March is Women’s History Month—a time to celebrate the resilience, leadership, and impact of women throughout history. Wild Girls: How the Outdoors Shaped the Women Who Challenged a Nation, by historian Tiya Miles, is a captivating, timely read. This beautifully written and well-researched book explores how nature played a pivotal role in the lives of some of America’s most fearless and influential women.
What does it mean to find strength and purpose in the natural world? Miles explores this question thoroughly, bringing to life the women who found a sense of self in the outdoors, often in girlhood.
Miles shares the formative experiences of such luminaries as union organizer Dolores Huerta and acclaimed sci-fi author Octavia Butler. Each discovered a source of resilience and inspiration in the natural world.
A fascinating chapter covers the the late 19th-century Indigenous women’s basketball team from Fort Shaw, Montana. Like so many Native American children, the girls were forced to attend a government school. But through basketball, the teenaged players reclaimed something the school tried to take from them—their physicality and self-possession. The would go on to crush the white teams at the 1904 World’s Fair in St. Louis.
Hoosiers might be particularly interested in the Indiana ties of Dakota writer Gertrude Simmons Bonin (pen name Zitkála-Šá). As a student at Earlham College, she represented her school in an 1886 statewide speech competition in Indianapolis. Her speech made the case for interracial respect. She took second place in the contest, even in the face of racial slurs from attendees. She would go on to advocate for the right to vote.
Well-known historical figures are also featured. Witness Harriet Tubman’s daring journeys through wooded landscapes. Discover Louisa May Alcott’s reflections on nature’s role in her writing. Learn the true backstory of young Sacagawea, without the romanticized “Indian princess” narrative. As a sixteen-year-old, she deftly interpreted the people, landscapes, and geopolitics of her time to Lewis and Clark, all while caring for her newborn as the sole woman in a company of thirty men.
Tiya Miles’ storytelling is compelling. The book is illustrated with numerous photos and augmented with endnotes for more historical insight. For those of us passionate about conservation, Wild Girls serves as both an inspiration and a call to action. It reminds us that nature is not just a place of recreation but a force for change. It underscores the importance of ensuring that outdoor spaces remain accessible and welcoming to all.
As we honor the contributions of women this month, let’s also reflect on how the outdoors can be a space of empowerment and resistance. Whether you’re a lifelong conservationist, a lover of history, or someone who simply enjoys a walk in the woods, this book offers a fresh perspective on how nature shapes us—and how we, in turn, can protect it for future generations.
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Further reading: Tiya Miles’ latest book is Night Flyer: Harriet Tubman and the Faith Dreams of a Free People.
Shawndra Miller
Communications Director