Valley of Giants: Stories from Women at the Heart of Yosemite Climbing bravely fills in the gaps in the long canon of American climbing literature. With over thirty-five stories dating back to the 1930s, this anthology is the first compilation of women’s voices told from the epicenter of American rock climbing. Contributors include Ruth Dyar Mendenhall, Liz Robbins, Molly Higgins, Maria Cranor, Julie Brugger, Silvia Vidal, Chelsea Griffie, Steph Davis, Beth Rodden, Lynn Hill, Babsi Zangerl, and many more. With more than thirty-five first-hand accounts of adventure, joy, and passion, Valley of Giants is a groundbreaking historical collection bound to inspire generations of adventurers.
2023 Women Writing the West WILLA Literary Award Finalist in Scholarly Nonfiction
2023 Independent Publisher Book Award Silver Winner in Anthologies
2022 Banff Mountain Book Competition Climbing Literature Winner
2022 Foreword INDIES Book of the Year Awards Finalist in Women's Studies
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Banff Mountain Book Competition
Valley of Giants was awarded the 2022 Banff Mountain Book Competition Climbing Literature Award! I am deeply honored to receive this recognition.
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Dirtbag State of Mind
Luke Mehall and the Climbing Zine published my first personal essay back in 2018, and I’m thrilled to be a guest on his podcast!
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Outdoor Retailer Daily
Valley of Giants was featured in Day 2 of the Summer 2022 Outdoor Retailer Daily magazine. The story features an introduction from me and an excerpt of Josie McKee’s beautiful story, “Is It Worth It?”
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GearJunkie
So grateful for this wonderful feature in GearJunkie!
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Climbing Gold Podcast
I was so pleased to join Alex Honnold to talk about Valley of Giants, the role of women in climbing history, and one of my all-time heroes, Lydia Bradey.
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Gripped Magazine
Gripped Magazine contributor Tom Valis wrote a wonderful review of Valley of Giants.
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The Firn Line Podcast
I was thrilled to join my friend Evan on his podcast, The Firn Line. I love this show and had an awesome time talking about writing, books, and inspiration.
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The RunOut Podcast
Check out this fun conversation I had with RunOut podcast hosts Chris Kalous and Andrew Bisharat about Valley of Giants and why telling women’s history is so important to me.
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Literary Hub
Literary Hub featured an excerpt of Lynn Hill’s contribution to Valley of Giants, including an introduction I wrote about the importance of Lynn to the world of rock climbing.
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Climbing Magazine
Check out a preview of the book through Beth Rodden’s story “Meltdown” which I introduce and contextualize for readers.
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American Alpine Club Guidebook to Membership
For the 2021 Guidebook to Membership, I worked with the American Alpine Club to give a glimpse into my journey to find the heart of Yosemite.
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Climbing Magazine
An interview with Climbing Magazine about my path to Valley of Giants and things I learned along the way
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Enormocast
Episode 215 of the Enormocast podcast features an interview I conducted in March 2021 about my path to climbing and how it led me to writing Valley of Giants.