Product Description

Barrow's Boys is a spellbinding account of perilous journeys to uncharted areas under the most challenging conditions. Re-creating the successes and harrowing failures of the original extreme adventurers, Fergus Fleming captures the incredibly brave, and often downright insane, passion for exploration that led a band of men into situations that would humble even the bravest adventurers today. These men served under John Barrow, Second Secretary to the Admiralty, who, after the Napoleonic wars, launched the most ambitious program of exploration the world has ever seen. For the next thirty years, his handpicked teams of elite naval officers scoured the globe on a mission to fill the blanks that littered the atlases of the day. From the first disastrous trip down the Congo, in search of the Niger River, Barrow maintained his resolve in the face of continuous catastrophes. His explorers often died of sickness or at the hands of unfriendly natives, and they struggled under minuscule budgets that forced them to resort to pulling enormous ships across floating ice fields; to eating mice, raw meat, or their own shoes; and even to horrifying acts of cannibalism. While many of the journeys failed entirely, Barrow and his men ultimately opened Africa to the world, discovered Antarctica, and pried apart the mandibles of the Arctic. Many of the missions have gone down among the greatest in history, yet they have never before been collected into one volume that captures the full sweep of Barrow's program. Beyond their own renowned discoveries, Barrow's officers inspired scores of men, from Livingstone to Shackleton, to continue the incredible quest for knowledge well into the twentieth century. Never again would such a disparate and entertaining band of explorers stalk the world. PRAISE FOR BARROW'S BOYS: "A rollicking narrative about the real thing: nineteenth-century British seafaring exploits ... A riveting yarn."--Grace Lichtenstein, The Washington Post Book World

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #316786 in Books
• Published on: 2001-03-01
• Original language: English
• Dimensions: .2 pounds
• Binding: Paperback
• 512 pages

From the Inside Flap
Barrow's Boys is historical-adventure literature at its best, recounting the breathtaking story of Britain's nineteenth-century program of expeditions to the Arctic, the heart of Africa, and Antarctica. Re-creating both brilliant success and harrowing failure, Fergus Fleming captures the courageous, and often insane, passion for exploration of an incredible group of adventurers.

In 1816 John Barrow, second secretary to the British Admiralty, launched the most ambitious exploration program the world has ever seen. For over thirty years his elite band of handpicked naval officers scoured the globe. Their mission: to fill the blanks on the atlases of the day.

Barrow and his "boys" achieved extraordinary things: they charted enormous areas of the Arctic, they struggled across the Sahara to find Timbuctoo and the mouth of the Niger, they discovered the North Magnetic Pole, and were the first humans to see Antarctica's volcanoes. Their bravery, and the hardships they endured, made them national icons. The exploits of men such as William Edward Parry and John Franklin inspired Amundsen, Peary, Scott, Shackleton, and all subsequent explorers.

And yet many of Barrow's expeditions ended in complete disaster. Operating under pitifully small budgets and with woefully imprecise orders, his men struggled not only to reach their goals but at times just to survive. One group lived off nothing but lichen for months, before eating their own boots and finally each other. Others were trapped by ice for several consecutive winters and, to stave off boredom, printing their own newspapers and set up their own theater companies. Still others just vanished in the wilderness, their gruesome fates to be revealed years later.

These were the heroes the likes of whom had not been seen before and have rarely been seen since. Set against a savage backdrop of rivalry and backstabbing, their adventures are among the greatest in the history of exploration. Compellingly written and exhaustively researched, Barrow's Boys is certain to become a classic of its genre.

"An engrossing and moving story of high endeavour and frustrated hope.... Get hold of this book and read it."--Barry Unsworth, Sunday Telegraph

"A fine book. It is wonderful to have these little-read accounts of a critical period of exploration so well organized into one coherent narrative-and not only that but so well written, in a fresh and immediate manner which brings to life the extraordinary courage and endurance of the men involved."--Peter Matthiessen

"Barrow's Boys is a marvelous book...giving the real story of the men who risked (and often lost) their lives for the glory of England-and the glory of exploration."--The Times (London)

"A hugely entertaining read.... This is travel history of the best kind: entertaining, informed and opinionated."--Sunday Times (London)

"Fleming has an eye for a ripping yarn and a gift for spinning it.... He is a lively interpreter, with bags of narrative flair."--Literary Review

"A sure bet for fans of Caroline Alexander's The Endurance, this captivating survey of England's exploration during the 19th century illuminates a host of forgotten personalities.... Readers will enjoy Fleming's clever chronicle of their exploits."--Publishers Weekly

"Barrow's Boys is a wonderful story, vividly told."--Nature

Fergus Fleming was born in 1959 and studied at Oxford University and City University. He trained as an accountant and barrister and has worked as a furniture maker. He was a writer and editor at Time-Life Books for six years before becoming a freelance writer in 1991. He lives in England.