Mountain to Mountain

July 15, 2014
An adventurous American mountain biker's journey ofself-discovery in Afghanistan."It's a place I'm inexplicably drawn to-wanting tounderstand it in hopes that I may understand myself," writes Galpin, whose lifewas derailed by a violent attack and rape in her early 20s. She later helpedwith fundraising to help girls' schools in Afghanistan, and she became thefirst American woman to mountain bike in Afghanistan. Since then, she has madeseveral trips there, developing relationships and pursuing her own brand ofactivism. Full of vivid anecdotes, the narrative is most enjoyable whenrecounting the author's chronicles of her travel and interactions with Afghans.Galpin also takes us through her divorce and her struggles as a single motherin Boulder while founding her nonprofit, Mountain2Mountain, to promote"the power of voice" through support of the arts and bike riding bywomen. Eventually, this led to a photography exhibit in Afghanistan, a TEDtalk, her meeting with the Afghan women's national cycling team, and hercreation of an international program, Strength in Numbers. The power of voiceis a constant theme, though what exactly that power amounts to in either thepolitical or spiritual realm remains somewhat vague. Galpin seems anxious aboutbeing heard, sometimes to the point of undermining the power of her book withlong sections in which she defends her choices as a mother and activist andairs her frustrations with the world of nonprofit organizations. Her manydescriptions of uniformly upbeat banter with her young daughter also feelindirectly defensive. However, her respect and love for the Afghan people isapparent, as are her nerve and determination to help those in need.An uneven but ultimately inspiring personal story of anAmerican mountain biker finding her vocation as an international activist.

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September 1, 2014
Galpin's heart is in the right place. She wants to help empower women and girls in Afghanistan, and she starts her new life path by being the first woman to ride a mountain bike in Afghanistan. A single parent with one daughter, with a home base in Breckinridge, Colorado, Galpin initially finds her niche in fund-raising (inspired by the efforts of Greg Mortenson and his Three Cups of Tea, 2006), and she starts her own nonprofit, Mountain2Mountain, with the hope of helping to establish schools while modeling the freedomseven those as simple and basic as bike ridingthat all women deserve. Her very personal story moves back and forth from Colorado to Afghanistan, with its tone sometimes as bumpy as the bombed-out roads she attempts to ride. Readers seeking inspiration on how they can make a difference in the world will find it here, though, combined with a bit of luck, humor, and the strength to find a way to make dreamsyours and othersbegin to come true.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2014, American Library Association.)