The Ice Sonnets

The Ice Sonnets, by Christopher James, charts Sir Ernest Shackleton's Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition (1914-17) in poetry and sketches - one for each crew member on the two ships involved.

This was the most ambitious adventure of its kind yet conceived. The buccaneering Irish-born adventurer set his sights on becoming the first to cross the great white continent, from sea to sea.

Gathering his most trusted lieutenants from previous expeditions, Shackleton felt certain that this was his moment to make history. However, the crews were to be tested in ways they had not prepared for, and they experienced dangers and challenges at every turn.

The Ice Sonnets tells the story of not one, but two great escapes, and pays homage to the heroism and resilience of the crews, struggling to survive in life-threatening conditions.

We are scheduled to publish The Ice Sonnets on 1st December 2025 (Antarctica Day) and you can pre-order your copy here. Alternatively, if you’d like to pledge your support for the project on Kickstarter, the rewards on offer included signed copies of the book, the opportunity to own some of the pencil sketches Christopher has made of the crews of the Endurance and the Aurora, and even an online live reading from the poet himself, who will also answer your questions in a Q&A session. Please read on to the next section to find out more …

How can you get involved?

To increase the buzz around this stunning collection of artwork and poetry, Dithering Chaps have initiated a Kickstarter campaign, allowing you to pre-order this publication and pledge your support for the project.

We have a range of rewards to offer, including printing your name in the published chapbook, the opportunity to own some of Chris’s original artwork, and even the chance to have him read one of his sonnets and answer your questions about his poetry and sketches, with you and your friends, online.

To pledge your support, all you need to do is click on this link, and choose your pledge level from the options on the right-hand side of the screen. Alternatively, you can pre-order on our website here.

We have reached the financial target for the campaign, but now we need to gauge demand. Your pre-order will help us discover precisely how many copies to print.

Take a look at some of Chris’s artwork, which appears in the chapbook, below, and pledge now!

Christopher James, born in Paisley, Scotland, in 1975, has won first prize in the National Poetry Competition, The Bridport Prize, and the Oxford Brookes and George Crabbe poetry competitions. He has also received the Eric Gregory Award from the Society of Authors.

Having written three Sherlock Holmes novels, including 'The Adventure of the Ruby Elephants', Chris has also created a triptych of plays about Sir John Betjeman.

A graduate of the MA course in Creative Writing at the University of East Anglia, he has published five poetry collections, including 'Farewell to the Earth' (Arc, 2011), 'The Penguin Diaries' (Templar, 2017), and a pamphlet, 'The Storm in the Piano' (Maytree Press, 2022).

Poet, artist and Scout, Christopher James