Want to read a page-turner of a narrative picture book? Look no further than Helen Thayer's Arctic Adventure: A Woman and A Dog Walk to the North Pole. Author Sally Isaacs, who has written many text and school books, where the text is a bland vanilla, has found her voice in Helen Thayer's story of determination and survival. The reality of the adventure is enhanced by the stunning illustrations of Iva Shasheva who has captured the atmosphere of a frigid and deslolate landscape.
Actually, Thayer's trek was to the magnetic north pole-- the spot where the earth's magnetic field reaches the top of its arc. All magnets point to this location, except when you're standing on top if it. I would guess that a free-wheeling compass needle would point down, thus earning it the name the "dip pole." Unlike the geographic north pole, the magnetic pole is a slowly drifting target. Nevertheless its location in 1988, on an isolated island in northern Canada, became the destination for a fit, 50-year-old woman looking for a mental and physical challenge.
She was determined to face the elements and the polar bears alone but agreed to take one dog, Charlie, with her after discussing the matter with a local bear hunter. Charlie is a big part of the story.
We hear a lot about persistance these days. Sometimes it's called "grit." But what does that mean to a child? Certainly a child in temperate latitudes can imagine snow and ice as challenges. Add to that a terrain devoid of landmarks, the threat of polar bears, cracking sea ice and solitude. The addition of a single dog transfomed the experience.
Helen Thayer's Arctic Adventure is an exposition of grit by two gifted women: Sally Isaacs, author and Iva Sasheva, artist.
Actually, Thayer's trek was to the magnetic north pole-- the spot where the earth's magnetic field reaches the top of its arc. All magnets point to this location, except when you're standing on top if it. I would guess that a free-wheeling compass needle would point down, thus earning it the name the "dip pole." Unlike the geographic north pole, the magnetic pole is a slowly drifting target. Nevertheless its location in 1988, on an isolated island in northern Canada, became the destination for a fit, 50-year-old woman looking for a mental and physical challenge.
She was determined to face the elements and the polar bears alone but agreed to take one dog, Charlie, with her after discussing the matter with a local bear hunter. Charlie is a big part of the story.
We hear a lot about persistance these days. Sometimes it's called "grit." But what does that mean to a child? Certainly a child in temperate latitudes can imagine snow and ice as challenges. Add to that a terrain devoid of landmarks, the threat of polar bears, cracking sea ice and solitude. The addition of a single dog transfomed the experience.
Helen Thayer's Arctic Adventure is an exposition of grit by two gifted women: Sally Isaacs, author and Iva Sasheva, artist.
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