Publication
HarperCollins UK (1994), Edition: New Ed, Paperback, 240 pages
Status
Available
Description
What drew Annie Taylor and Alexandra David-Neal to Tibet, when it was still cut off from the world and so hostile to foreigners, and particularly female ones, that they had to wear male Tibetan dress for protection? What did Hester Stanhope and Gertrude Bell, two such different women, find so compelling about the desert life of the East? What possessed Mary, Duchess of Bedford, to take up flying at the age of 60 - or Naomi James to sail around the world, or Arlene Blum to climb Annapurna? These, and other, accounts of women travellers experiences around the world are included in this book.
User reviews
LibraryThing member frederick0t6
This book reviews some of the varied accomplishments of women travellers, mainly focusing on Anglo-American women in the 19th and 20th centuries. All kinds of travel are covered here including sail, air, overland and so on. Perhaps more interesting is the varied reasons that women go traveling;
While this was an interesting, brief read, I think that there are more recent forays into this subject which, due to their narrower focus, offer a more coherent story to the reader. That said, as a keen traveler (real and armchair), many of the stories here were amusing and inspiring. The introductory and concluding chapters offer some interesting observations on the why of travel as well.
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some wanting to set records (mountain climbing and flying, for example), others accompanying family and others simply consumed with wanderlust.While this was an interesting, brief read, I think that there are more recent forays into this subject which, due to their narrower focus, offer a more coherent story to the reader. That said, as a keen traveler (real and armchair), many of the stories here were amusing and inspiring. The introductory and concluding chapters offer some interesting observations on the why of travel as well.
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LibraryThing member antisyzygy
Ultimately, I found this a rather disappointing book. There are two almost separate elements to it: the first half consists of stories of women travellers from the 18th Century to the present day,while the second half takes a more analytical approach to topics such as danger etc. The stories of the
The second half, which is more analytical is, I feel more of a piece, but the tone is still rather uneven, and you haven't been given enough detail about any of the women to actually see these facets of their life.
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women are short, barely longer than an entry in a biographical dictionary, and the chapters tied together by those who travelled over the same type of terrain. It makes a very choppy narrative, with little to link the women together. I feel the author tries to cover too much, and doesn't do any of them justice.The second half, which is more analytical is, I feel more of a piece, but the tone is still rather uneven, and you haven't been given enough detail about any of the women to actually see these facets of their life.
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LibraryThing member bookwoman247
This is a book about adventurous women. About women from the Fourth Century to modern times who have broken barriers and opened new vistas by traveling farther, climbing higher mountains, sailing farther, or flying farther, higher, or faster than any women before them.
I enjoy books of this nature,
I enjoy books of this nature,
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and this was no exception. It wasn't a real stand-out, but it was a good, solid read. Show Less
Language
ISBN
0006547486 / 9780006547488
Original publication date
1986