IPI Press

Narwhal: Revealing an Arctic Legend
wins Mills Prize for Arctic literature

Polar Libraries Colloquy 

Media Release 

July 11, 2018 

Winner of the 2018 William Mills Prize for Non-Fiction Polar Books Announced 

Rovaniemi - The Polar Libraries Colloquy is pleased to announce the winner of the 2018 William Mills Prize for Non-Fiction Polar Books is Narwhal: Revealing an Arctic Legend edited by William W. Fitzhugh and Martin T. Nweeia (International Polar Institute). This comprehensive, multi-disciplinary book is the companion to a special exhibition at the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History that unites what is known and erroneous about the medium-sized toothed whales uniquely identifiable by their spiral tusks. 

The prize winner was announced at an awards ceremony on June 14, 2018, in Rovaniemi, Finland, at the Polar Library Colloquy's biennial conference. The Polar Libraries Colloquy is an international organization of librarians and others interested in the collection, preservation and dissemination of polar information. 

Two other nominations were awarded Honorary Mentions. 

The Arctic Guide: Wildlife of the Far North by Sharon Chester (Princeton University Press) is a beautifully illustrated field guide to more than 800 species of plants and animals found across the entire Holarctic region. 

Lessons from the Arctic – How Roald Amundsen Won the Race to the South Pole by Geir O. Kløver (The Fram Museum) offers a detailed analysis of the 1911-1912 South Pole Expeditions of Roald Amundsen and Robert Falcon Scott. 

The William Mills Book Prize is awarded every two years and honours the best Arctic or Antarctic non-fiction books published throughout the world. The prize was first presented in 2006. It is named in honour of William Mills, a polar librarian and author, and a core member of the Polar Libraries Colloquy during its formative years. 

Twenty-six nominations qualified for consideration this year, the most ever since the inception of the prize. A full list of all titles nominated for the 2018 William Mills Prize, including those titles that were shortlisted, is available on the Polar Libraries Colloquy website.