I pulled off the paper and into my hand slipped a brand-new copy of The Little Book of Lady Adventurers.
Inside Mum had written:
For the adventurer I am most proud of.
“I told your mum how your last book had got ruined and how you missed her reading you bedtime stories. So she’s going to call you tonight,” Da said.
I pressed the book into my chest, feeling all the love Mum had sent with it. I couldn’t have asked for a better birthday present.
“So are you ready?” Da asked. In all the excitement of opening presents I’d almost forgotten what we’d came out to do.
Da helped me over the side of the boat and I reached out to touch the rock; I had one last thing to say to it. Because even though I hadn’t got what I wished for, the rock had, in its own way, brought us all back together.
“Thank you,” I whispered.
This time the rock didn’t move; it didn’t even twitch. It felt cold and still. But I knew it was just sleeping.
When Da pulled me back into the boat I could tell he wanted to ask what I had said, but he didn’t. Instead he put a big arm around me. We sat in the boat listening to the sound of the waves slapping against the hull. A gentle breeze blew over the water as the stars faded away into the bright morning sky.
“This is my favourite part of the day,” he said. “Just before everything happens.”
“Mine too,” I replied.
The island flickered in the distance as the sun climbed behind it. From the boat I could see our house, the last glow of the North Star shining over it. Grandpa would be sleeping in his chair downstairs, a forgotten cup of tea lying next to him. Later he and I would play chess the only way we knew how, with lots of yelling and throwing of things. And then I would go over to Tom’s and we would ride the ponies late into the evening, before Hettie and Penny threw a not-so-surprising surprise party, including ridiculous home-made party hats and the biggest, bluest cake you have ever seen. Afterwards, Mum would telephone to read me the stories of Amelia Earhart and Lady Hester and then we would talk late into the night. But this was going to be my favourite part of my birthday. Sitting in the boat with Pipi and Da, watching the sun come up over the island. This strange place I called home, where magic and myth could take you on incredible adventures.
Discover more about the incredible, intrepid women adventurers who inspired Amelia…
AMELIA EARHART
July 24th 1897 – July 2nd 1937
A spirit of adventure burned bright in Amelia Earhart from childhood – she was a tomboy who loved to be outside climbing trees and riding her sled fast downhill.
She would grow up to become the first woman to fly solo across the Atlantic, a huge and dangerous undertaking. On May 20th 1932 she took off from the Canadian island of Newfoundland and landed safely in Ireland nearly fifteen hours later, despite facing strong northerly winds, icy conditions and mechanical problems. That same journey would take four-and-a-half hours in a plane today.
Amelia was a passionate believer in equality and independence for women and encouraged many to fulfil their dreams of becoming pilots and soaring into the sky.
In 1937 Amelia Earhart and her navigator Fred Noonan were on one of the last legs of an epic around-the-world-flight, when their plane vanished over the Pacific Ocean. They have never been found and this disappearance has become one of history’s great unsolved mysteries.
LADY HESTER STANHOPE
12th March 1776 – 23rd June 1839
A true rule breaker, Lady Hester Stanhope disguised herself as a middle-aged man and travelled incognito across the Middle East, at a time when women were expected to sit quietly and meekly at home.
She was born into the aristocracy and could easily have spent her life cosseted by comfort and luxury. Instead, she chased adventures – these were often fraught with danger, such as the time she survived a terrible storm at sea and a shipwreck in which she lost all her possessions.
She had a particular interest in archaeological digs and unearthed some wonderful treasures. Lady Hester went where she wanted and did as she pleased – she was bold and fearless and was always in search of new, exciting horizons.
ALEXANDRA DAVID-NEEL
24th October 1868 – 8th September 1969
Originally a French/Belgian opera singer, Alexandra David-Neel converted to Buddhism and travelled to the Forbidden City of Lhasa, Tibet – which at the time was completely shut off from foreigners. She disguised herself as a beggar and a monk and hid a pistol, a compass and a purse of money under her rags, in case she was captured and held to ransom. There, she reported witnessing levitation and the practice called tummo or inner fire meditation, where the body raises its temperature to combat the extreme cold felt at altitude in the Himalayan mountains.
When Alexandra David-Neel was one hundred years old, she applied to renew her passport, clearly planning on further adventures. Sadly she died aged one hundred and one before she could embark on another trip, but left behind a legacy of a life dedicated to exploring.
HELEN THAYER
Born 12th November 1937
Helen was born in New Zealand and has spent her life to date travelling across some of the most challenging, hostile and remote corners of the earth.
In 1988, she became the first woman to travel solo (though with her dog Charlie for company!) to the magnetic North Pole. From snow and sub-zero temperatures to exposure to scorching sun: she has also walked across the Sahara Desert and 1,600 miles across the Mongolian Gobi Desert. And from dry land to river rapids: she has kayaked over 2,000 miles in the Amazon rainforest.
Helen has been named “One of the Great Explorers of the Twentieth Century” by National Geographic.
KATE JACKSON
Born February 14th 1972
Kate’s specialist subject is … snakes! And the more venomous the better, though she says she feels no fear while she is working. She first encountered a snake at the age of five, which led to her fascination with them. After studying snakes at university, she travelled to Central Africa, specifically the Republic of Congo, where she battled through an infection that began in a tiny scratch on her leg, and caused extreme dizziness and a high fever as she made her way alone through the jungle. She recovered and went on to discover a brand-new species of snake – the Radford’s House Snake.
She has had a few close calls with her slippery subjects – she was allowing a small snake to slither through her fingers when she suddenly realized it was a highly venomous baby forest cobra and needed to be put down very, very gently!
BERYL MARKHAM
26th October 1902 – 3rd August 1986
Beryl was a famous pilot, adventurer, racehorse trainer and author, best known for her solo flight across the Atlantic Ocean from east to west. No woman at the time had flown non-stop from Europe to North America, though a few had set off and died in the attempt.
On the 4th September 1936, Beryl took off from Abingdon in England on the trip of her lifetime. 20 hours into the flight, ice collected on her plane’s fuel tank vents, causing Beryl to crash land on Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia, Canada. But she survived the landing and achieved her mission to reach North America – she would be celebrated as a true pioneer of air travel.
ANNE BONNY
Unknown, possibly 1697 – unknown, possibly 1782
One of the most famous female pirates of all time, Anne Bonny sailed the seas of the Caribbean in the eighteenth century, capturing many trade vessels and stealing their treasures.
Records state she had red hair and a fiery temper – she embarked on a lawless life on the waves alongside John “Calico Jack” Rackham, captain of the pirate sloop Revenge, feared by all. She was captured but there is no record of her execution: did she escape prison and return to her life as a pirate? We’ll never know for sure…
JUNKO TABEI
22rd September 1939 – 20th October 2016
Junko was the first woman to reach the summit of Mount Everest, the t
allest mountain in the world, and the first woman to ascend all Seven Summits by climbing the highest peaks on every single continent on earth. These are:
Asia: Everest; South America: Aconcagua; North America: Denali; Africa: Kilimanjaro; Europe: Elbrus; Oceania: Carstensz Pyramid.
She let nothing stand in the way between her and the very top of the mountains: she survived a major avalanche when climbing Everest, which buried her camp under a deep, suffocating blanket of snow. She survived and twelve days later reached the peak of this dangerous mountain, the first woman to stand on top of the world. It was an astonishing feat of determination, bravery and resilience.
IDA PFEIFFER
14th October 1797 – 27th October 1858
Ida travelled all across the globe, at a time when most women were not permitted to dream big. She was born in Vienna but visited Brazil, Chile, England, America, Australia to name just a few countries – writing about the places, people, customs, landscapes, flora and fauna she saw, so that others may experience her adventures from their own homes.
She had a strong desire to see the world from childhood and made this dream a reality: forging her own path across the world, on her own terms.
ADA BLACKJACK
Unknown month, 1898 – May 29, 1983
Ada Blackjack Johnson was born in Alaska, and in 1921 she joined a five-man expedition to Wrangel Island, north of Siberia, in an attempt by Canada to claim the island as its territory.
Conditions were harsh and inhospitable, with sub-zero temperatures and ferocious winds. After rations ran out, three of Ada’s fellow explorers attempted to cross the seven hundred mile frozen Chukchi Sea to Siberia for help and food. None of them were ever seen again. Meanwhile, Ada had been looking after the fourth man back at the camp, who was severely ill with scurvy and soon died, leaving Ada alone and at the mercy of the extreme elements. She had just the expedition’s cat, Vic, for company.
Ada was eventually rescued from her terrifying arctic adventure – with newspapers calling her a “female Robinson Crusoe” after the famous fictional castaway.
LAURA DEKKER
Born 20th September 1995
Laura is the youngest person to ever sail solo around the world: an astonishing achievement at any age, but she was just sixteen when she set sail on her voyage, which lasted for one year and five months.
She has a Dutch father and a German mother and grew up in New Zealand and the Netherlands. Brave and single-minded, she has sailed the waters of some of the most dangerous places on earth, such as the Cape of Good Hope, coping with dead calm (no wind for the sails) and howling gales and rough currents.
But even a brave adventurer such as Laura couldn’t escape going to school! She continued her studies throughout her time at sea by taking online courses to keep her caught up with her friends.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS:
There were a lot of times I thought this book would never happen. It is entirely down to the support of those mentioned below that it did. My heartfelt thanks goes to my family and friends for supporting, encouraging and generally putting up with me while I wrote this. To Mum, Dad and Ryan for nudging me on, to Rose for reading the very first page and Kelly for buying me the odd drink when it was much needed. Thanks also to my agent Hellie who believed in me and this story from the start. And who read and gave notes on so many wobbly drafts. To my editor Lauren, who with one inspired change ended up shaping this book into something far better (books really are made in the editing). Thank you to all the fantastic team at Scholastic and Janklow and Nesbit UK for their hard work. To the Hawthornden Castle Fellowship, who allowed me to be their writer in residence and pretend to be a Scottish Queen. And finally thank you to all those who buy, borrow and review this book.
Amber Lee Dodd teaches creative writing, has a blue belt in kickboxing and briefly lived in a Scottish castle. Her dream is to go on an adventure to the Arctic, or to ride across the Arabian Desert, like the lady adventurers in Lightning Chase Me Home. But she mostly spends her time by the sea dressed in 1940s clothes, coming up with stories.
Her plays have been performed at the Minerva Theatre, New Theatre Royal and the Edinburgh Fringe. Her short stories have been published around the world and broadcast on BBC Radio 4. Her first book, We Are Giants, was nominated for ten awards, winning the Calderdale Book of the Year and shortlisting for the Branford Boase Award.
Follow her on @amberleedodd
www.amberleedodd.com
Scholastic Children’s Books
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First published in the UK by Scholastic Ltd, 2019
This electronic edition published by Scholastic Ltd, 2019
Text copyright © Amber Lee Dodd, 2019
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eISBN 978 1407 18939 0
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