connects clarity of mind, communion with land, and rejection of gender roles to this specific corporeal movement-one which many have turned to in the past year.Ī writer follows in the footsteps-literally-of eight hiking women of This lush narrative serves as the perfect excuse to get moving. Reading about the unfettered freedom to roam enjoyedīy these trailblazing women induced considerable vicarious pleasure-andīeautiful and meditative. Abbs’s brief biographies are unfailingly interesting and even Windswept crosses continents and centuries in a provocative and poignant account of the power of walking in nature.

Abbs explores a forgotten legacy of moving on foot and discovers how it has helped women throughout history to find their voices, to reimagine their lives, and to break free from convention.Īs Abbs traces the paths of exceptional women, she realizes that she, too, is walking away from her past and into a radically different future. Part historical inquiry and part memoir, the stories of these writers and artists are laced together by moments in Abb’s own life, beginning with her poet father who raised her in the Welsh countryside as an “experiment,” according to the principles of Rousseau. In captivating and elegant prose, Abbs follows in the footsteps of women who boldly reclaimed wild landscapes for themselves, including Georgia O’Keeffe in the empty plains of Texas and New Mexico, Nan Shepherd in the mountains of Scotland, Gwen John following the French River Garonne, Daphne du Maurier along the River Rhône, and Simone de Beauvoir-who walked as much as twenty-five miles a day in a dress and espadrilles-through the mountains and forests of France. “A gorgeous and revelatory blend of memoir, travelogue, and long-forgotten history.”-Abbott KahlerĪnnabel Abbs’s Windswept: Walking the Paths of Trailblazing Women is a beautifully written meditation on connecting with the outdoors through the simple act of walking. A Smithsonian Top Ten Best Book About Travel of 2021Ģ022 Banff Mountain Book Competition FinalistĪn Apple Books Pick of the Month and a Powell’s and The Story Exchange Best Book of Fall

Windswept annabel abbs