"The Discovery of Jeanne Baret" by Glynis Ridley

What an absolutely fascinating biography! Open this book and enjoy the story of Jeanne Baret, the first woman to circumnavigate the world. While that alone is remarkable, you must also take into consideration the fact that she disguised herself as a man to do this. After all, this was 18th century France, and the Royal Law declared that no woman was ever allowed on a Naval ship. Ever. Baret gained access to the voyage by acting as the servant of Philibert Commerson, the noted botanist, who also happened to be her lover. Her peasant upbringing gave her vast knowledge of herbs and plants, especially those that had medicinal uses, and so she was actually quite necessary to Commerson's success on the expedition. The pair made thousands of discoveries through the Strait of Magellan, on South Pacific Islands like Tahiti, as well as Mauritius. The two year journey was quite the eventful adventure.

Despite her historical accomplishments, very little is known about Baret. She was on board in disguise, and disguised as a servant which would certainly not be viewed upon with any importance by the officers of the ships. The author has done an incredible job researching what little paper trail exists on Baret (and her pseudonyms) as well as the prominent people who may have crossed paths with her. She has also researched the social and political attitudes prevalent in that time to help paint a convincing picture not only of what life must have been like for Baret, but also what she must have seen and discovered. Baret certainly had a tough go of things; constantly on edge, stressed about the possibility of her true gender being known and what 300 men might do to her with that knowledge. Unfortunately, her fears were not completely unfounded.

This biography was very easy to read, and actually felt more like fiction than non-fiction. The text does not get too heavily weighed down with botanical details or scientific data, but rather relates the information in a manner that flows nicely. There is a lot of drama in Baret's story, which helped keep the story moving and kept me rooting for her. I also enjoyed the peripheral information shared by the author, including the native Tahitian philosophy regarding transsexuals, and the origin of the nursery rhyme "Peter Piper". I also didn't expect Voltaire to have figured in this tale, but he actually helped get Commerson (and in turn, Baret) on board the expedition in the first place! I am glad Baret's story hasn't been completely lost from the historical record, and that we can now read and appreciate her life.

*****

The Discovery of Jeanne Baret

by Glynis Ridley

Broadway, 2011. Originally published 2010

304 pages

Source:  The publisher for honest review

*****

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