Adventure Divas: Searching the Globe for Women Who Are Changing the World

By Holly Morris

Book Overview

After years of working behind a desk, Holly Morris had finally had enough. So she quit her job and set out to prove that adventure is not just a vacation style but a philosophy of living and to find like-minded, risk-taking women around the globe. With modest backing, a small television crew, her spirited producer-mother, Jeannie, and a whole lot of chutzpah, Morris tracked down artists, activists, and politicos-women of action who are changing the rules and sometimes the world around them.

In these pages, Morris brings to life the remarkable people and places she's encountered on the road while filming her PBS series Adventure Divas and other programs. We meet Assata Shakur, a former Black Panther and social activist and now a fugitive living in exile in Cuba; Kiran Bedi, New Delhi's chief of police, who revolutionized India's infamously brutal Tijar Jail with her humanitarian ethic; New Zealand pop star Hinewehi Mohi, a Maori who reinvigorates her native culture for a new generation; and Mokarrameh Ghanbari, a septuagenarian painter and rice farmer who lives in the tiny village of Darikandeh on the Caspian plains of Iran, where her creative talents run counter to the government's strict stance on art.

Along the way, Morris herself becomes a certified Adventure Diva, as she hunts for wild boar with Penan tribesmen in the jungles of Borneo, climbs the Matterhorn short-roped to a salty fourth-generation Swiss guide, and memorably becomes the first woman ever to enter the traditional camel race of the Saharan oasis town of Timia.

Intelligent, phenomenally funny, and chock-full of rich and telling details of place, Adventure Divas is a pro-woman chronicle for the twenty-first century. In a pilgrimage fueled by curiosity, ideology, and full-on estrogen power, Holly Morris has paved the way for all of us to discover our own diva within and set out on our own adventures.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0375760636
• ISBN13: 9780375760631
• Release Date: October 2006
• Publisher: Random House Publishing Group
• Length: 320 Pages
• Weight: 0.75 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.7" x 5.3" x 8.0"

Customer Reviews

Awakening the nomad

As an aspiring travel writer who has been relatively stationary for awhile now, I found it hard to put down Holly's book. Her writing brought life to lands and people I've only dreamt about seeing/meeting someday. What I love is how her sense of self came through--she is honest in her pursuits. The book is a perfect combination of her own thoughts, well-chosen dialogue, and historical references. Her words and stories awoke the nomad inside me that has been under forced dormancy for too long. She made me want to grab my dusty backpack and hit the road once again to continue making my own discoveries. I look forward to reading about all the new adventures someday soon!

Morris in Theroux League

Holly Morris did an incredible job with this book. As a traveller who has been to 150 countries, I have digested a lot of travel writing. Holly's style is fresh, inciteful, exciting, real. She really puts you in the scene, and those scenes are often fascinating. I like her writing as much as Paul Theroux and hope she not only continues her world adventures, but also shares them with us. Bill Kizorek, CEO, Two Parrot Productions

Adenturous Diva seeks and finds remarkable divas

"Adventure Divas" epitomizes a certain expression I'm very familiar with professionally: "Plans are what you make on the way to what happens." What happens "on the way" to Holly Morris and her crew is hilarious, gutsy, and crammed with challenges that never deter this determined young author. Her readers - soon to be a loyal, enthralled legion - will appreciate Morris's infinite curiosity, her insightfulness and full-speed-ahead attitude as well as her willingness to volunteer herself for uncomfortable (her exposure to leeches is unforgettable) and downright dangerous situations. Everyone gets a peek into the lives and psyches of remarkable women from around the world. Their cultures include locales many armchair travelers are unlikely to visit. Morris's intimate writing style, her willingness to share her fears, frustrations, and joy lets the reader celebrate along side her as she locates and interviews her Divas. For me? I felt I was reading the travel diary of a treasured friend. Biggest thrill? That camel race Morris entered without a second thought in Niger's Sahara. That was the "nutgrab" for me (let her describe her "nutgrab" image); quintessentially Holly: gutsy, competitive, and at times impulsive. She started her personal camel Derby with the cry, "I want to win," which all-too-rapidly became "I want to live!" As the first woman ever to enter a Tuareg camel race, Holly came in second (to last). Her recorded exploits have inspired me to plan a Diva journey of my own. Her website: [...] is a wonderful resource for planning your Diva trip. When you read this delightful book yourself, don't be surprised if by the end you're not glancing longingly at your own knapsack....and preparing to embark on your very own Diva Adventure. Sharon Bordeau,LCSW, NY

One Amazing Trip!

Many people dream of breaking the corporate shackle to roam the world. Few have the guts to actually do it. Thankfully, Holly Morris took that leap of faith. And lucky for us, she's not keeping her adventures to herself. Often, travel memoirs flip-flop between worshiping and ridiculing what seems exotic. Worse, if the writer left home base to escape "issues," the book turns into a thinly disguised journal that inevitably ends with some forced bang of a catharsis. Adventure Divas is REFRESHINGLY DIFFERENT. This account of Morris's journey in quitting her desk job to create a documentary TV series about "divas"--or women who are taking groundbreaking steps to create positive changes in their societies--is awe-inspiring. Geared with an unyielding sense of curiosity and a genuine desire to learn, Morris treks to far-flung locations--including India, Iran, and Cuba. She is observant, and navigates her way with determination. She makes a conscious effort to be respectful of her hosts' cultures. Yet, Morris is only human and makes some odd choices at times. What makes her so endearing to readers is that she has the courage to own up to mistakes--she can poke fun of herself with the most unbelievably explosive humor. The result: Each destination (or diva) that Morris leads readers to turns into a highly thoughtful and insightful probe into local culture, politics, and (simply, yet most importantly)...how to be human. It's a treat to observe the gears in Morris's loopy and highly intelligent brain at work. What spews forth is a voice that sparkles with a unique blend of soul, wisdom, and the kind of ingenious goofiness that leaves you thinking: "How did she come up with that?" Adventure Divas is an eye-opening, thought-provoking, and thoroughly engaging book.

Incomparable Reading

Divas, adventurers and armchair globetrotters alike will enjoy this witty, irreverent and fascinating collection of true stories from the immensely intelligent and humorous writer/producer/director Holly Morris. Morris joyfully tramples cliches while delving into "divadom" in the most unlikely places, such as New Dehli, Iran, Cuba, Borneo and the Sahara. She treads fearlessly, seeking other proactive women who inspire, invigorate, revolutionize and, yes, of course! rebel, to advance artistic, political, humane and human causes. This collection is based on Morris' PBS series "Adventure Divas," produced with her mother, writer Jeannie Morris, and is rich in background and narrative. A must for anyone seeking well written, unique and inspirational women's literature.