The journey of the author, and the monarchs is an amazing one. Allowing the readers to "ride" along made the phenomenon of the monarch migrations completely unforgettable.

Thank you Netgalley for a free ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

3.5 stars.

Dykman's story is very inspiring, and while reading this book I found myself researching which species of Milkweed was native to my area and how I can plant some in my garden. I also want to plan a trip to the Monarch reserves in Mexico as soon as I am able. Her descriptions about the monarchs and their cyclical life are magical and captivating. The point of this book was to spread awareness about Monarchs and to make people care more about their plight, and it definitely achieves that goal.
You can truly feel the passion Dykman has for these butterflies, which is the most inspiring part of this book, although the fact that she biked 10,000 miles was also incredibly inspiring and made me feel that if someone can do that, I can also achieve my goals.
The writing style left something to be desired, which is most of why I rated this a 3.5. There were some very dense passages where facts and figures were told in a way that felt more like a textbook rather than a book you read for pleasure. There were also some parts that felt like they could have benefitted from more editing, for example, in one passage the word "complacent" was used where "complicit" seemed more fitting. But these are a bit picky and didn't detract too much from my overall enjoyment of this book.

My family and I tend and grow a native garden, and every year we carefully tend to the monarchs as well. We find the eggs and youngest caterpillars and raise them until we can release a new and perfect butterfly back into the world. This was a beautiful and captivating story of an adventure that we would love! Every year we watch the monarchs lift up and leave, and wonder if keeping them safe into adulthood made a difference. On top of the travel itself, Sara Dykman makes the journey on her bicycle across thousands of miles. I do feel like the writing was at times a little difficult, but the story and imagery made up for that, in my opinion. Additionally, the connection to immigrants and refugees feels timely and impactful. Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC.

I read this to review for Net Galley.

This is a true story about a woman named Sara who was the first person to ride her bike more than 10,000 miles solo. She is a scientist who is very passionate about the monarch's. In this story we follow her journey of her riding her bicycle alongside the monarchs.

Sara is a very remarkable women to ride as far as she did by herself. We never knew where she would end up sleeping at the end of the day. It could be in the woods or in a strangers home. During her ride she even did presentations of her journey. Whether it was speaking at a school or simply to a group of kids she would come across.

I chose this because I like to ride bikes and was interested to hear Sara's story. The reason I gave this a 3 is because I would have liked to have heard more about Sara's story riding her bike and more background on why she chose the route she did. I enjoyed learning about the monarch's but sometimes it felt like maybe a bit too much. I would find myself speed reading until I came across her talking about her ride. So I felt I missed some things in the story because of that. I still highly recommend if you like a good non fiction read.

Wow, this was such an interesting read!

Sara is an amazing woman who plans this trip to bicycle the path of the monarch butterfly's migration. In this book, she weaves together her travel experiences, and information about the monarchs. The way she describes the monarchs is magical and her appreciation for nature shines through on every page. I'm now determined to visit Mexico and see them for myself.

Sara also weaves in important topics like refugee rights and climate change. These parts are emotional to read but weaved in perfectly and so appreciated.

I admire Sara Dykman’s journey and admiration for monarchs. I think her journey was incredible and awe-inspiring - and quite the commitment.

Dykman has a skill for storytelling which made this an interesting read. There were times when I felt the plot was too heavily dependent on the storytelling and not so much the actual story.

Overall, I think the book was beautiful and inspiring but I didn’t love it.

I liked this book. I really admired the authors commitment to monarch butterflies and her intent on following the migrations. I thought the science was solid yet not overdone.. There are little scientific tidbits scattered throughout the book. It is a fairly fast read.
I would have liked more detail about the people she met along the way although I realize that was not the intent of the book.
The author mentions that the monarchs had not yet been granted endangered species status. But late December 2020 the Fish and Wildlife Service did determine monarchs are warranted protection under the Endangered Species Act. This puts them one step closer to achieving protection as a threatened species but that will not come until 2024. Hopefully that timetable will be speeded up with the new Biden Administration

One of my favorite books of the year! Dykman does an excellent job of telling the unique account of her daring trip following the monarch butterfly migration through North America on bike.

Part travelogue, part adventure, it is 100% a love letter to nature. She somehow manages to convey the heartbreak and the hope that comes with being an advocate for wildlife in our precarious world.

Her passion, intelligence and dedication leap off the page. Her writing was so straightforward yet also very poetic. I felt like I had accompanying her on the trip. her words painted vivid pictures in my mind of blue skies, orange wings, multi-colored milkweed blooms.

I especially appreciated that she she succeeded in the amazing feat of riding a bike from Mexico, to the U.S., to Canada, and then all the way back to Mexico again. As an everyday bike rider, I am beyond impressed and it was great to hear her talk about the best and worst parts of biking. I very much related to her musings on cycling.

Also- I enjoyed how she touched on what it was like to ride solo as a woman, and how she was discouraged by many people from doing so because it was 'dangerous' yet most of the people and situations that she encountered were friendly. She didn't let fear-mongering get in her way. She was smart about risks and made good choices along the way.

Lastly but definitely not least important, I'm SO glad Dykman linked the plight of the migrating monarchs to the pro-immigrant & refugee rights movements. It was a vitally important issue to connect, so much so that I don't think I would have enjoyed the book as much if she hadn't included it.

I would highly recommend this book to readers interested in the environment, bikes, adventure, popular science, non-fiction, travel and memoirs authored by women.

If the author had put half as much effort into the art and craft of writing as she did her physical adventure, this would have been a fun book. Couldn't get beyond pg 67. Mixed metaphors and poor word choice abounds,