Jane Dolinger: The Adventurous Life of an American Travel Writer

For almost forty years, Jane Dolinger traveled the world and wrote about her adventures, from the Amazon jungle to the sands of the Sahara. She produced eight books and more than a thousand articles between 1955 and 1995, and she also earned a reputation as a glamorous celebrity and model. Jane Dolinger was an anomaly in her time, a dynamic and attractive woman with an impressive literary talent, a woman who lived and documented a most unconventional and inspirational life. Sometimes controversial but always outstanding, Jane was a pioneer among women and writers. Here for the first time, her life and work are studied in a thoroughly researched yet entertaining literary biography.

Table of Contents:
From the Smoky Mountains to the Gran Pajonal * "What Could Be More Ridiculous Than a Girl in the Jungle?" * The Queen of the Jungle Goes Headhunting * Her First Solo Flight, and a Mixed Reception * Veronica , Jane's Revealing Bullfighting Novel * The Adventuress Turns Art Model Turns Jet Setter * Behind Harem Walls , Jane's Most Daring Adventure * The Traveler, the Socialite, the Writer, the Model * A Bold Excursion into the World of the Jaguar Princess

About the Author :
Lawrence Abbott is a Lecturer at theCenter for Programs in Contemporary Writing, University of Pennsylvania.

Review :
"A fascinating and engrossing study of a ground-breaking woman traveler and writer. The subject of this biography, Jane Dolinger, demonstrates that the mid-twentieth-century idea that the jungle was 'no place for a girl' was wrong. Abbott's careful and sympathetic study places this amazing popular writer's life in its historical and literary context. Recommended for women's studies, popular culture, and travel studies scholars." - Robin Roberts, Professor of English and Women's and Gender Studies, Louisiana State University "Like Amelia Earhart, Jackie Kennedy, and others, Jane Dolinger was an Alpha Woman who carved out a unique, grand life in inspirational style. To learn of her exploits and read her travel pieces, one wonders why she isn't already among the top tier of the most admired women in history. Thankfully, Abbott's lively, well-researched biography makes Jane's lasting contribution to the travel genre abundantly clear." - Tina Santi Flaherty, author of What Jackie Taught Us: Lessons from the Remarkable Life of Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis