These quests are peopled with remarkable figures full of passion and eccentricity. He also credits the Inuit, whose tracking and hunting skills saved the lives of the adventurers and their men countless times. Pierre Berton's #1 best-selling book brings to life the great explorers: the pious and ambitious Edward Parry, the flawed hero John Franklin, ruthless Robert Peary and the cool Norwegian Roald Amundsen. From the Hardcover edition.Scores of nineteenth-century expeditions battled savage cold, relentless ice and winter darkness in pursuit of two great prizes: the quest for the elusive Passage linking the Atlantic and the Pacific and the international race to reach the North Pole. He received two Nellies for his work in broadcasting, two National Newspaper awards, and the National History Society’s first award for “distinguished achievement in popularizing Canadian history.” For his immense contribution to Canadian literature and history, he was awarded more than a dozen honourary degrees, is a member of the Newsman’s Hall of Fame, and is a Companion of the Order of Canada.Pierre Berton passed away in Toronto on November 30, 2004. He was a columnist and editor for the Toronto Star and was a writer and host of a series of CBC programs.Pierre Berton received over 30 literary awards including the Governor-General’s Award for Creative Non-Fiction (three times), the Stephen Leacock Medal of Humour, and the Gabrielle Leger National Heritage Award. He wrote columns for and was editor of Maclean’s magazine, appeared on CBC’s public affairs program “Close-Up” and was a permanent fixture on “Front Page Challenge” for 39 years.

He spent his early newspaper career in Vancouver, where at 21 he was the youngest city editor on any Canadian daily. He spent four years in the army, rising from private to captain/instructor at the Royal Military College in Kingston. Born in 1920 and raised in the Yukon, Pierre Berton worked in Klondike mining camps during his university years. From narrative histories and popular culture, to picture and coffee table books to anthologies, to stories for children to readable, historical works for youth, many of his fifty books are now Canadian classics. Pierre Berton was one of Canada’s most popular and prolific authors.

The arctic grail pierre berton