• Age: 8 to 14
• Grade: 3 to 8
• Reading age: 8 to 14

On July 2, 1857, 14-year-old Peter Griffin and twenty-five other men climbed aboard the refitted yacht, FOX, and set sail for the frozen lands of the Arctic sea. Their mission? To find out, once and for all, what had really happened to Sir John Franklin and his crew of 128 men.
Twelve years earlier, Sir John had sailed from England to complete the search for the Northwest passage through the Arctic Ocean to the Pacific. Mysteriously, Franklin and his whole expedition had disappeared without a trace.
And now Peter Griffin was going to the Arctic to help solve this mystery.
In his journal, Peter makes his Arctic adventures come to life - the long, dark days cooped up on board the ship, the dangers ever present in the forbidding, icy landscape, the sadness he and his companions experience as they come closer to realising the ultimate end of Franklin and his men.
In Mystery in the Frozen Lands Martyn Godfrey has written an original and intriguing story. Drawing on historical writings, Godfrey tells a tale that is gripping, moving, and absolutely real.

MARTYN GODFREY was one of Canada's most popular writers of fiction for young people. He wrote over forty books, including Plan B Is Total Panic and Mystery in the Frozen Lands, both published by Lorimer. He died in 2000.

Martyn Godfrey's profile page

"Mystery in the Frozen Lands is just too good a novel to leave in the classroom library. Within the theme of Arctic exploration lie rich undercurrents dealing with social justice, hierarchical social systems, aboriginal values, women's issues, gender equality, history of medicine and nutrition. Used in a small group novel study or whole class discussion, these themes can be isolated, dissected, then explored in greater detail. [A must-have for any teacher looking for a book that could inspire students to further research into the great age of exploration."

<em>Canadian Teacher Magazine</em>