A good short book (Kindle Single) about the crash of the Italia (an airship conducting arctic rescue) and the ill-fated rescue attempt which claimed the life of Roald Amundsen, the greatest polar explorer of all time. The irony that Amundsen died while trying to rescue a rival, and the Italian vs Norwegian politics, as well as the hasty vs. well-prepared nature of the operation, makes it even more interesting. This isn't a great book about polar exploration in general (for that, I think something focusing entirely on Amundsen, Nansen, Scott, and Shackleton would be better), but for a short read, it's pretty good. ( )

Please don't waste $1.99 on this book.

Mussolini's Arctic Airship is a kindle-exclusive, a short read about the Italia, an Italian airship that reached the North Pole in 1928 and subsequently crashed on the ice, with "one confirmed fatality from the crash, one fatality from exposure while awaiting rescue, and the disappearance (and presumed death) of six crew members who were trapped in the still-airborne envelope."

That quote is from Wikipedia. Even after finishing this book, I still had no idea what had happened to the Italia.

I learned more about this historical event from the Wikipedia page than I did from the book.

The title of this book shamelessly name-drops Mussolini in order to sell more copies. Mussolini himself is mentioned exactly twice in the book, purely to add historical context. Mussolini had nothing to do with this airship.

Holland attempts to intertwine two stories: the Italia and its general, Umberto Nobile, and his "bitter rival, legendary Norwegian polar explorer Roald Amundsen." The structure of this book is terrible; the reader cannot possibly keep these two stories straight, and Holland does nothing to assist. The facts of how these two men were connected are straightforward, but Holland fails to provide us with the basic details, and the story of the Italia, the crew, and the rescue mission are lost in translation.

If you want to read about this interesting event in the history of Arctic exploration, please check out the Wikipedia page. ( )