The literature about Antarctica from Spanish and South American authors has increased considerably in the last few years and there has been increased publication in Spanish of translations from authors of different languages. However, most of these books are on specific topics (such as science or history), accounts of personal experiences in Antarctica with some general information about the continent, or are large-format photography books.
This book adds to the existing available literature in Spanish an updated general and complete overview about Antarctica, the administrative system and the environmental issues. The six main sections of the book are dedicated to natural features, life, history, Antarctic Treaty system, human activities and environmental protection. The three last mentioned issues occupy approximately half of the book, and they could have been an even larger component because of their interest for Spanish readers and the author's expertise in these fields. This is not to say that the other half of the book is not also interesting but some of this ground has been covered well elsewhere.
The text is informative, well documented, and written with rigour. The author has achieved an excellent synthesis and organized a large quantity of information on different topics. The fact that the chapters have many subdivisions makes it easy to locate and read the text appropriate to any particular subject.
The book contains 41 colour photographs, 20 tables and 12 black and white figures. They are all useful and appropriate, but additional colour maps at a larger size would have been valuable, although I recognize the limitations caused by the size of the book.
The parts of the book dedicated to the Antarctic Treaty system and to environmental protection reflect the author's personal experience and up-to-date knowledge about these fields due to his work as head of the Programme of Environmental Management and Tourism in the Argentinean Dirección Nacional del Antártico, his participation in international fora and his position as coordinator of the Antarctic Environmental Officers Network (AEON). Apart from this the author has a degree in geology and has participated in numerous Antarctic expeditions since 1990.
The book has been published as a contribution to the education and outreach activities of the International Polar Year 2007–2008. I believe that it can play an interesting and important role, especially in South America, in providing readers with comprehensive, rigorous and topical information about Antarctica and the Antarctic Treaty System.
