Hot Flashes from Abroad 2 Ed: Women's Travel Tales and Adventures [Paperback]

Jean Gould (Editor)

Book Description

Series: Adventura Books | Publication Date: April 9, 2001

Women's Travel Tales and Adventures Helen Thayer went to the North Pole on skis, accompanied only by her dog Charlie. Alexandra David-Neel was the first European woman to enter the forbidden Tibetan city of Lhasa. At the time of their treks, they were both over 50. Their stories, and 25 others, offer vivid proof that one's sense of adventure need not be hindered by age.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

This may be one of those books that came into being because its title sprang to the editor's mind one day. In any case, it is a minor gem, a collection of new and reprinted writings by women over 50 on the themes of travel, athleticism, and adventure.

Barbara Beckwith's "Nature Buddies" recounts a grandmother's attempts to introduce her infant grandson to the muddy, grassy, thrilling world outside. In Ginny NiCarthy's "The Agony and the Ecstasy," a 67-year-old woman with vertigo suffers herself to mount a camel for a journey through the Moroccan Sahara. And in "What Makes Grace Run?" Heather Remoff, a long-distance runner, describes her profound emotional connection to a woman who was killed by a hit-and-run driver while on her nightly run in a small Pennsylvania town. The size and shape of a travel guide, Hot Flashes from Abroad offers an affirmative twist on the venerable genre of the traveler's tale. --Regina Marler

From Library Journal

Originally published as Season of Adventure (LJ 11/1/96), this eclectic mix of stories explores the travel adventures and inner journeys of women over 50. It now features a new cover, a brand new introduction by editor Gould (Divorcing Your Grandmother), a smaller format more suitable for traveling, one new essay, and updated author bios. Alix Kates Shulman revels in the peace and isolation of a cottage on an island off the coast of Maine, digging for clams and coping alone with serious injury, while Alexandra David-Neel treks into the forbidden city of Lhasa and homesteader Elinore Pruitt Stewart tracks down and turns in moonshiners in Wyoming. From Alaska to the Amazon and on to the Sahara, these often eloquent and inspirational stories make it clear that for many of these women life after 50 has been more challenging and rewarding than before. However, a number of the stories, which are excerpted from full-length books, begin and end abruptly, and the brief biographical information on each author does not always provide the needed context. For larger public libraries, especially those that don't already own the original. Linda M. Kaufmann, Massachusetts Coll. of Liberal Arts Lib., North Adams
Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 320 pages
• Publisher: Seal Press; Second Edition edition (April 9, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1580050557
• ISBN-13: 978-1580050555
• Product Dimensions: 7.5 x 5.6 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #463,567 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #12 in Books > Travel > Specialty Travel > Students
  • #22 in Books > Travel > Specialty Travel > Senior Travel

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars OK but excessively earnest, May 31, 2006

By 

Rebekah Creshkoff (New York, NY) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Hot Flashes from Abroad 2 Ed: Women's Travel Tales and Adventures (Paperback)

I am reading books to my 89-year-old mother. We enjoyed "The Unsavvy Traveler," subtitled women's COMIC tales of adventure. But despite the promising title, the "Hot Flashes" stories generally aren't funny. Many authors seems to be struggling to find something profound to say. All in all, a disappointing read.