MacLean was born on 28 April 1922 in Shettleston, Glasgow. His family spoke Gaelic, and MacLean did not learn English until he was seven. Maclean's father and oldest brother both died while MacLean was still at school, shortly before the outbreak of the Second World War. In 1941 the 18-year-old MacLean joined the Royal Navy, where he served on the Arctic convoys. Night Without End was first published in 1959. The hero of Night Without End is Dr Peter Mason. He’s both a medical doctor and a geologist and he’s part of a scientific team based in Greenland, right in the middle of the ice sheet and many hundreds of miles from any habitation. With him are Jackstraw, a half-Danish half-Eskimo scientist, and radio operator Joss London. The other members of the scientific team are currently engaged on a field trip hundreds of miles away. Conditions at the base camp are rather primitive but the three men are accustomed to the Arctic. Being about as far away from civilisation as you can get while still remaining on planet Earth the three are naturally somewhat surprised to hear an aircraft approaching. The only aircraft likely to be anywhere in the vicinity would be US bombers from the Strategic Air Command on exercises or meteorological aircraft from the air base at Thule in the northwest corner of the island. But such aircraft would not be flying at low altitude and this aircraft is flying at very low altitude indeed. So low that it can only be in trouble… Enjoy free online English audiobook “Night Without End”, a novel by Alistair MacLean.
