Usred leda
"In the Middle of the Ice" (1965) is a travelogue by Estonian writer Juhan Smul from the ship "Kooperacija" of the Soviet Antarctic expedition in 1962, from Estonia across the Atlantic and Indian Oceans to the Antarctic station Mirni.
In the form of letters to his wife, because as an atheist he could not confide in God, Smul records everyday impressions: stormy waves, encounters with whales and penguins, the life of sailors and scientists, and romantic moments in the middle of endless ice.
The prose exudes poetry – simple, ironic and humorous, without acting. Smul, a great poet of the sea and love, captures the breath of the expedition: the small joys of the crew, the fears of storms, the charms of the starry sky and the silence of the ice. It is not just a geographical journey; it is an introspective pilgrimage to oneself and others, where the writer builds a bridge to readers at a time when writers are of little interest to them. Estonia, a small country, gave birth to this great storyteller, whose lyricism makes it usually miraculous.
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