Shackleton's Drift is a compelling parallel story, comparing the famed Antarctic explorer's epic travails on the ice with those of an author trying to write Shackleton's story. The narrator is struggling to make sense of the uncontrolled drift of his own life in the face of social disintegration and increased terrorism, but finds meaning and consolation in following Shackleton's story, imagining himself on the drifting ice with Shackleton and his men, battling against the elements to save themselves.