Girl on a Motorcycle

Viking (Penguin Random House)

(pub. 9.8.2020)  

48 pages

A True Tale with

A Cherry On Top   

A uthor

       Amy Novesky
       and illustrator:

       Julie Morstad  

 

C haracter: Anne-France Dautheville

O verview: 

      

"One day, a girl gets on her motorcycle and rides away. She wants to wander the world.  

To go ...

Elsewhere.

This is the true story of the first woman to ride a motorcycle around the world alone. Each place has something to teach her. Each place is beautiful. And despite many flat tires and falls, she learns to always get back up and keep riding."

T antalizing taste: 

     "A pink sunset is a gift to the lone girl on a motorcycle, on the way to Istanbul.

      Here, a bridge connects the east to the west. The girl and her motorcycle cross from one continent to another. The sea sparkles below her.

     One day she will write a book. She will tell the world: It is hard. It is hot. I learned a lot. 

     Children run after her bike, shout. Hello! Hello! Mister! Mister!

     Some are curious, others shy. Yes, I am a girl.

      Children run after her bike, shout. Goodbye! Goodbye!"

And something more: The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books' starred review touches on the poignancy of this beautifully written and illustrated book reaching us at this time (or any time):  “This eminently sharable title arrives as soothing balm, stirring reminders of the world beyond household walls and offering images onto which each can attach a personal dream: Where is my ‘Elsewhere’? Whom would I meet? What would I see?” 

    I asked my talented author friend, Amy Novesky, if she would share a few thoughts about writing this book, and she kindly wrote:  

    "I love to travel, but I am a very nervous traveler. That’s one of the reasons I was drawn to this story; Anne-France was strong, but she wasn’t fearless. Before she left on her very first trip, she was nervous, couldn’t sleep. What’s that saying about being brave? If you’re not afraid, you can’t be brave.

Speaking of being brave, I felt I couldn't write this story without experiencing what it's like to ride on a motorcycle, and it had been years since I'd been on one. So, I bid on and won at my son's school auction a motorcycle ride with one of the teachers, beating out all of the adventurous dads. It was terrifying and exhilarating, and I discovered how much I love my spine."

Amy's last note in the book is powerful: "What I  wish for all young citizens of the world, for every human being on this incredible planet, is the ability and freedom to travel, to wander, and to lust for elsewhere, to meet people, to experience through their own eyes and hearts that the world is beautiful and good. Because I believe, dear reader, that it is."