The Warm Arctic
Visiting the Countries of the Arctic Circle
By Norman Price
August 2008
Book Guild
Distrubuted by Trans-Atlantic Publications Inc.
ISBN: 9781846242304 
256 pages, Illustrated
$38.95 Hardcover
Synopsis
Norman Price has visited most of the countries within the Arctic Circle, from
Finland to Alaska, even penetrating the borders of the Russian Far East. Cold
and hostile the terrain might be, but this engaging book reveals the warmth and
friendliness of the people who inhabit one of the Earth's last great wildernesses.
It is his earnest desire to learn about the cultures of these people and his passion for the rugged beauty of the North that has drawn him back again and again to the 'land of the midnight sun'. In Greenland he finds 'the most northerly rose in the world', in Canada he is treated to a spectacular display of the aurora borealis 'hung in shimmering curtains', in Finland he endeavours to photograph a pure white reindeer against snow, while in Russia he finds beauty in the bleakest of places where ugliness is transformed by the kindness and humour of those he encounters.
Finally, in a memorable closing chapter,
he passes the baton of his irrepressible fascination with the Arctic to his
grandson as they explore the East Coast of Greenland together, providing
an affectionate conclusion to a remarkable and inspiring travelogue.
About the Author
Norman Price spent his childhood in Penang, from where he was evacuated to
Australia during the Japanese occupation in World War II. After the war he
returned to Malaya, where he learnt to fly, and served with the Malayan Auxiliary
Police and later as a police officer in Kenya during the Mau Mau uprising
in the 1950s.
Then he joined BOAC as an airline pilot and enjoyed 25 years of service, flying world-wide routes in heavy jet aircraft. At the same time he trained as a barrister, becoming a member of Lincoln's Inn, and was called to the Bar in 1975. He served a pupillage but did not practice afterwards, preferring instead to become a professional photographer, in which capacity he visited Bolivia in 1985 with Operation Raleigh.
His obsession with travelling the rim of the Arctic Ocean has been patiently indulged by his wife and family, and seems now to have been taken up by one of his eight grandchildren.
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