The Women Who Went Round the World

Sally Smith presents the extraordinary stories of the real women pioneers in global circumnavigation; travelling right around the world by various means and for various purposes. This captivating selection of stories includes the incredible tale of Jeanne Baret, a French woman who, in 1740, dressed as a man, travelled by boat to become the first woman ever to voyage right around the world; a journey on a convict supply ship to Port Jackson, that picked up Mutiny on the Bounty survivors on the way back; the dramatic 1889 race around the world by Nellie Bly and Elizabeth Bisland; Annette Meakin’s dark experiences crossing Russia by train in 1900; Harriet Fischer’s drive around the globe in 1909; and the fascinating story of Russia’s Valentina Tereshkova, born into a peasant family, working in a local textile factory, who ended up becoming the first ever woman to circle the world in space. Each of these women achieved a serious record in circumnavigation and deserves to be given her rightful place in history.