This second volume of Farley Mowat's TOP OF THE WORLD TRILOGY is even more readable that the first and deals almost exclusively with the efforts of people to get further and further north, culminating in attempts to reach the North Pole. What makes these accounts different from the others available is its reliance on presenting the stories in the words of the participants. Most of the reading is from the accounts of the explorers themselves. Mowat simply throws in an introduction, occasional comments for each narrative and an epilog for each venture. With this style of presentation, the story is of necessity selective. It does not purport to be a complete account of all polar ventures.