Monkeys on the Road: One family's vanlife adventure south in search of a simpler life
- Downloads：9445
- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2021-12-01 10:19:03
- Update Date：2025-09-07
- Status：finish
- Author：Mary Hollendoner
- ISBN：B09M8YD3CQ
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
Reviews
Anu
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Phenomenal travelogueIt is a narrative nonfiction travel memoir about driving through Latin America。 This book includes the family’s adventures， life learnings， travel photos， van life and travel map of their route。Each chapter is well-written。 A delightful read with nuggets of information and history about each place she has been to。 The author paints a word portrait of everything she sees along with the personal experiences， some dangerous， some surreal and bizarre situations。 She manages to b Phenomenal travelogueIt is a narrative nonfiction travel memoir about driving through Latin America。 This book includes the family’s adventures， life learnings， travel photos， van life and travel map of their route。Each chapter is well-written。 A delightful read with nuggets of information and history about each place she has been to。 The author paints a word portrait of everything she sees along with the personal experiences， some dangerous， some surreal and bizarre situations。 She manages to bring across the uniqueness and flavour of each destination。I loved reading about the search of turtles with the Asupmatoma employees， the reality of living in a jungle， the kindness of strangers， earthquakes， escape scenarios and change from van life to lockdown。 Their adventures are just like life - you never know what's around the corner， nevertheless， you are ready to take it head-on。 She inspires us to travel into the unknown and embrace simplicity。 。。。more
Susan
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Rock climbers Mary， John， and their six-year-old daughter Lily， anxious to leave their stress-filled life behind， decide to quit their jobs and head off on a journey through Mexico， Central America， and finally the vastness of South America。 As they near their departure date， Mexico is experiencing unprecedented murderous violence， hurricanes， and finally a record-shattering earthquake。 Should they stay in the safety of the U。S。 or head off on their adventure？John turns the key， starts their bel Rock climbers Mary， John， and their six-year-old daughter Lily， anxious to leave their stress-filled life behind， decide to quit their jobs and head off on a journey through Mexico， Central America， and finally the vastness of South America。 As they near their departure date， Mexico is experiencing unprecedented murderous violence， hurricanes， and finally a record-shattering earthquake。 Should they stay in the safety of the U。S。 or head off on their adventure？John turns the key， starts their beloved van， and off they go on their epic journey through multiple countries and cultures so different from each other and their own。 From camping on beaches in Baja California， sleeping on a village’s plaza， rock climbing in the Andes， and visiting off-the-beaten-path Incan ruins， Mary’s writing draws the reader into the epic adventure。 Planning to be gone for one year， their trip extends to three years。 They encounter animals such as a tiny mouse making its home in their van， howler monkeys， bats， and whale sharks。 They also make instant connections with hospitable humans who welcome them into their homes and generously share what little they have with the family。 While they travel on their odyssey， they meet refugees from political and social unrest on another sort of journey altogether。 Then， they are faced with the terrible reality of the Covid epidemic and must choose whether to stay in place or return home。When I picked this book up， I couldn’t put it down。 It pulled me in， and I felt as if I were traveling along with them。 It is fascinating to see the growth and change in the family。 It is intriguing to visit the exotic locales that are somehow so near yet so far away from this American reader。 I can’t wait for the next installment to find out what adventures they have next！ 。。。more
Greg
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Mary and John did what for many people is only ever a dream: opting out of careers in tech for #vanlife and a multi-year adventure from Yosemite to Patagonia with their 6-yr old daughter。This is different from many of the other adventure memoirs I've read that tend to be feats of strength or endurance: riding bikes across a continent etc。 Those accounts often have to convey tales of brutal monotony and courage in the face of weeks of grinding hardship in a way that somehow manages to be interest Mary and John did what for many people is only ever a dream: opting out of careers in tech for #vanlife and a multi-year adventure from Yosemite to Patagonia with their 6-yr old daughter。This is different from many of the other adventure memoirs I've read that tend to be feats of strength or endurance: riding bikes across a continent etc。 Those accounts often have to convey tales of brutal monotony and courage in the face of weeks of grinding hardship in a way that somehow manages to be interesting。 Here Mary gets to pick only the most fascinating parts of a huge multi-year multi-country adventure， and there are plenty: both heart-warming and heart-wrenching。 No boring bits :）Part of me wants to use this as an inspirational travel checklist， and it certainly is that。 Assuming of course that you can handle the most off-the-beaten-track version of travel where there are no guides， very few plans， and generally a great willingness to follow what may or may not be a passable road over the well-traveled routes。But what really stands out is not the sights。 Mary reaches a point that I've occasionally got to in travelling where you don't really care about more cities， or rocks， or ruins， or gorges， or rivers， or whatever， and just want to hang out with cool people。 And what I totally believe from this book and my own travelling experience is that to find interesting people you can just turn up and be super friendly with whoever you encounter。 It's also true that the people with the least will give the most and find joy in the giving: time， food， shelter， love。Other things I learned about traveling overland in South America: borders with a vehicle can be crazy stressful and complicated， it's essential to have good Spanish， and you'd better be a mechanic。 Oh， and a global pandemic will constantly redefine what you thought your travel experience was going to be。Loved it！ 。。。more
Sudeepa Nair
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A travelogue that not just opens up possibilities for aspiring travellers but offers a perspective from the intersection of different worlds。A family of three， mother， father， and a 6-year-old child， set off to cover 20 countries in a converted van。 The book comes when many of us have been starved of travels and social interactions due to the pandemic。 So， if you are planning to step out of the protective cocoons of your homes gradually and wonder what kind of travel you might like， consider thi A travelogue that not just opens up possibilities for aspiring travellers but offers a perspective from the intersection of different worlds。A family of three， mother， father， and a 6-year-old child， set off to cover 20 countries in a converted van。 The book comes when many of us have been starved of travels and social interactions due to the pandemic。 So， if you are planning to step out of the protective cocoons of your homes gradually and wonder what kind of travel you might like， consider this adventurous option of driving around in a van， camping near serene， peaceful locations across South America， and meeting the beautiful people of the land。 A detailed review is coming up on The Sunday Book Club blog。 。。。more
Geneva Saint-Amour
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If you long for adventure and have dreamed of travel this way， this book will grab your attention and hold you rapt。 In the early part of the book， Mary lets us know who she is with personal details and a glimpse into their lives。 I feel closer to the author as she shares her vulnerability- expressed in her concerns as aMother and even her bout of altitude sickness， and later sea sickness and more！The journey through Mexico sets the tone for many more fun instances through Central America。 Time If you long for adventure and have dreamed of travel this way， this book will grab your attention and hold you rapt。 In the early part of the book， Mary lets us know who she is with personal details and a glimpse into their lives。 I feel closer to the author as she shares her vulnerability- expressed in her concerns as aMother and even her bout of altitude sickness， and later sea sickness and more！The journey through Mexico sets the tone for many more fun instances through Central America。 Time in each country shows the family dynamics and the local experiences they enjoyed。 Anyone who has traveled these places may find familiar descriptions in Mary’s words。 Then on to South America…。 alright already， I get it - Colombians are friendly。 The examples just go on and on and each one makes me feel as if I am sitting there with you。 Then on to more exploration of beautiful places， described in her well-chosen words。 Those words are supplemented at the end of each section with maps and a few photos。 I loved seeing the Monkey’s As the beauty and challenges of South America unfold， I feel drawn even closer to this little monkey family。 Eagerly reading through their tests and trials。 And then laughing out loud at John’s naked release of all stress！ （Spoiler？）Then the closing… a global pandemic that changed world travel indefinitely and certainly changed their journey。 I could not stop reading in the wee hours of the morning。 I had to know how it ended and where they went next。 Such a bittersweet cup of coca tea to swallow。 But I am eagerly awaiting the next book by Mary Hollendoner and more fun with Monkeys On The Road。 。。。more
Thaddeus
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Who says adventuring has to stop once you have kids？ Ms。 Hollendoner provides inspiration to outdoorsy parents everywhere as her story shows at least one way to combine wanderlust with family life。 Such a fun trip！
Tony Slater
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Absolutely fascinating and thoroughly enjoyable！This story of an intrepid couple of rock climbing junkies setting off on the road trip of a lifetime through central and south America – with their six-year-old daughter in tow – kept me completely enthralled。 It’s primarily a feel-good family road trip memoir full of nail-biting adventures， but also weaves in educational snippets about local history and exotic animal encounters， commentary on cultural differences， and realizations about happiness。 Absolutely fascinating and thoroughly enjoyable！This story of an intrepid couple of rock climbing junkies setting off on the road trip of a lifetime through central and south America – with their six-year-old daughter in tow – kept me completely enthralled。 It’s primarily a feel-good family road trip memoir full of nail-biting adventures， but also weaves in educational snippets about local history and exotic animal encounters， commentary on cultural differences， and realizations about happiness。 Traveling， living and bonding as a family， through difficult border crossings， mechanical difficulties and civil unrest， they survived and thrived in country after country。 It’s an optimistic and heart-warming tale， but replete with details about home-schooling， language barriers and bureaucracy that ground you in the realities of their situation。 Whether it was navigating high mountain passes， the beauty and generosity they encountered or the fascinating glimpses into so many different cultures， I devoured every page。 Hats off to them， too – they are far braver than I， to risk being stranded in some of the world’s most remote locations with a van that wasn’t always cooperative！ And to throw themselves so wholeheartedly into the communities they met， even if it meant winding up FAR outside their collective comfort zone！ And even having the， ah， gumption， to set out on such an epic adventure… I guess that’s what happens when people who hang thousands of feet up sheer cliff faces for fun take on the idea of life on the road… Thrilling stuff。 5 stars。 。。。more
Lisa Wright
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A fascinating journey through central and south America。 What an adventure this family had。 From deserted beaches in Baja California to armed guards in San Salvador， hospitable locals and noisy howler monkeys， sharks and bats， freedom and lockdown， they saw and learned so much on this journey and none more so than daughter Lilly。 From age six at the beginning of this book to nine by the end， Lilly’s growth was， for me， the most fascinating and wonderful aspect of a fabulous book。 Wow！ What an am A fascinating journey through central and south America。 What an adventure this family had。 From deserted beaches in Baja California to armed guards in San Salvador， hospitable locals and noisy howler monkeys， sharks and bats， freedom and lockdown， they saw and learned so much on this journey and none more so than daughter Lilly。 From age six at the beginning of this book to nine by the end， Lilly’s growth was， for me， the most fascinating and wonderful aspect of a fabulous book。 Wow！ What an amazing education she had and how much more important and life affirming than a stuffy schoolroom。 This sort of journey should be compulsory for all。Mary herself interacted with all sorts of people during their journey。 As she says， speaking fluent Spanish helped， as did having a child in children-loving Latin America but， the whole family also had that special gift…of listening to others and of being genuinely interested in others lives and histories， and that means much more。 。。。more
Julie Haigh
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