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Spitsbergen

READING AND TRAVEL GUIDE

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Books for

Enrich your travels with reading! Here's a hand-picked list prepared for your journey in conjunction with the book experts at Longitude.

Essential Reading

Item EXARC120. Buy these 4 items as a set for $94 including shipping, 15% off the retail price.
With free shipping on anything else you order.

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Polar Bears

Polar Bears

by Ian Stirling

  • NATURAL HISTORY
  • 2011
  • PAPER
  • 232 PAGES

A tribute to the polar bear by a preeminent researcher, this handsome natural history features outstanding color photographs and detailed chapters on biology, distribution, behavior, study, conservation and lore. (ARC58, $40.00)

Bradt Guide Spitsbergen

Bradt Guide Spitsbergen

by Andreas Umbreit

  • GUIDEBOOK
  • 2009
  • PAPER
  • 246 PAGES
  • BEST SELLER

This excellent introduction to Spitsbergen, Franz Josef Land and Jan Mayen Island includes an overview of history, wildlife and nature, color photographs and maps. (NOR01, $26.99)

The Arctic, A Guide to Coastal Wildlife

The Arctic, A Guide to Coastal Wildlife

by Tony Soper

  • FIELD GUIDE
  • 2012
  • PAPER
  • 160 PAGES
  • BEST SELLER

An essential handbook for the ship-based traveler, this compact guide to the plants, marine mammals and birds of the circumpolar north features handsome watercolor illustrations and lively text. This new edition includes a section on the Bering Sea. (ARC85, $23.99)

Spitsbergen Explorer Map

Spitsbergen Explorer Map

by Ocean Explorer Maps

  • 2006
  • MAP
  • BEST SELLER

A detailed map of Svalbard for the traveler, at a scale of 1:1,000,000, with illustrated biographies of 27 explorers and a brief guide to wildlife on the reverse. (ARC88, $11.95)

 
North Circumpolar Region

North Circumpolar Region


by Canada Map Office

  • 2008
  • MAP

A striking bird's-eye view of the Arctic Ocean and all the lands of the far north, at a scale of 1:9,000,000, with shaded relief on sea and land. (ARC16, $19.95)

Norway Map

Norway Map


by Michelin Travel Publications

  • MAP

A handsome map of Norway at a scale of 1:1,000,000, with a place index and shaded relief. (NOR05, $12.95)

Eyewitness Guide Norway

Eyewitness Guide Norway


by Eyewitness Guides

  • GUIDEBOOK
  • 2012
  • PAPER
  • 304 PAGES
  • COMING IN JUNE

This handsome, illustrated guide covers nature, culture, history and attractions. (NOR29, $25.00)

Insight Guide Norway

Insight Guide Norway


by Insight Guides

  • GUIDEBOOK
  • 2011
  • PAPER
  • 391 PAGES

Featuring concise essays on natural history, politics and culture, hundreds of photos and maps, and some limited practical information. (NOR03, $23.95)

What We Know About Climate Change

What We Know About Climate Change


by Kerry Emanuel

  • REFERENCE
  • 2012
  • HARD COVER
  • 85 PAGES

With the power of a polished lecturer, MIT atmospheric scientist Kerry Emanuel outlines the issues, causes and concerns about the fate of our climate, updated for this second edition to cover the latest from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and unfortunate lack of political and popular will in the United States to tackle this vexing issue. (GEO46, $14.95)

A History of Scandinavia: Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Finland and Iceland

A History of Scandinavia: Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Finland and Iceland


by T.K Derry

  • HISTORY
  • 2000
  • PAPER
  • 447 PAGES

Scandinavia from prehistory to the present with chapters on the Viking and Lutheran kingdoms, medieval times, monarchies, the World Wars and modern period, emphasizing the common cultural, political and social backgrounds. (SCN03, $25.00)

The Svalbard Archipelago

The Svalbard Archipelago


by P.J. Capelotti

  • CULTURAL PORTRAIT
  • 2000
  • PAPER
  • 180 PAGES

A reprint of a WWII-era report on Spitsbergen by U.S. intelligence, covering the geography, history and geo-politics of the archipelago. With 63 photographs, maps, glossary, illustrations, bibliography, appendices, and an index. (ARC91, $49.95)

The Vikings, Lords of the Seas

The Vikings, Lords of the Seas


by Yves Cohat

  • HISTORY
  • 2010
  • PAPER
  • 175 PAGES

An indispensable reference that fits in your pocket, this slim volume is packed with maps, archival photographs and illustrations. It tells of the Norse homeland, discoveries and settlements, and features a useful chronology and excerpts from the Viking Sagas. Part of the "Discoveries" series. (VIK01, $15.95)

A History of Arctic Exploration

A History of Arctic Exploration


by Juha Nurminen

  • EXPLORATION
  • 2010
  • HARD COVER
  • 349 PAGES

The ancient Inuit, Vikings, Vitus Bering, whalers, explorers and James Cook are all paid tribute in this sumptuously illustrated history, drawing on the collections of Helsinki's Nurminen Foundation. (ARC257, $60.00)

By Airship to the North Pole, An Archaeology of Human Exploration

By Airship to the North Pole, An Archaeology of Human Exploration


by P.J. Capelotti

  • ARCHAEOLOGY
  • 1999
  • HARD COVER
  • 209 PAGES

A history of Salomon Andree, Charles Wellman and the first attempts to reach the North Pole by airship. This book includes a detailed archaeological analysis of the aerial polar base camps in Spitsbergen. (ARC68, $26.00)

Farthest North

Farthest North


by Fridtjof Nansen

  • EXPLORATION
  • 2008
  • PAPER
  • 678 PAGES

The great Norwegian polar explorer Fridtjof Nansen's classic account of the voyage of the Fram, originally published in 1897, interspersed with dozens of original photographs. (ARC60, $17.95)

Innocents in the Arctic, The 1951 Spitsbergen Expedition

Innocents in the Arctic, The 1951 Spitsbergen Expedition


by Colin Bull

  • EXPLORATION
  • 2007
  • PAPER
  • 272 PAGES

A marvelous account of adventure and scientific inquiry, glaciologist Colin Bull recounts his role in the 1951 Spitsbergen Expedition with humor and humility. Drawn from Bull's field notes, journals and published reports, this book paints a compelling portrait of what it means to be young and daring. (ARC176, $19.95)

Ninety Degrees North, The Quest for the North Pole

Ninety Degrees North, The Quest for the North Pole


by Fergus Fleming

  • EXPLORATION
  • 2003
  • PAPER
  • 496 PAGES

A thrilling, artfully told chronicle of the mostly 19th-century adventurers, madmen and explorers who quested after the North Pole. (ARC124, $15.00)

The Ice Balloon

The Ice Balloon


by Alec Wilkinson

  • EXPLORATION
  • 2013
  • PAPER
  • 272 PAGES

New Yorker writer Wilkinson recounts in thrilling detail the ill-fated attempt by Swedish engineer and aeronaut Salomon August Andree to reach the North Pole from Svalbard by balloon in 1897. (ARC289, $15.95)

A Woman in the Polar Night

A Woman in the Polar Night


by Christiane Ritter

  • BIOGRAPHY/MEMOIR
  • 2010
  • PAPER
  • 224 PAGES

Ritter's classic account of living in a hut with her husband on the north coast of Spitsbergen in the 1930s "to read thick books in the remote quiet and, not least, to sleep to my heart's content" conveys the radiant beauty and magic of the Arctic. (ARC278, $19.95)

Frost on My Moustache, The Arctic Exploits of a Lord and a Loafer

Frost on My Moustache, The Arctic Exploits of a Lord and a Loafer


by Tim Moore

  • TRAVEL NARRATIVE
  • 2001
  • PAPER
  • 280 PAGES

In this inspired folly, a British comic heads to Iceland, Spitsbergen and other northern locales in pursuit of a fictitious Arctic hero. (ARC74, $17.99)

Ice Bears and Kotick, Rowing on Top of the World

Ice Bears and Kotick, Rowing on Top of the World


by Peter Webb

  • BIOGRAPHY/MEMOIR
  • 2008
  • PAPER
  • 249 PAGES

In Webb's thrilling tale of circumnavigating Spitsbergen in an open rowing boat, he recounts the sheer exhilaration of survival and doing what one loves. This is a story for all those that ever wanted to run away to sea. (ARC262, $17.95)

Last Places, A Journey in the North

Last Places, A Journey in the North


by Lawrence Millman | Paul Theroux

  • TRAVEL NARRATIVE
  • 2000
  • PAPER
  • 242 PAGES

Millman explores the culture and history of the Faroes, Iceland and Greenland in this often-hilarious account of his travels in the wake of the ancient Vikings. (ARC54, $15.95)

The Magnetic North

The Magnetic North


by Sara Wheeler

  • TRAVEL NARRATIVE
  • 2012
  • PAPER
  • 336 PAGES

Wheeler writes with zest and insight of the people, nature and future of the Circumpolar North in these many marvelously recounted adventures, including her time in Spitsbergen. (ARC250, $15.00)

Norwegian Folk Tales

Norwegian Folk Tales


by Peter Asbjornsen

  • ANTHOLOGY
  • 1982
  • PAPER
  • 188 PAGES

This rich collection of stories, interpreted by a leading scholar on ancient traditions and tales, will delight both adults and children. (NOR06, $15.95)

A Complete Guide to Arctic Wildlife

A Complete Guide to Arctic Wildlife


by Richard Sale

  • NATURAL HISTORY
  • 2012
  • PAPER
  • 464 PAGES

This stunning primer features hundreds of spectacular color photographs, range maps and descriptions of 200 birds and 77 mammals. (ARC190, $35.00)

A Naturalist's Guide to the Arctic

A Naturalist's Guide to the Arctic


by E.C. Pielou

  • NATURAL HISTORY
  • 1994
  • PAPER
  • 327 PAGES

Our best-selling book on the Arctic, this guide covers the geography and climate, plants, birds and wildlife of the circumpolar north. (ARC03, $22.00)

Arctic Dreams

Arctic Dreams


by Barry Lopez

  • NATURAL HISTORY
  • 2001
  • PAPER
  • 417 PAGES
  • FAVORITE

A dazzling meditation on the Arctic, breathtaking in scope. Lopez draws on his travels throughout the North, including Baffin Island, the Chukchi and Bering seas, Alaska, the Yukon and Greenland, interweaving natural history, accounts of early exploration, anecdote and lore into an indelible portrait of place. (ARC11, $16.00)

Islands of the Arctic

Islands of the Arctic


by Julian Dowdeswell | Michael Hambrey

  • NATURAL HISTORY
  • 2002
  • HARD COVER
  • 280 PAGES

A beautifully illustrated, authoritative overview of the physical geography of the Arctic, especially the role of glaciers and ice in shaping the land and history of northern islands across the Arctic from the Canadian Archipelago, Greenland and Svalbard to the Russian Arctic. (ARC122, $65.00)

Polar Bears, A Complete Guide to their Biology and Behavior

Polar Bears, A Complete Guide to their Biology and Behavior


by Andrew E. Derocher | Wayne Lynch

  • NATURAL HISTORY
  • 2012
  • HARD COVER
  • 264 PAGES

An illustrated chronicle of the evolution, ecology and conservation of the polar bear, this captivating natural history features color photographs by Lynch and stories from the field by wildlife researcher Derocher. (ARC309, $39.95)

The Great White Bear

The Great White Bear


by Kieran Mulvaney

  • NATURAL HISTORY
  • 2011
  • HARD COVER
  • 251 PAGES

A journalist with an affinity for the wild (he once lived on the shores of Cook Inlet), Mulvaney combines natural and human history, myth and eyewitness reports from Barrow, Churchill and other locales, for this astute chronicle. (ARC267, $26.00)

Birds of Europe

Birds of Europe


by Lars Svensson

  • FIELD GUIDE
  • 2010
  • PAPER
  • 416 PAGES
  • FAVORITE

Featuring 3,500 glorious paintings by Killian Mullarney and Dan Zetterstrom, the second revised edition of this exquisite guide has been brought up to date with revised text and maps. (FG47, $29.95)

Svalbard, A Guide to Plants of the High Arctic

Svalbard, A Guide to Plants of the High Arctic


by Stephen MacLean

  • FIELD GUIDE
  • 2010
  • PAPER
  • 48 PAGES

Take it along. The veteran naturalist's slim guide features large color photographs of commonly encountered lichen, buttercups, sandworts, saxifrages and other plants of the tundra. (ARC266, $14.95)

More Recommendations

Here are some other groups of books that might be of interest

Longitude provides recommended reading for travelers in partnership with the leading tour operators and travel programs for hundreds of destinations worldwide. We've got the classic, new and hard-to-find books and maps to help you get the most out of your adventures.