Nastasia Yakoub

It is not easy to write a review for this book, because there are some aspects I absolutely love about it, and others that I do not like at all. Moreover, I followed the author on instagram for several years and even exchanged messages with her. She is a very kind person and it is not easy for me to criticize her work, but I will try because there are a few things I need to point out in my review.
"Dame Traveler" is a beautiful coffee table book that includes two hundred photographs taken by traveling women, most of them solo travelers. This book stems from the Dame Traveler instagram account, which was one of the first female travel accounts on instagram and created a community of female solo travelers.
The book therefore has two components:
1. Beautiful photographs of many destinations around the world, mostly depicting the female traveler as well as a background of wonderful scenery, nature, architecture etc.
2. Tips, quotes and short texts (similar to instagram postings) encouraging women to travel solo, giving information on specific destinations or topics like safety, hotels or transport, relating personal stories of how the different women overcame different obstacles in order to be able to travel, or just cheering other female travelers on.

The photos are of the typical instagram variety: Women wearing white or colorful dresses or hipster outfits posing in front of the beautiful scenery, mostly gazing at it, so the person looking at the picture does not see the woman's face. The photos are beautiful indeed, but well, there are a million pictures of this kind all over instagram. The women only use the scenery as a backdrop to show themselves, and there is nothing really new about these kind of pictures. While they are perfect, to me they are also boring - even more so because it is obvious that they are totally contrived, that the women probably brought the dresses and accessories with them in bags, in many places waited in a queue to get to the famous spot, got changed and then posed until they got the perfect shot...

The texts are a mixed bag. I enjoyed many of these snippets, especially those about the emotions you feel when you travel. I could relate to many of them: The goosebumps when you first see a very new place, the excitement and the energy, but also times of loneliness. I was never really afraid on any trip, but I know the feeling of strength and self-esteem I develop through travel. All this is referenced in many of the texts. The safety tips were good as well (I knew most of them, but they might be handy for new travelers). The destination tips were a bit off to me, because I do not think that a very detailed tip about a hike, a beach or a viewpoint is that helpful if you have not planned the trip at all so far or have not even started doing the basic research about the destination.

My main criticism of the book is that to me, the texts and photos on the one hand and the proposed message of the book on the other hand do not really match. If travel is for everyone, if you want to encourage ordinary women to travel solo, why only show curated, perfect photographs that show dressed up, styled women in the most extraordinary locations? Why feature luxury hotels, destinations that are very hard to reach, and make it look like things have to be perfect in order to enjoy them? It is my main criticism of the travel community on instagram, and of this book as well. Because travel has not to be luxurious and perfect at all.
For most young women who start solo traveling, travel will be cheap hostels, long bus rides, and meals at fast-food restaurants. Maybe some women - and mainly the so-called influencers or those fortunate enough to be sponsored by their parents - will be able to travel like this book shows, but what about the others? Depictions like these might make them wait for better days to come because they might think that if their travels do not look like this, they will be worthless. And I hate the thought of that.

On a more positive note, the book is inclusive in many aspects. It features Black women and women of color, there are accounts of travelers with a disability and pictures of women who have a high weight. Some of the travelers are hijabis, there is a lesbian travel couple and there are women who travel with toddlers. The author herself is Iraqi-American and has overcome prejudice and expectations in order to lead the life she wished for.
However, as much as I like the spirit of "Go for it! You can do it!", I would have liked to see more reality in this book.… (more)