Publisher's Synopsis
Snow remains something of an enigma. As an aspect of nature, the crystalline structure of snow has fascinated a variety of men from the ancient Chinese to the medieval Albert the Great. The story also covers Kepler, Faraday and modern scientists with sophisticated equipment. The mechanism of sliding on snow is still not fully understood. Nordic skiers and more importantly the manufacturers of ski waxes would like this problem solved. Nobody fully understands avalanches and it is impossible to make reliable predictions. Roland Huntford is exceptionally well qualified to tell this story: his deep knowledge of the subject runs from Norse myths and archaeology to the modern history of skiing, its place in warfare and the place of snow in the defeat of Napoleon, Hitler and most intriguingly in the story of how a small nation, Finland, defeated the Russians in a world war. A Cultural History of Snowis an entirely original take on a fascinating and perplexing subject.
