Katharine’s Remarkable Road Trip
Gail Ward Olmsted
226 pages
Published on June 13th, 2024
Black Rose Writing
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Katharine’s Remarkable Road Trip is the gentle fictional story about a journey taken by real-life American philanthropist Katharine Prescott Wormeley towards the end of her life. The author had contacted our blog looking for reviewers and I fancied the idea of an elderly heroine hitting the road – I had not heard of her previously, but liked the mix of fact and fiction. As a bonus, it fits our March theme of Women’s History Month!
In 1907, 77 year old Katharine decides to drive her brand new car the 300 miles between her existing home, and the comfortable new house she had built in which to see out her days, dropping in on various friends along the way. Spirited and fiercely independent, she brushes off the concerns of her younger sister Ariana and sets off, travelling at the grand old pace of ten miles an hour. The foreword introduces the real Katharine’s biography and the afterword clarifies which events and people mentioned are real.
“Think about it. You prevented a little girl from losing her father and rescued a man from choking. You provided companionship to a veteran who needed someone to share a meal with. You gave sound advice to a young woman in crisis and offered encouragement to others. Your whole life has been leading up to this. Your time serving on the ship, running the hospital, opening a school, writing, and making stories available to others. Treasuring your family and friends. Don’t you see, Katie? Your life has been . . . remarkable.”
This was a delightful first person account of a six day adventure as Katharine travels alone from Newport, Rhode Island to her planned Forever Home in Jackson, New Hampshire – much to the alarm of her staff, family and friends. En route, she meets a variety of interesting people, intervenes in various emergencies – both medical and spiritual, and reminisces about her life as an unrepentant singleton.
I loved this nicely written short novel about an adventurous woman defying both her failing health and the conventions of the day to get out there and do as she pleases. The author describes her as “a complicated woman, a free-thinking pioneer, a devoted daughter, and a generous friend” and all of these traits come across beautifully. She’s kind to strangers, cheeky to her friends, and mischievous with her anxious sister. We gradually learn about the loves of her life – unavailable men she adored but learned to move on from, and the intelligence and passion that made her reject a conventional life. Thanks to Gail Olmsted for the ARC.
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