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My 10,201-Mile Journey Following the Monarch Migration
by Sara Dykman
Science, nature, and adventure come together in this riveting account of a solo bike trip along the migratory path of the monarch butterfly.
Sara Dykman made history when she became the first person to bicycle alongside monarch butterflies on their storied annual migration—a round-trip adventure that included three countries and more than 10,000 miles. Equally remarkable, she did it solo, on a bike cobbled together from used parts.
In Bicycling with Butterflies—praised as "poetic" (Publishers Weekly) and called "a collective cry for climate action" (Booklist)—Dykman recounts her incredible journey. We're beside her as she navigates unmapped roads in foreign countries, checks roadside milkweed for monarch eggs, and shares her passion with eager schoolchildren, skeptical bar patrons, and unimpressed border officials. We also meet some of the ardent monarch stewards who supported her efforts, from citizen scientists and researchers to farmers and high-rise city dwellers.
With both humor and humility, Dykman offers a compelling story, confirming the urgency of saving the threatened monarch migration—and the other threatened systems of nature that affect the survival of us all.
What are you reading this week? (04/24/2025)
Just finished Bicycling With Butterflies by Sara Dykman. Sarah is an Outdoor educator. She recounts her 10,000 mile, 9 month solo trek from Mexico across the US to Canada following the Monarch Butterflies....
-Nancy_S1
"People have long been fascinated by the monarch butterfly's migration across the North American continent. Thanks to this book, readers have a better idea of what that incredible journey entails… Dykman's enthusiasm will motivate others to be more thoughtful about their decisions." —Library Journal
"The book is just as much a poetic travelogue as it is informative about monarch butterflies. Dykman's research keenly supplements her experiences on the road…it may be one singular bicyclist's word, but represents a collective cry for climate action." —Booklist
This information about Bicycling with Butterflies was first featured
in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.
Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.
Sara Dykman divides her time among seasonal amphibian research, outdoor education, and adventures. She created beyondabook.org to connect students to her adventures in order to foster lifelong learners, boundary pushers, explorers, and stewards.
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