A fascinating and utterly compelling memoir, sharing an impactful adventure in each step along the way.

A fantastical adventure that follows the author along the annual winged migration of the monarch butterfly. A dreamy delight for cyclists and nature lovers alike!

A big thank-you to NetGalley, the author, and publisher for giving me a copy of this book for an unbiased review.

1/5 - Not for me.

I really wanted to like this book more, but throughout my reading journey there were several elements that distracted me from the story and put me off.

- The book reads less like a memoir of a cycling journey and more like a list of the places and the people Dykman stayed with. Some of these were interesting, as she highlighted what different people could do to make their homes more hospitable for butterflies. But overall it was repetitive and unnecessary - I really felt like most of the book was just a summary of where she camped or crashed for the night, which did nothing to move the plot forward for me.

- Aside from Dykman following butterflies, nothing really happens. That might be an unkind thing to say, because following butterflies should be enough by itself. But I really usually enjoy traveling memoirs, because they often have some sort of revelation that the author makes about themselves or about the world around them. Dykman starts her journey with a set of convictions and those convictions stay the same, even as the miles progress. Consequently, there isn't much of a story to justify a full-length book.

- This brings me to my next point - this book would have been much better as an expose or an article, preferably accompanied by photos. There is a lot of good information in this book about butterflies and what we can do as a global community to protect them. But the information is sliced up by information that, to me, was neither interesting nor relevant.

- Finally, I agree with several reviewers that the tone of the book is quite preachy. It's one thing to share an ideology with readers or to try to convince them of a message. It's another to say that you just don't respect private property rights and feel entitled to trespass on land because of your own ideology. The tone comes across as quite indignant at times, which I personally did not enjoy.

Dykman's mission is an important one and I do think that her story should be shared. However, I do not think that a full-length book is the best format for this story, because there is no larger narrative that pushes it along. I would not recommend this book, although I do hope that Dykman publishes more in the way of articles - for example, I think this would have been fantastic as a National Geographic story written about Dykman's journey by a journalist. I do wish I had resonated with this book; unfortunately the way in which it was written was not for me.

Sara Dykman, environmental scientist and outdoor educator, followed the monarch butterfly migration loop for over 10,000 miles on her bicycle in this fascinating and beautifully written book. Starting in Mexico, the over-wintering site of monarchs, Sara follows these brilliantly orange-colored butterflies as they migrate north into Texas, up the middle of the United States, and across Canada for the summer, then repeats her incredible journey back to Mexico. Throughout the book, Sara educates us on the sad decrease and possible extinction of monarchs and other insects, amphibians and animals with our insatiable conversion of natural habitat to housing, commercial developments, and other human uses. I held my breath as she rode across Mexico, into the United States and Canada as she often camped wherever she could find a safe spot to spend the night: "That night my neighbors were trees and I fell asleep on the welcome mat of their fallen needles" Sara describes her final vision at the end of her ride back to her Mexico destination: "A kaleidoscope of monarchs saturated the hushed forests in mute color. My gaze climbed the trees, which were bent with the weight of my traveling companions. There were millions of them." Her pure joy in floating among migrating monarchs while biking, her education of school-aged children on her journey, and the wonderful giving people she meets, makes this a fascinating and essential read for everyone.

“Humans keep taking, and wildlife keeps trying to make do.”

“With understanding comes appreciation. Appreciation motivates action.”

“I tried to give space to that which I couldn’t yet imagine, to encourage just enough discomfort for an adventure to unfold.”

“Millions of monarch butterflies… Millions- clinging to the trees like shelved books waiting to be read; their stories of adventure painted on their wings.”


Wow- this book is pure magic. This book follows the beautiful multigenerational journey of the monarchs as they migrate from Mexico to Canada and back again. The author, Sara Dykman, follows the migration path of the monarch butterfly on her bicycle, documenting her 10,201 mile journey. It truly is magical to hear about the migration of these tiny creatures. She talks about the people she meets along the way and their impact on the monarch migration. While a decent portion of the book is about the very real troubles that the monarchs face, such as habitat loss, pesticide use, and other human impacts, she balances that with hope for the future. You meet teachers, farmers, and people that are benefiting the monarchs by planting milkweed, providing habitats, or educating others about the beauty around them. This book was filled with hope, adventure, and a sense of wonder about the world of butterflies and their uncertain future. It was really fun to read a book written by someone who so clearly finds joy in nature and living creatures. That joy is infectious and makes you want to go out and explore; to spend time with the tiny living things all around you- often overlooked and underappreciated. I hope that everyone who reads this is inspired to make small changes that have huge impacts.

Thanks to Netgalley and Timber Press for ARC of this!

This was both interesting and depressing to hear about how these beautiful creatures and their impressive migration are at risk from the behavior of humans. The author notes that her privilege keeps her safe and able to complete her journey at a few points, but I was struck by it so many times. I don’t know if it’s an idea that our society has forced into me, but the times that she chooses to camp in private property had me feeling icky. Overall this was an impressive feat and an interesting story.

Sara Dykman writes about her great adventures, riding her bicycle, chasing butterflies, and sharing her insights into the wonderful world of the Monarch butterfly. Bicycling with Butterflies is one of my favorite books that I have read in the past year. Genuine, inspiring, and enlightening. Her effort and consistent drive help us understand an important figure in the air and in plant life. She researched all of her places to visit while communicating with other experts. Her presentations of butterfly stories to kids and teachers make her journeys more worthwhile.

A simple expectation derived out of genuine interest to protect a threatened species compels her to write with vigor as much as she pedals across two countries. Balancing writing and pedaling can be exhausting. With regards to bush camping or camo-camping, congrats to Sara for her free will to exercise a natural right to rest in nature. Most people will never achieve this type of greatness and in the name of an insect, I fully respect and admire her determination and reason to ride and write. Ride and write on Sara!

Thank you to Sara and Timber Press for the copy to review.

A must read for any cyclists and environmentalists. This story of Sara's incredible journey following the monarch migration is beautifully written and narrative enjoyable to read. Sara did an incredible job of being informative while entertaining, allowing us along the ride to meet the kind people putting in the work, and clarifying the delicate balance of our ecosystem.
Looking forward to seeing this on the shelves and recommending to others. Thank you so much for your book sara!

Bicycling with Butterflies: My 10,201-Mile Journey Following the Monarch Migration is one of the most amazing and heart felt books I have read in a long time. I followed sara's journey journey on Google maps as I read along. I enjoyed all her adventures and the wonderful people she met along the way. It is so inspiring to hear about the good people who are focussed on conservation and who are willing to spend their time saving the Monarch butterflies and the planet in general. It has also been a wonderful education for me to learn the details of these amazing creatures and their long migration. It has also highlighted the delicate balance of everything, and how the little things we do (often ignorantly) can affect the gentle balance of the planet.. I loved the writing style and the balance and structure of the book. A wonderful book, an amazing journey, and an outstanding lady who had the inspiration and the shear grit to do it. This book and the wonderful monarch butterflies will stay in my heart for a long long time even though I am on the other side of the world. I hope the world will embrace and read this book and take the spirit of it into other adventures and creative ideas for conservation and making a difference to our beautiful planet. xx