The first comprehensive biography of Louise Arner Boyd -- the intrepid American socialite who reinvented herself as the leading female polar explorer of the twentieth century.

Born in the late 1880s to a gritty mining magnate who made his millions in the California gold rush and a well-bred mother descended from one of New York's distinguished families, society beauty Louise Arner Boyd was raised during a glittering era. She was presented at the British royal court, and travelled in genteel style from one dazzling capital to another.

After inheriting a staggering...