If travel plans are silent for the rest of August and the sight of an air conditioner or a ceiling fan isn’t the calm you seek, turning to a good book becomes a perfect way to unplug. August can slip by with a different kind of journey—reading that shifts life’s tempo, invites exploration of places, times, or even imagined worlds that sit beyond our daily concerns. If the aim is to close summer with a fresh reading choice or revisit classic travel narratives, this collection offers something intriguing. What if the focus is on journeys written by women who challenged eras and expectations?
There have been many voices in literature who have chronicled their journeys, real or imagined, pushing the boundaries of narrative, history, and self-discovery. Some books broaden the sense of travel through diverse landscapes, while others reveal cultures, eras, and routes you might not encounter in standard itineraries. From activist memoirs and expedition chronicles to fantasy tales and philosophical reflections, travel and literature have always intertwined, enriching both the mind and the heart.
Carol: The price of salt
Written under a pseudonym, this novel introduces a road trip through the United States in the 1950s, a trip shared by two women in close company. The work feels cinematic, inviting readers to visualize every scene as if it were a film on the big screen. The story pairs lightness with depth, offering a travelogue of companionship, choice, and the friction of social norms, all wrapped in a vivid, memorable road narrative.
my life is on the way
In this influential work, the author traces childhood and adolescence while continuing a nomadic life that interweaves advocacy and personal growth. It stands as a landmark in understanding the rise of a new wave of women’s rights, and it serves as a key genealogy for many other figures who shaped that movement. The pages invite readers to map the evolution of ideas alongside the geography of personal experience.
Gloria Steinem
pilgrimages. My travels in Europe
These travel chronicles recount the journeys of a pioneering war correspondent who, beginning in 1905, undertook extensive travels across Europe and the Americas. The writings bridge journalism and personal exploration, offering a detailed panorama of places, histories, and moments that illuminate other times and distant shores. It is a rich collection that transports readers through transportive narratives and careful observation.
lavender
In this work, a renowned author known for fantasy and science fiction offers a transformative twist on a classical tale. The reinterpretation opens a doorway to eras when the Roman world still took shape, inviting readers to contemplate fate, choice, and the overturning of expectations as the journey unfolds across imagined landscapes.
Ursula K. Le Guin
Dreams on the threshold. Memoirs of a harem girl
Returning to a childhood in the Moroccan city of Fez, a writer and academic compiles a sequence of stories that sketch Morocco after a pivotal treaty divided the country into protectorates. The setting follows a young girl growing up amid conversation and inquiry among women who share their lives, dreams, and questions. These narratives, grounded in sociology and personal history, chart a path to a broader identity and scholarly achievement.
liars club
This memoir stitches together humor with raw memory, tracing a Texan family in the era of the sixties. The storytelling peers into a mother’s struggles, a father’s challenges, and a sister’s resolve, creating one of the most enduring autobiographical works in the country. It’s a candid, darkly funny map of growing up amid struggle and resilience.
Mary Karr
Wounds of the Wind: The Armenian Diaries
The narrative journeys into communities living at the crossroads of East and West, exploring history, politics, and the roots of Armenia. It captures the echoes of conflict and the weight of memory, inviting readers to walk through neighborhoods, homes, and histories where the story unfolds with intimate detail and historical context.
Sahara Diaries
New perspectives emerge as the author recounts a time spent on the African continent, a memoir that arrives after long bridges of travel and reflection. The chapters document arrivals and departures, the rhythm of deserts, and the interplay of companionship and discovery on a grand, sweeping journey.
Sanmao.
The summer when my mother had green eyes
A powerful tale from a Moldovan-Romanian writer, this raw, intimate narrative centers on the mother-child bond and the experiences of a young protagonist during a summer of intense emotion and growth. The book invites readers to witness a relationship that is both tender and fraught, a dramatic examination of belonging, trust, and resilience.
Mammoth
The author follows a woman who chooses to abandon the familiar city life and live on the road, settling in a remote mountain setting. It becomes more than a travel story; it’s a meditation on modern life, its pressures, and the longing for authenticity. The narrative probes the costs and rewards of escape and self-discovery in solitude and nature.