In a deeply researched and engagingly written narrative of science, adventure, love, and an unprecedented voyage of discovery, Ridley reveals the true story of Jeanne Baret, the first woman to circumnavigate the globe.

"A list of medicinal plants" : the botanist and the herb woman -- "To Jeanne Baret, also known as Jeanne de Bonnefoy" : a changed identity in Paris -- "A masquerade of devils" : crossing the line -- "Placing me under arrest" : the Bougainvillea and the South Atlantic -- "His beast of burden" : on the shores of the Strait of Magellan -- "Venus showed herself" : Tahiti exposed -- "The location of hell" : Baret on New Ireland -- "The true promised land" : making a home on Mauritius and botanizing on Madagascar -- "A monument more durable than a pyramid" : journey's end.