Matthew Henson

Children's Literature

Shortly before noon on April 6, 1909, two men stepped off of their dog sleds and looked around. What they saw was a seemingly endless arctic wasteland. These two men, an Inuit Eskimo named Ootah and an African American, Matthew Henson, were to be the first human beings to record their presence at the geographic North Pole. Forty-five minutes later the commander of the expedition, Robert Peary, came upon the scene along with three other Inuit comrades—Ooqueah, Egingwah and Seegloo. In the end, it was only Peary who was to receive the international acclamation for "discovering" the North Pole. The contributions of his Inuit supporters and his expedition coordinator, Matthew Henson, were relegated to a dusty nook of memory. In an age when racial prejudice manifested itself in so many overt ways, it was unthinkable to believe that people of a race other than Caucasian could accomplish so treasured a goal as finding the North Pole. Thus, it is altogether fitting that the author of this adventuresome biography presents the amazing accomplishments of the brave Matthew Henson. In this exciting book, readers will be exposed to not only the awesome sacrifices made by Henson, Peary and the men who accompanied them across the ice, but also to the life story of a man who battled long odds and succeeded. The story of Matthew Henson, co-discoverer of the North Pole, is one that bears telling. 2001, Enslow, $18.95. Ages 10 up. Reviewer: Greg M. Romaneck