughter—recovered from his coat pocket when his body was found in Siberia. VERDICT A younger read in the vein of Jennifer Armstrong's Shipwreck at the Bottom of the World or Nathaniel Philbrick's In the Heart of the Sea: Tragedy of the Whaleship Essex. Add this straightforward but finely researched account whereever true survival stories are popular.—Vicki Reutter, State University of New York at Cortland - Copyright 2017 Publishers Weekly, Library Journal and/or School Library Journal used with permission.