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Title details for Fatal North by Bruce Henderson - Available

Fatal North

Murder and Survival on the First North Pole Expedition

by Bruce Henderson
John Pruden
Audiobook
1 of 1 copy available
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It began as President Ulysses S. Grant's bid for international glory after the Civil War—America's first attempt to reach the North Pole. It ended with Captain Charles Hall's death under suspicious circumstances, dissension among sailors, scientists, and explorers, and the ship's evacuation and eventual sinking. Then came a brutal struggle for survival by thirty-three men, women, and children, stranded on the polar ice. When news of the disastrous expedition and accusations of murder reached Washington D.C., it led to a nationwide scandal, an official investigation, and a government cover-up.
The mystery of the captain's death remained unsolved for nearly 100 years. But when Charles Hall's frozen grave in northern Greenland was opened, forensic scientists were finally able to reach a shocking conclusion.
Now, telling the complete story for the first time, bestselling author Bruce Henderson has researched original transcripts of the U.S. Navy inquests, personal papers of Captain Hall, autopsy and forensic reports relating to the century-old crime, the ship's original log, and personal journals kept by crewmen to bring to life one of the most mysterious tragedies of American exploration.

  • Creators

  • Publisher

  • Release date

    August 23, 2016

  • Formats

    • OverDrive Listen audiobook

      • ISBN: 9781515929512
      • File size: 264004 KB
      • Duration: 09:10:00

  • Languages

    • English

  • Reviews

    • AudioFile Magazine
      John Pruden provides a workmanlike narration of this true-crime work. The first official American expedition to the North Pole launched in 1871. Its survivors straggled back to home soil two years later without their captain. Nearly one hundred years later, the captain's grave in Greenland was opened by scientists, and an autopsy revealed arsenic poisoning. Pruden delivers a brisk narration but falls short of enhancing the historical detail with embellishment of the characters, despite the author's meticulous depictions of the surviving crew's horrifying tales of incompetence, insubordination, and even murder. Inconsistent pauses between sections are disruptive as the account jumps between various points of view and timeframes. The story is fascinating, but Henderson's thorough research and engaging storytelling are not enhanced by this production. N.M.C. © AudioFile 2016, Portland, Maine

Formats

  • OverDrive Listen audiobook

subjects

Languages

  • English

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