The North Pole

An adventure that can’t be topped … Kagge journeys into the past to uncover the myths, politics and pure joy of the northernmost point on Earth … heart-catching … a big book of ripping yarns and existential angst … fabulous – Stuart Jeffries * Observer *Thrilling … a compelling mix of history, memoir and polar arcana … Coming to the end of this strange, often beautiful book, it becomes clear that The North Pole is in fact a love story, a record of an infatuation – Alex Diggins * The Telegraph *An adventure-lusting Norwegian explorer vividly chronicles our obsession with the North Pole … Engaging … bracing … fascinating … Why go? That masochistic drive is captured with great verve, as are the beauty of the Arctic and its terrifying hazards – Christian House * The Times *Absorbing from the start … it seems there’s nothing better than a fairly pointless journey into the middle of nowhere to tell us about ourselves … all these boreal goings-on are interlaced with Kagge’s own hard-won experience – Benedict Allen * Spectator *Erling Kagge’s decades-long obsession with the North Pole has produced an extraordinary book that defies genre: an elegant travel account, a learned history and a psychological thriller wrapped in one – Anne ApplebaumErling Kagge is a deeply thoughtful writer who has a strong and very individual style. The North Pole proves to be the perfect subject for him – Michael PalinKagge’s achievement in this compelling, expansive book is to present the North Pole in all its aspects – not just as a geographical point sought by generations of explorers, but also as a dream, myth and mirror … gripping … epic – Mark Nayler * Times Literary Supplement *A beautiful book which is as much about our inner world as our outer one, a book that helps us find the vast calm empty spaces within us and returns us to a feeling of being at home in the world – Alain de BottonAs an explorer Erling Kagge is world class; as a writer he is equally gifted – Sir Ranulph FiennesA wonderful book about the sublime, eerie place known as the North Pole. A place that has doubled as a fertile dreamscape as much as a hard, inhospitable landscape for human beings over the centuries. This is the book of a lifetime, from a rare writer-adventurer whose obsession and passion for his subject know no bounds – Elif Shafak

Erling Kagge is a Norwegian explorer who was the first in history to reach the ‘three poles’ - North, South and the summit of Mount Everest. He is the author of multiple books, including Silence, which is published in forty-two languages. He lives in Oslo.