One hundred thirty-two years before Linda Moore set out for Texas on her bike "Beastie", Isabella Bell set out by ship, train and finally horse for Estes Park in the Rocky Mountains. Like Linda, Isabella wrote about her entire journey in a series of seven letters which were later published in book form, A Lady's Life in the Rocky Mountains. Linda blogged about the experience and later published her experience as A Little Twist of Texas.
When I read through the first letter I was afraid I wouldn't enjoy the book because it was one long diatribe about how she regretted leaving Hawaii and how awful the train ride was. Rather than set it aside unfinished at the first letter, I read on to the second. By this second letter I was madly in love with the book. Isabella's letters reflect her mood as well as record the places and people she met along the way. When she is tired she grumbles. When she's well rested, she thrills at her adventure. She even includes passages about the history of the areas she visits and all I could think was: "She's snarfing!"
If you like travelogues and you like history, get yourself a copy A Lady's Life in the Rocky Mountains. Then read A Little Twist of Texas and enjoy a modern version of the adventure.
