Growing up on the outskirts of England's Lake District National Park, eight-year-old Lindsay McCrae was enthralled by nature and decided he wanted a career filming wildlife. A letter to a BBC nature program at age 14 resulted in him making a short film on badgers. From there his career took off, and he documented wolves in the Arctic and armadillos at the equator. McCrae's ultimate dream, to film emperor penguins in Antarctica, came true when the BBC Natural History Unit made that once-in-a-lifetime offer. The catch? He would need to prepare for a year, then be gone for 11 months.
Anyone who wonders what such an incredible and dangerous expedition entails will be enchanted by McCrae's chronicle of his time in the harshest climate on earth (reaching -60F degrees). My Penguin Year is a stunning and often gut-churning account of the lifecycle of thousands of emperor penguins from a "behind the lens" perspective. It also reveals the toll such a job takes on the participants--risk, confinement, isolation (from loved ones and medical treatment), and experiencing Mother Nature at her harshest.
McCrae carried a few added burdens: he married just before departing and his wife gave birth during his time away. His account of dedication and sacrifice, from both documentarian and penguin angles, is thoroughly compelling. The written version of McCrae's film (he won a BAFTA as director of photography for BBC's Dynasties) is an unforgettable, intimate story of survival. --Lauren O'Brien of Malcolm Avenue Review