Reviews (2)

Perfect for those few travellers headed to Greenland
Apart from Antarctica, this is the most obscure place covered by LP. Half of the book (about 165pp) is specifically about Greenland in the customary LP format, and the remainder is about other Arctic regions. (One tidbit: It is impossible to fly to Nuuk, the capitol, without changing planes in another Greenlandic town.)
A take-along 'must' for any destination-bound traveler
The second updated edition of Etain O'Carroll & Mark Elliott's Greenland & The Arctic is out, and is an indispensable guide for any heading North sans travel group. From overviews of regional history and culture to local sights, activities, and opportunities, Greenland & The Arctic highlights all kinds of opportunities, from transportation options between small towns and remote regions to rare shopping opportunities and plenty of nature. A take-along 'must' for any destination-bound traveler; especially since relatively few other titles cover the region in depth. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Arctic regions    2. Europe - Iceland & Greenland    3. Greenland    4. Guidebooks    5. Travel    6. Travel - Foreign    7. Travel & holiday guides   

Editorial Review

From the acclaimed chronicler of open spaces, Gretel Ehrlich, comes a stunning and lyrical evocation of a practically unknown place and people. Beginning in 1993, Ehrlich traveled to Greenland, the northernmost country in the world, in every season--the four months of perpetual dark (in which the average temperature is 25 degrees below zero), the four months of constant daylight, and the twilight seasons in between--traveling up the west coast, often by dogsled, and befriending the resilient and generous Inuits along the way. Greenland, unlike its name, is 95 percent ice--a landscape of deep rock-walled fjords, glaciers, narwhal whales swimming among icebergs the size of football fields, walruses busting through oceans of shifting ice. In the far north, the polar Inuit--the "real heroes"--still dress in bear and seal skins, and hunt walrus, polar bears, and whales with harpoons. The only constant is weather and the perilous movements of ice, the only transport is dogsled, and the closest village may be a month and a half-long dogsled journey away. The people share an austere and harsh life, lightened with humor and the fantastic stories of Sila, the god of weather, Nerrivik, the goddess of waters, of humans transforming themselves into animals, and interspecies marriages. Interwoven with Ehrlich's journey is the even more remarkable story of Knud Rasmussen, the founder of Eskimology, an Inuit-Danish explorer and ethnographer who took some of the most hazardous and brilliant expeditions ever, including a three and a half-year, 20,000-mile adventure by dogsled across the polar north to Alaska. Like Rasmussen, Ehrlich learns that the landscape of Greenland is "less a description of desolation than an ode to the beauty of impermanence."Alternately mind-expanding, gripping, and dreamlike, Read more

Reviews (19)

Heaven On Earth?
In "This Cold Heaven", Gretel Ehrlich extolls the life of the subsistence hunters of Greenland. Her writing is really very nice and brought this remote place to life for me. Jared Diamond's "Collapse" gave us the picture of the european Greenlanders and now Ehrlich gives us the picture from the 'other side of the hill.'
WONDERFUL BOOK
I really enjoyed this book, Gretel takes you with her in her travels and experiences to one of the most starkley beautiful places in the world.
Good, but a missed oppurtunity
I enjoyed the book and would recommend it. She obviously deeply respects the people who she spent time with in Greenland. However, as she barely hints at, there are problems under the surface with alcoholism dysfunctional families and sexual abuse. By glossing over the darker side of things and portraying the Innuit as "noble savages" she provides us with a one dimensional portrait of thier way of life. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. 1879-1933    2. Description And Travel    3. Discovery And Exploration (General)    4. Ehrlich, Gretel    5. Essays & Travelogues    6. Europe - Iceland & Greenland    7. Greenland    8. Human Geography    9. Polar Regions    10. Rasmussen, Knud,    11. Travel    12. Travel - Foreign    13. Travel / Europe / Iceland & Greenland   

Editorial Review

From Antarctica to Zimbabwe, if you're going there, chances are Lonely Planet has been there first. With a pithy and matter-of-fact writing style, these guides are guaranteed to calm the nerves of first-time world travelers, while still listing off-the-beaten-path finds sure to thrill even the most jaded globetrotters. Lonely Planet has been perfecting its guidebooks for nearly 30 years and as a result, has the experience and know-how similar to an older sibling's "been there" advice. The original backpacker's bible, the LP series has recently widened its reach. While still giving insights for the low-budget traveler, the books now list a wide range of accommodations and itineraries for those with less time than money.Read more

Reviews (23)

Indispensable
I don't think this book ever left my hand from the moment I stepped off the plane at Keflavik Airport until I loaded my bags into the Flybus for the return trip.This was the only book I was able to find specifically on Iceland, with enough information on Reykjavik and the surrounding towns to give me a little confidence while exploring this breathtaking land.The section on South Central Iceland is a must read for anyone planning to see the Golden Circle.

Nothing about the birds?
Iceland is famous for its millions of seabirds, especially puffins, that nest on the cliffs and shores.Unfortunately they all depart by September 1 (the puffins often in mid-August), and nowhere did I find that information, although I admit I didn't read the Lonely Planet guide from cover to cover.A group of us who visited in mid-September were very disappointed.In fairness, the other Iceland guides don't seem to warn of this either, nor do the travel brochures.

Be aware of the agenda
While this travel gudie does cover Iceland in detail, one needs to be careful to note that lonely planet does have their own agenda.Many of the hotels they reccommend over other establishments are not the best accomodations.Their may even be other hotels in the area where they say there are no other places to stay.And from a guide in the west fjords, some of their contact information as well as their descriptions may be far off. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Europe - Iceland & Greenland    2. Europe - Western    3. Travel    4. Travel - Foreign    5. Faroe Islands    6. Greenland    7. Iceland    8. Travel & holiday guides   

Editorial Review

Peter Stark's Read more

Reviews (4)

Stark book of the Far North
Peter Stark speaks warmly of the `carnivorous' North in his introductory essay, "A Life Built on Snow."The `life' he refers to is his own.His grandfather was a skater and iceboater, he and his mother and father were (and are) skiers.His whole family belonged to the winter.All the way through this book, wintery thrills overtake fear--the thrill flying four hundred feet down a ski jump; the thrill of stomping a ski into the snow at the top of a slope, then watching the resulting avalanche take out the whole hill; the thrill of hunting narwhal off Greenland's icy shore. Fun
This book was pure fun!Peter Stark who has written on winter sports forOutside magazine, has penned some interesting and informative essays on hislifelong fascination with snow, the Arctic and winter sports. The authorpacked up a 1974 Volkswagon minibus and set out to drive to Greenland. Full of fun escapades and musings on that wonderful fluffy, whitestuff-snow.

Excellent!
Excellent book!Read more

Subjects:  1. Biography    2. Essays & Travelogues    3. Europe - Iceland & Greenland    4. General    5. Skiers    6. Travel    7. Travel - Foreign    8. United States    9. Winter sports    10. Stark, Peter    11. Travel & holiday guides   

Subjects:  1. Adventurers & Explorers    2. Biography / Autobiography    3. Biography/Autobiography    4. Discovery And Exploration (General)    5. Earth Sciences - Geography    6. Europe - Iceland & Greenland    7. Personal Memoirs    8. Science    9. Voyages And Travels    10. Geographical discovery & exploration    11. Greenland    12. Travel writing    13. c 1800 to c 1900   

Subjects:  1. Europe - General    2. Travel - Foreign    3. Faroe Islands    4. Greenland    5. Iceland    6. Travel & holiday guides   

Subjects:  1. Essays & Travelogues    2. Europe - Iceland & Greenland    3. Travel    4. Travel - Foreign    5. Northern Europe, Scandinavia    6. TRAVEL & HOLIDAY    7. Travel writing   

Subjects:  1. Europe - Iceland & Greenland    2. Europe - Western    3. Travel    4. Travel - Foreign