A Trip of One's Own : Hope, heartbreak and why travelling solo could change your life

If Joan Didion was right, and we do tell ourselves stories in order to live, then a travel story is the best story of them all. And I had form for escaping in stories... After an unexpected divorce, after less than a year of marriage, Kate Wills decides to lose herself in her job.

As a travel journalist, Kate has the the perfect opportunity to escape from it all by exploring the world.

This time, though, things were different: Kate felt more alone, particularly against a backdrop of never-ending hen dos, weddings and baby showers. So, she began to search history for female travellers to inspire her.

From a 4th-century nun to a globe-girdling cyclist to a cross-dressing French voyager who circumnavigated the world, Kate discovers that throughout history, there have been astonishing women who've broken free from burdensome expectations, clearing the path for us to do the same. A Trip of One's Own is a funny, heartfelt and inspiring invitation to take that trip of a lifetime: to Australia, to Paris, to Whitstable, or maybe down that street you've always wondered about.