Six travel books for women

1. Sisters of the Jungle: The Trailblazing Women Who Shaped the Study of Wild Primates

By Kerriann McGoogan

Kerriann McGoogan’s tribute to the luminaries of primatology is an all-encompassing, absorbing memoir, Sisters of the Jungle. Naturally, the legendary Dr. Jane, Dian Fossey and Birutė Galdikas find their prominent place in her book, but readers are also introduced to the unflinching women who trailed baboons, langurs and lemurs too. McGoogan introduces us to the likes of Linda Fedigan, Allison Jolly, Jeanne Altmann and Sarah Hrdy, women who pursued their niche interests while raising their own wild troops of children.

Though each primatologist had a contrasting approach to research, a unified commitment to community conservation and education will be their greatest legacy. Throughout, McGoogan shares slices from her own field experience in Belize and Madagascar, demonstrating a bone-deep knowledge of the perseverance and sacrifice required.

I loved every lemur-filled inch of Kerriann’s Madagascar memoir, Chasing Lemurs, so I was first in line for this one.

2. The Tenth Island: Finding Joy, Beauty, and Unexpected Love in the Azores

By Diana Marcum

I took a hurried chance on The Tenth Island as our local library was closing. The cover bragged that Diana Marcum was a Pulitzer prize-winner and that official pat on the back has to be trusted!

Disenchanted by her stagnant career, Diana takes reporting to a new level when she hears about a pocket of Portuguese immigrants working on dairy farms in rural California. Ready to immigrate anywhere outside her own rattled mind, Diana follows this unique group on their annual return to their beloved Azorean Islands in her own search for home and belonging. Diana’s affable lab, Murphy, steals the show midway. He eats the show, actually. The chronicles of Murphy’s appetite for whole onions, silk napkins and entire cakes (safely placed ON TOP of the fridge) are hilarious. The scene where Murphy eats the entire neighbourhood’s morning bread delivery is a riot. For anyone who has owned and loved a dog, Murphy will remain at your heels long after the last page.

This memoir is deeply steeped in the longing that plagues displaced Portuguese. Saudade is a term used to describe the intangible, nostalgic and melancholic longing for a place or feeling or someone who is missing. I already miss Murphy. And Portugal.

3. Grandma Gatewood’s Walk: The Inspiring Story of the Woman Who Saved the Appalachian Trail

By Ben Montgomery

I love any book about a very, very long walk. This motivational biography, Grandma Gatewood’s Walk, retraces Grandma’s many steps (and several missteps) along the Appalachian Trail (AT). She famously walked 2,050 miles from Georgia to Maine on a steady diet of tinned Vienna sausages and bouillon cubes (she sucked on them during the day to up her sodium levels). Grandma fearlessly took on the Appalachian at age 67 with a 14-pound handmade denim bag slung over her shoulder. While wearing Keds!

Grandma was flexible too—she slept in someone’s car for a night, on a porch swing, on top of picnic tables, and in the end, she had just one lens in her eyeglasses. This mighty woman combed her hair with a fork she found in campfire ashes and resourcefully used a shower curtain as a rain cover. Grandma humbly walked the AT three times (two thru-hikes and once in sections) and then walked another 2,000 miles from Missouri to Portland. This book is a good kick in the pants for anyone in need of one!

4. Bicycling with Butterflies: My 10,201-Mile Journey Following the Monarch Migration

By Sarah Dykman

In a statement against consumerism (and theft), Sara Dykman decided to follow the migration route of the Monarch butterfly from Mexico northeast to Ontario on a 1989 Specialized Hardrock bike tricked out with cat litter container panniers and 70 pounds of gear.

As she follows the migratory Central Flyway and Eastern Flyway (that is shared by birds as well) it’s a passionate from-the-trenches report on the effects of GMO crops, Roundup and the collateral damage suffered by milkweeds and Monarchs. In between the miles, there’s introspection and exhausted dinners of sunflower seeds and salad dressing on bread. Her writing remains uplifting, empowering and informative throughout.

Sarah is the first person to follow the entire migratory route—a daunting, windblown commitment of 255 days on the road (with a few sleepovers in culverts). Her patience, curiosity, dedication and ability to share her sometimes topsy-turvy journey in a humorous way generates the true butterfly effect. The Monarchs couldn’t have asked for a better wingwoman!

5. My Vietnamese Kitchen: Authentic Food to Awaken the Senses and Feed the Soul

By Uyen Lee

Before travelling to Vietnam last winter, my knowledge of the country and culture ended at a spring roll. Growing up in southwestern Ontario, my first true bite of exotica was found at Quan 99, a tiny Vietnamese restaurant that opened a few blocks from my high school. I’d shirk off a dull history class in favour of crispy spring rolls that shattered with each bite. Eventually, I made my way through the entire unfamiliar menu of glazed duck wings and wok snow peas with tangles of vermicelli. I tried the thick durian and soursop shakes and fell for the flavours of Vietnam early on, even before I could place it on a map.

Uyen Lee’s cookbook memoir doubles as a silent lesson in Vietnamese food philosophies (the yin and yang concept), street food secrets and memories of her grandmother’s Bún Bò Huế noodle soup. Before visiting Hanoi, I really appreciated the pictograms distinguishing the dozen types of noodles and herbs that are integral to Vietnamese recipes! Admittedly, I will probably never make any of the recipes but I look at Uyen’s book time and time again because it’s so thoughtfully photographed.

6. The East Coast Trail – An Illustrated Field Journal

By Nicola Ross

Even if you have zero intention of walking any bit of the Newfoundland’s East Coast Trail, this whimsical field journal is a lovely slice of observations, flora and fauna, soakers, history tidbits, puffins and piping hot tea. Nicola’s newest graphic journal triggers all the senses with lighthouse lore, cloudberry gin, bird intel and maps to plot your own rejuvenating inn-to-inn adventure.

Nicola is known for her wildly popular Loops & Lattes hiking guide series, which continues to serve as a biblical resource for anyone eager to explore Ontario’s trails. She’s done the dirty work and offers hacks, hot tips, terrain insights and concrete wayfaring info for more than 200 loop hikes.

Just add a milky latte with a swirly heart in the microfoam. And maybe some cod cheeks.