Nonfiction Review: Joy Ride

Posted on May 7, 2024 at 6:24 am by Gene Ambaum

Joy Ride: A Bike Odyssey from Alaska to Argentina by Kristen Jokinen. Introduction by Cheryl Strayed. Hawthorne Books & Literary Arts, 2023. 9780998825755. 268pp.

With the outlines of a plan and a budget of $800 a month, Kristen Jokinen and her husband Ville set off from Prudhoe Bay, Alaska, on their way to Bahia Lapataia in Argentina, the end of Highway Three “just past” (easy for me to say) Ushuaia, Argentina. Like me you may assume the Jokinens were bike people before the start of their journey. They were not! And they’re not planners, at least not much past which road they’re taking the next day. I admire that almost as much as their ability to reach out to others for help, whether it’s for a place to camp, a much-needed spare part, or medical care. (Worth noting: The trip is difficult in all of the ways you can imagine and some you probably can’t, but the specifics are harrowing and make for a great read. Plus it’s kind of a book about how to be an awesome spouse, too.)

Mostly this book left me with the sense that folks all over the world are much kinder to each other and even to (or especially to) strangers in their midst, which I really need to feel right now. I’m not one to read many books about travel, but for me this is one of my favorites, right up there with Casey Scieszka and Steven Weinberg’s To Timbuktu. I’ve already given a copy as a gift and I plan to buy several more.

The Jokinens were guests on Episode 73 of the Labyrinths with Amanda Knox podcast, which I highly recommend listening to if you’re on the fence about reading this.