In this searching meditation, Brown University writing teacher Rush (Rising) reflects on accompanying a 2019 research expedition to Thwaites, "Antarctica's most important and least understood glacier," as part of the National Science Foundation's Antarctic writers program. She describes how the scientists and crew onboard the research vessel cope with heavy storms while analyzing samples of seafloor sediment and measurements taken by underwater gliders to understand how rising water temperatures are hastening the melting of "the widest glacier in the world." Amid the alarming science, Rush ruminates on the "ethics of bringing more people into the world," discussing her own desire to conceive in spite of anxieties about the planet's future. Rush also includes extensive interviews with her shipmates in which they expound on the vicissitudes of conducting research at the bottom of the world ("Persistent uncertainty is something you get used to," says one marine geophysicist) and how they decided to have or not have children. Rush's reporting is top-notch, and her personal reflections make this an unusually intimate account of climate change. Readers will find plenty to ponder. Agent: Julia Lord, Julia Lord Literary Management. (Aug.)

In 2019 Pulitzer Prize--winner Rush was invited as part of the National Science Foundation Antarctic Artists and Writers program to accompany a group of 57 scientists and crew on board an icebreaker for a 60-day voyage to study the Thwaites Glacier. Dubbed the "Doomsday Glacier" by Rolling Stone, Thwaites has the potential to catastrophically impact the world if it destabilizes. After a review of existing Antarctic literature left her underwhelmed due to its emphasis on heroic exploration, Rush embarked on a unique narrative choice that showcases passages written on a variety of subjects by others on the ship. Blending these personal stories with her observations of the journey and its scientific endeavors can be tricky and Rush goes even further by adding her concerns about her own postponing plans to start a family by going to sea. This theme is prevalent in the introduction which has a visceral description of her eventual childbirth, and contributors also discuss their own births throughout the text. Recommend to those interested in Antarctic experiences and who enjoy hybrid memoirs on unique topics.