Member Reviews
I LOVE JESSICA NABONGO! This book is absolutely amazing (even if its only a sample preview), it highlights so many incredible destinations that so often to get overlooked. I've been following Nabongo on instagram for years now and this book really delivered in giving a more personal insight into her incredible journey. She's such an impressive influencer, traveler, and creator and I truly believe that everyone needs to read her story.
I've followed the last few months of Jessica's world tour.
This book provides an outstanding summary of that adventure as well as a mini-autobiography.
It's fascinating to see how being a descendant of Uganda immigrants keeps a foot in both worlds.
I would have liked the book to be more about reflections rather than blow-by-blow accounting of all the misadventures.
Both are important, but broad philosophical and cultural observations are best.
I hope to have her on my WanderLearn podcast.
It feels a bit like a book version of a curated Instagram feed, butt he message of exploring the world and enjoying what you can learn from other people and places is well worth hearing.
'The Catch Me if You Can' is an inspired journey through some of the world's most incredible destinations. Through words and photography, author Jessica Nabongo takes her readers on an adventure, inviting them to learn more about culture, tradition, travel, and connection. In the worlds of an experienced traveller, the world does not seem so big or distant, and to discover it all, just like Jessica, no longer seems so impossible. This is a beautifully illustrated travelogue perfect for aspiring world adventurers.
It's difficult to review a book from just a sample. I think it could be interesting overall though, but the sample was very small and felt choppy because of this.
A page into this book, while reading the introduction, I realized the power that comes simply with being born in the USA. To be able to get up and leave your job, for whatever reason, is not something that people where I'm from have the liberty to do. To be able to travel across continents in the 90s is unheard of and are usually only for the rich and famous. This book made me realize how being born American, no matter your parent's heritage, gave a person such a huge advantage. And it made me wonder, if most of them could ever see it through our eyes, the privilege of being born American. That being said, though, it never occurred to me, that being an American born to foreign parents is, in itself, a struggle. It's a good read and really well-written. I'd really like for an opportunity to read the whole book.
Loved this sample and I have added it to my TBR to get the full book when it comes out. Jessica seems to live a beauty and exciting life. It's hard to rate a book off of the sampler, but I am certainly intrigued !
Unfortunately, I was only given a sample of this book to review, but the small snippets that I was able to see were beautiful and well done. Jessica Nabongo has lived an amazing life and has seen some amazing places. This could be a great book to spark a travel-lust within a reader who has only dreamed of seeing the world.
I loved this book just the preview alone was amazing and i cannot wait to see what amazing stories and photographs the full one has.
Although a long book it is inspiring, interesting, full of adventure and travel which I do love. And at this pint in time with travel having been stopped for us all it was nice to be able to read of someone else's journey.
Jessica Nabongo shared her travel stories with us, the good and the bad, the ups and the downs and this is what made it so real. To hear all the stories not just the tales of all the fun and beauty but also the tales of the culture, the hardships, the people and the differences.
This is a book for anyone that loves and misses travel and loves adventure and real life, real people and the real world.
I was very pleased to receive a preview copy of this book from Net Galley. I felt like I was right by Jessica's side as she descried the beautiful countries she visited. Her stories of locales which I have also visited although briefly, brought back pleasant memories - Japan, Korea, Taiwan, and others in the Far East.... the beauty of mountains, rivers, and the culture of the people who lived in these countries. I loved the photos - my only wish were that they were in color, specially the mosques she described in Afghanistan with the exquisite colored tiles. She sounds like a fascinating woman who is a travel expert, I would love to hear her speak or read more of her work.
This sample was enough to suck me in and know I will purchase and read this book in it’s entirety when it publishes.
This was a very condensed version of what appears to be a wonderful travel journal by Jessica Nabongo, the first African American woman to travel to every country in the world. I would have loved to have read it in it’s entirety, and will consider buying it when it comes out in hopes of doing so.
What a fun sample to read. I want more!
Jessica Nabongo's life sounds super interesting and the way she describes the sights she's seen, her background, her life, career, and obstacles to travel - at least from what I read in this sample - sound a fantastical epic. I felt like I was traveling with her as I listened to her relate her family story, her background. Obviously I wasn't able to read the entirety of the book, but assuming the tone stayed consistent to the sample I'd probably give the full book 5 stars.
This seems like an amazing book, but what I received what just a sample of a few pages so I can't really provide an accurate review.
Jessica Nabongo seems like an interesting person with incredible experiences. The one photo and few pages included in the sample have my intrigued and interested to read more about her travels.
This was a sample book to review, the introduction is interesting and I'm sure there is some excellent photography however I can't see it in the copy i received to review.
Thank you #NetGalley for the opportunity to have a taster of the full version.
Traveler and photographer Jessica Nabongo—the first Black woman on record to visit all 195 countries in the world—shares her journey around the globe with fascinating stories of adventure, culture, travel musts, and human connections.
This sample was fascinating! I'm not a well traveled person at all, but the way Ms. Nabongo writes is like speaking with a friend about how much fun you had on your latest trip. This is a memoir and travel log, and is quite engaging. The photos and layout of the book are beautiful, and I can see this being a coffee table book or one that you'd want to display. I'm looking forward to reading the whole book!
This review is provided based on a sample of the book.
As soon as I read the description of the book, I knew this was going to be a book the pulls me from the very beginning. Reading just the sample makes me want to know more about Nabongo's travel experiences. I've read many travel books, but it's rare to read them written by women of color, let alone a Black woman. From reading about the mosques of Iran, familial memories and experiences in Uganda, and the misconceptions of countries in the media. The book is sure to be an inspiration for many, but especially for me, as a Black woman. I cannot wait to read the full edition!
Jessica Nabongo is the first Black woman to travel to 195 countries and she is a huge inspiration to me. I started following her on social media and watching her on youtube. I have seen ten percent of the world and I am an avid traveler in my mid forties. She has accomplished so much!
When I saw she wrote a book I couldn't wait to read it. I was very happy that NetGalley had a sample of The Catch Me if You Can by Jessica Nabongo on it's site.
The book has personal stories of her life, her family and her travels. I only read a small part of her book but I am hooked. I cannot wait to read the full book. Bravo!
Thank you to NetGalley and National Geographic for an ARC of this sample.
Jessica Nabongo has beautifully captured her travel to 195 countries weaving in her personal stories and experiences in different places. A Detroit born Ugandan-American woman, she is an inspiring and adventurous globetrotter, and her book displays stunning photos captured on her journeys. Though I was not privileged to a full advanced copy of this book, the sample preview that I received is stunning. I am excited for its launch and it makes for a great coffee table book.
I recomend this book for those who enjoy reading about traveling, especially on woman solo travelers.
Thank you to NetGalley and National Geographic for an ARC of this sample.