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In Her Nature

How Women Break Boundaries in the Great Outdoors: A Past, Present and Personal Story

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In Her Nature

By: Rachel Hewitt
Narrated by: Rachel Hewitt
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About this listen

Brought to you by Penguin.

When Rachel loses five family members in five months, grief magnifies other absences. Running across moors and mountains used to help her feel at home in her body and the world, but now she becomes painfully aware of her inability to run without being cat-called or followed by strange men, or to walk alone at night without fear. Her eyes are opened to injustices facing women in sport, from men who push her off paths during races, to male bias in competition regulations, kit and media coverage. The outdoors becomes a place of danger, sharpening her sense of the grief women experience - every day, everywhere - for lack of freedom.

Rachel goes in search of a new family: the foremothers who blazed a trail at the dawn of outdoor sport. She discovers Lizzie Le Blond, a courageous Anglo-Irishwoman who scaled the Alps in woollen skirts, photographed fearless women climbing, skating and tobogganing at breakneck speeds, and founded the Ladies' Alpine Club, defying men who wanted the mountains to themselves. Yet after such groundbreaking progress in the late 1800s, a backlash drove women out of sports and public space.

Are we now living through a similar reversal in women's rights or an era of unprecedented liberty? Telling Lizzie's story alongside her own, Rachel runs her way from bereavement to belonging, in a world that feels hostile to women. On the way she's inspired by the tenacious women, past and present, who insist that breaking boundaries outdoors is, and always has been, in her nature.

©2023 Rachel Hewitt (P)2023 Penguin Audio
Biographies & Memoirs Grief & Loss Relationships Running & Jogging Outdoor
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Critic reviews

'Heartfelt, passionate, infuriating and often devastating, this book will inspire you to fight for your right to tread your own path' CAROLINE CRIADO PEREZ, author of Invisible Women

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truly one of the best books I've ever "read"

this book has it all. a great storyline, covers many important topics and delves into history that is completely new to me, even as someone fascinated by the topic of women in sport. I would recommend this book to anyone, especially if you've experienced grief, harassment while exercising, or have an interest in mountaineering/alpinism. I will undoubtedly listen to this again someday!

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Thank you Rachel

This book articulates much of what I’ve felt as a woman moving in outdoor spaces.
I’ve always felt a defiance but lately as I’ve mellowed I’ve noticed a slow back lash even through all we’ve gained. This helps to articulate why those feelings matter and are our truth at this present moment.
Thank you Rachel and I wish you and your family all the best from now on and most of all peace and healing.

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Compelling

I’ve loved every minute of listening to this book. It jumps from the familiarity of the beautiful countryside in which I run to historical accounts of amazing women pathfinders lost in time who Rachel has brought back to life. Thought provoking, sometimes sad and inspiring. Thank you Rachel for sharing your life and your passion.

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A manifesto for women about the right to be outdoors

This is an important feminist listen. If you read feminist books then this is definitely in the same league (in terms of the quality of the research that backs it up) as Invisible Women by Caroline Criado-Perez, but the narration is better because it’s slower and easier to keep up with.

For me, the hallmark of a good feminist listen is that I find I have to buy the hard copy book as well, realising that I will need it to reference in future, because of the importance of the contents. This is definitely such a book.

I’ve not seen the argument that women experience reprisals over long periods of time in response to every step of feminist progress, illustrated and evidenced so clearly before. Sometimes these limiting forces can be difficult to grasp because their trajectory is slow, but this book reveals them. It’s a sobering reminder of how history is misrepresented by those in power and how we should never be blasé about feminist achievements or what it takes to reveal them.

The book explores the history of the battles women have fought to access public open space outdoors, as well as present day data about such access with a personal memoir of finding a sense of well-being and selfhood from being outdoors. Whilst some of the insights in it are quite uncomfortable to bear, it is a privilege to have your eyes opened. This book shines a light on what men are really doing when they’re harassing women in public spaces. Next time I’m in a public open space and encounter a man who asks me to smile, I will be telling him that a smile is not the price I should have to pay to be present in this space because he doesn’t own it.

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Beautifully read and moving

A well researched and interesting book about women’s place in the outdoors set next to her own experience overcoming the trauma of grief, a very moving tale which has left me with a lot to think about, highly recommended to anyone with an interest in the outdoors and running.

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Interesting but long

It felt too long and I ended up listening on 1.5x speed instead of stopping listening to it altogether

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In My Nature

I listened to this book while doing a walking challenge over the month of April. My fitness increased as I read the book I felt encouraged by the stories of the efforts women in the past had to go to to enjoy the outdoors. I looked forward to putting my headphones on and getting back to it. Having been a girl/woman who does not do sports, this book has spurred me on to see if I could try trail running. The personal story of the author is so honestly told and interesting. Weaving in the stories of women in the past worked really well. There is a lot of detail at times but it is great to hear the names and achievements of these women being recounted and celebrated. So much work clearly went into this book to bring these stories to life. I plan to share these stories with my four sons. The afterword made me cry and my thoughts are with the author and her family x

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Tales of pioneering women

Loved the stories of women in the mountains climbing in long skirts. Great to discover how fundamental they were to mountaineering history but sad to hear how their memories were forgotten or erased. The author’s own adventures are also amazing and inspiring.

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