The black penguin

the long version

A devout young boy in rural Ohio, Andrew Evans had his life mapped for him: baptism, mission, Brigham Young University, temple marriage, and children of his own. But as an awkward gay kid, bullied and bored, he escaped into the glossy pages of National Geographic and the wide promise of the world atlas. Eventually ejected from church and shunned by his family, Evans embarked on an ambitious overland journey halfway across the world. Riding public transportation, he crossed swamps, deserts, mountains, and jungles, slowly approaching his lifelong dream and ultimate goal: Antarctica. With each new mile came laughter, pain, unexpected friendship, true weirdness, unsettling realities, and some hair-raising moments that eventually led to a singular discovery on a remote beach at the bottom of the world.