Ten years after joining the British Royal Navy at 16, Tom Crean filled a last-minute spot as a sailor on the Discovery, bound for Antarctica in 1901; the ship and crew spent two years trapped in ice before finally returning home. Tom returned to Antarctica on the Terra Nova expedition with Captain Scott in 1910; he was one of the crew chosen to make the 10-week land trek toward the pole but was later sent back to base camp with two others, one of them injured. Tom eventually walked 35 miles alone to reach help. In 1914 Tom again sailed to Antarctica, this time with Captain Shackleton on the Endurance. After the crew abandoned the ship as it was slowly crushed by ice, Tom and four others voyaged in a small boat through violent seas before hiking across a glacial range to reach help at a whaling station on South Georgia Island. Tom remained humble about his achievements; in fact, he didn’t talk about his Antarctic adventures after retiring to his home in Ireland. But those who sailed with him recounted his mental and physical stamina and the heroic actions that helped save the lives of his crewmates, as well his “raucous sense of humor.” Detailed watercolor and colored pencil illustrations in varied layouts and perspectives capture the drama of his experiences and the beauty of Antarctica. (Ages 5-9)