AustLit

'Antarctica is windy and achingly cold, incredibly isolated and inhospitable - yet its overwhelming stark white beauty speaks to our imagination.

'Bright and passionate, Diana Patterson was searching for her path in life when she was bitten by the Antarctic bug in her late twenties. She nursed her secret ambition and with dogged determination set her sights on becoming station leader at the Australian base Mawson - a lofty aspiration, considering this was most definitely a bloke's world. Being knocked back four times didn't deter her - she never gave up her dream, and at the age of 38 became the first woman in charge of this small, mostly male community of glaciologists, physicists, biologists and tradies, in each other's pockets 24/7, thousands of miles from the comforts of home.

'The Ice beneath My Feet is an intimate and riveting account of Diana's year at Mawson. The day-to-day reality of life in this frozen environment and the adventures of the delightful, vital characters we meet along the way (men, huskies, penguins!) are utterly captivating, and a must-read for anyone who harbours their own Antarctic dream. (From the publisher's website.)