Customer Reviews

Lady Franklin's Revenge A True Story of Ambition, Obsession, and the Remaking of Arctic History

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I read widely about arctic exploration, and I always wondered why Sir John Franklin set off for the arctic for the third time at the age of 59 when he was not in particularly good health. This book opened my eyes to his motivation. I will leave it to the readers to determine who they think was the driving force behind this unfortunate expedition.

If you are interested in what shaped Sir John Franklin before his abortive exploration in the Arctic, McGoogan presents a tour-de-force portrait of his second wife, Jane, an indefatigable traveler and adventurer. I read this book for insights into 19th Century Tasmania and was not disappointed. Excerpts from letters and newspapers give a clear sense of public and private reflections on this colonial period, well complimented by maps, notes, appendices, and illustrations.

I ordered this book through one of Amazon Marketplace sellers as it was no longer offered by Amazon itself. While the book is in the shape I ordered it (used-very good), I have not read it yet as I only just received it after ordering in it on 11/26/10. I received the book mid January, 2011.