The Quickening: Creation and Community at the Ends of the Earth

"Books about Antarctica are always about dudes. Brave dudes who went to a cold, scary place and performed feats of strength and endurance in the name of being first or, sometimes, a monarch. This book is the antidote to those. It takes place on a somewhat-claustrophobic research ship bound for Antarctica. Elizabeth Rush mixes science reporting with memoir as she ruminates on her choice to have a child, how it feels to confront climate change and how laborious it is to study Antarctica."