Where was this book when I was growing up? I traveled solo on many occasions, and still do, but I would have loved hiking some of these places! Well, I still enjoyed the read as an armchair hiker to these new trails! Kudos, Ms. Abbis! Really enjoyed the journeys!

This was a lovely read. Partly autobiography and partly biography of six women, some who are not known very well and a couple who are, all are artists. All went on journeys, mostly long hikes or walks, usually alone. Abbs goes to these places, tries to connect to these women of the past. She finds points where they match, such as fear of walking in the forest alone and overcoming that fear. The book is somewhat literary and could sustain another reading. Gorgeous writing in places.

The women discussed:
• Frieda Von Richthofen
• Gwen John (painter)
• Clara Vyvyan (with Daphne du Maurier)
• Nan Shepherd
• Simone de Beauvoir
• Georgia O’Keeffe

I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley and am voluntarily posting a review. All opinions are my own.
I read one of Annabel Abbs’ novels, and thus was intrigued to read more from her. Abbs shows in full force here what she can do with historical research into the lives of several historical women, while combining it with her own personal exploration of history.
I loved how she explored geographically how the sense of place played a role in the liberation and creativity of these women artists and writers, from Georgia O’Keefe to Daphne Du Maurier. While I was familiar with their works, at least in passing, I enjoyed peeling back the layers and seeing more personal stories of their creative processes and inner lives, especially with Abbs drawing comparisons to her own life.

What an enjoyable read! Annabel Abbs packs up her walking shoes and follows the trail of some fascinating women who walked. Each story follows a different woman in history through their writings on walking, interwoven with Abbs own adventures – sometimes with family, sometimes solo.

I think the lives of many of the women discussed in this book were interesting because some gave up their families in pursuit of adventure. Traveling roads that are now well worn and overly constructed, were once untouched or rarely explored territories. It gives you different perspective on life back then and the strength these women had to walk away, sometimes from everything they knew.

In the end, this is a great book that I will enjoy suggesting to my friends and coworkers to check it out! As an avid hiker, it makes my feet itch for adventure. It’s well written and I thoroughly enjoyed traveling with these women from the comfort of my couch… maybe one day I will walk in their shoes as well.

Thank you Netgalley and Tin House for this ARC. I look forward to this book to our library.

I am sorry for the inconvenience but I don’t have the time to read this anymore and have lost interest in the concept. I believe that it would benefit your book more if I did not skim your book and write a rushed review. Again, I am sorry for the inconvenience.

Author Annabel Abbs studies and retraces the paths of several trailblazing women throughout history in her book Windswept: On The Path of Trailblazing Women. Abbs achieves a level of detail in retelling each of these accounts that provides familiarity with these historic women without recreating their entire individual biographies. We learn of the important contributions of each woman to society and their art, with a focus on specific issues and challenges that they each encountered. The primary focus of this book is the role that walking played in the lives of each of these figures, as well as the author of the book. Each character embarks on a life-defining journey of great length, breaking through barriers in doing so and emerging a different person at the end. These brave women did not all reach their ultimate goal but were invariably transformed by the journey.
These are not your average, leisurely strolls around town and this is not a passively reflective chronicle of their lives. These women walked in powerful strides and made bold steps. The tone of the book is decidedly defiant and empowering. These profiles allow us to learn of these women in motion, as they moved toward freedom and resisted the confining norms of their day. The challenges, failures, and pain of these historic women are encouraging and inspirational. They kept walking, committed to putting one foot in front of the other, in some cases even sacrificing family for their passion and desire to be free. The heroines of Windswept represent women in various geographies and time periods as well as different stages of life. From young mothers to women like Clara Vyvyan who was 67 years old when she completed her historic trek along the Rhone river.