Book Review: My Life on the Road

My Life on the Road, written by Gloria Steinem, chronicles the famed feminist organizer’s experiences from a life filled with travels. From taxi rides thought to be mundane to a conference on women’s rights in Houston, Texas, Steinem demonstrates the value of listening to all in her life spent on the road. Gloria Steinem started her writing career as a columnist for New York magazine before becoming a co-founder of Ms. magazine in 1972. She gained widespread attention for her work in the Feminist Movement in the 1960s and 1970s, though, as mentioned in her book, she infinitely prefers listening to public speaking.

In My Life On the Road- her newest book- after a twenty-year hiatus as an author, Steinem details her travels and their influence on her life and career. The book begins with a dedication to Dr. John Sharpe, a doctor who, in 1957, referred a 22 year-old Steinem for an illegal abortion on her way to India. Sharpe made Steinem promise him two things: that she would not tell anyone his name, and that she would do what she wanted to with her life. Steinem dedicates the book to him, and says that she has done her best with her life.

Along with this moving dedication, Steinem’s book includes stories from her childhood and shows how a life of traveling with her father has shaped her into someone who becomes restless remaining in one place for too long. Spending time traveling in her father’s car has also led Steinem away from solitary methods of transportation- she does not have a driver’s license. Steinem also writes about the two years she spent in India after graduating from Smith College, and how these two influences helped ignite her love for travel.

Much of the book focuses on Steinem’s work as a feminist organizer, writer and political activist. She tells of her time listening to Martin Luther King Jr’s “I have a dream” speech at the March on Washington in 1963; however, instead of focusing on the well-known speech, she writes about her conversation with another listener who pointed out the lack of African American women organizers that were on the stage with King.

Steinem also shares stories on her work with political campaigns, intermingled with the personal tales of people she has met in restaurants and taxi drivers whose cabs she has ridden in. She devotes a portion of the book to her work at the National Women’s Conference held in Houston in 1977. During this conference, Steinem worked tirelessly to make sure that all voices were heard in this event which she describes as one of the most important in history.

At times, the book can become confusing, as Steinem tells stories out of order, instead organizing them by similar themes and their impact on her. However, it is an important read, as it encourages its audience to listen instead of speak, while sharing details from movements for equality. In this way, the book becomes a quasi-history lesson, sharing insider perspectives on the women’s and farmworker’s political movements Steinem has worked on.

My Life On the Road is a worthwhile read because it shares an overarching message that can be found in every story it features; every moment in the book presents the readers an opportunity to become informed from different perspectives.