The Art of Breaking Ice

Written by Rachael Mead

Narrated by Jessica Douglas-Henry

In 1960, when the legendary icebreaker Magga Dan set sail for Antarctica, it contained a secret. Hiding on board was Nel Law, wife of expedition leader Phillip Law. She would make history by becoming the first Australian woman to set foot on the icy continent, but it was her art that would change everything.
Though a talented artist, Nel has always been defined by her role as ‘the explorer’s wife’, but in the clear expanse of the Southern Ocean, her true self is finally allowed to emerge. Despite misogyny from the all-male crew and increasing resentment from her mercurial husband, Nel’s art begins to flourish. Her new friend, a gentle ornithologist, encourages her to explore, but as the ship ploughs on towards Antarctica, rumours swirl, threatening her marriage and the tenuous peace between the controlling Phillip and his crew. In the clear, white light of the south, Nel will be forced to confront the truth of herself and the man to whom she has dedicated her life.
This stunning reimagining of Nel Law’s life reveals a ground-breaking artist searching for freedom in a world where women’s lives were still defined by their husbands.

• Language: English
• Publisher: W. F. Howes Ltd
• Release date: Jul 21, 2023
• ISBN: 9781004137978

Rachael Mead

Rachael Mead is a poet, writer, and arts reviewer living in South Australia. She has an Honours degree in Classical Archaeology, a Masters in Environmental Studies, and a PhD in Creative Writing. She is the author of four collections of poetry: The Flaw in the Pattern (UWA Publishing 2018), The Sixth Creek (Picaro Press 2013) and the chapbooks Sliding Down the Belly of the World (Wakefield Press 2012) and The Quiet Blue World (Garron Publishing 2015). Rachael has published widely with her work appearing in Best Australian Poems, Meanjin, Westerly, Cordite, Island, Southerly and many other publications. In 2019 she was awarded a residency in northern Italy, as part of an AP/NAHR Eco-Poetry Fellowship.