
Bicycling with Butterflies
My 10,201-Mile Journey Following the Monarch Migration
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Narrated by:
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Xe Sands
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By:
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Sara Dykman
About this listen
Winner of the 2021 National Outdoor Book Award
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. Her panniers were recycled buckets.
In Bicycling with Butterflies, Dykman recounts her incredible journey and the dramatic ups and downs of the nearly nine-month odyssey. 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.
©2021 Sara Dykman (P)2021 Timber PressCritic reviews
"An extraordinary story in which Dykman seamlessly weaves together science, a real love of nature and the adventure and hazards of biking with butterflies from Mexico to Canada and back. They share an epic journey and encounter hardships, but they do not give up. The book is a lament for our thoughtless destruction of nature and at the same time a celebration of the beauty that remains. The migration of the monarch butterflies is one of the wonders of the world—we must save it for future generations." —Dr. Jane Goodall, DBE, Founder of the Jane Goodall Institute, U.N. Messenger of Peace
"On this improbable adventure, Sara Dykman followed the extraordinary monarch migration by bicycle, and came back to write about it. She has recorded it well. Her almost incredible account captures the animal itself, the continent it crosses, and its plight with style and deep connection." —Robert Michael Pyle, author of Chasing Monarchs and founder of the Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation
“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
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A Monarch Lovers Dream story!
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What a wonderful recounting!
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Heartfelt inspirational motivating
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Heartfelt Unique Inspiring Courageous
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Emotional and educational
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lyz
cycling with butterflies te ll
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I can't say enough good things about this book!
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The voice felt as if it were the authors. Read with such expression and as though it was her trip.
I throughly enjoyed the narrative as much as the journey.
I rode along
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All species are interconnected
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Relatable
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