Skating to Antartica by Jenny Diski

Jenny Diski craves complete whiteness and where, logically, could she go but Antarctica?? She books herself a cruise on a former scientific ship and meets (but mostly avoids) her fellow, largely American, passengers. She writes about the penguins (which stink!), Elephant seals, icebergs and her fellow ship-mates in an amusing and engaging way.

This is far from being a straightforward travelogue. The Antarctica trip is just part of the book, the rest is taken up with thoughts on her hysterical and unkind mother (whom she hasn't been in contact with since the 60s), her unstable childhood and and her life in general. She seems to be exorcising ghosts through her writing which does make compelling, though sometimes quite painful, reading.