Edward J. Larson is University Professor of history and holds the Hugh & Hazel Darling Chair in Law at Pepperdine University. He received the Pulitzer Prize in History for Summer for the Gods: The Scopes Trial and America's Continuing Debate over Science and Religion. His other books include A Magnificent Catastrophe: The Tumultuous Election of 1800, America's First Presidential Campaign. From 2013 to 2014, Larson was an inaugural Library Fellow at the Fred W. Smith National Library for the Study of George Washington located on the grounds of Mount Vernon. He lives in Georgia and California.
"“An engaging tale of derring-do and survival virtuosity. ... Larson is a talented storyteller. ... He does full justice to his three protagonists’ remarkable bravery, resourcefulness, accomplishments—and flaws. ... Suspenseful. ... Moving. ... Fascinating.” — Wall Street Journal “Exciting. ... An adrenaline-fueled look at one of the wildest times in exploration.” — Outside, “Best New Books” “[A] detailed account. ... Engaging. ... A welcome perspective.” — New York Times Book Review “Larson recounts three bold expeditions in 1909. ... How badass were these guys? Peary loses eight toes to frostbite but continues undeterred. ... Despite the hardships, it’s hard not to envy living in a time when parts of the world remained unexplored.” — Men’s Journal (”8 Great New Books to Snag Right Now”) “Over 100 years ago, in 1909, the North Pole, South Pole, and the highest mountain peaks in the world all remained unclaimed by adventurers, and a generation of explorers were all reaching for those prizes. ... Larson takes us along on three missions, one to each pinnacle of the world.” — Popular Science (one of “Five Books You Should Read This Month”) “Shine[s] a light on the adventures of explorers of old. ... Larson writes in an engaging and fast-moving manner in reacquainting us with those heroes of yesterday who’ve slipped into the historical shadows.” — Minneapolis Star Tribune “A masterfully written story of incredible adventures against insurmountable odds.” — JIM WHITTAKER, the first American to summit Mt. Everest, former president/CEO of REI, and author of A Life on the Edge “Larson delivers riveting tales of stalwart explorers risking their lives for discovery in some of the world’s harshest areas. Their successes and even their failures made them heroes. A fascinating look at the adventures of remarkably resilient men, so well-related as to make you feel the chill.” — Kirkus Reviews “A fine psychological study, a story of bravery and obsession and men who pushed themselves to the edge of sanity. … Larson captures the excitement and danger that were the defining characteristics of this age of exploration.” — Booklist “Recommended for those who wish to relive a time when the globe still had empty spaces and the men able to fill in those blank areas were rewarded by the world’s adulation.” — Lincoln Journal Star ""In a fast-paced and eloquent narrative, Larson tells the stories of each of these men as they endure hardships of cold, ice, crevasses, open leads in Peary’s case, and for the men in Antarctica, near starvation."" — Anchorage Daily News"