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Roots, Roads, & Revelations

As 1995 wound to a close, Katherine Krige prepared to leave home. Her father died when she was five years old, but she had always dreamed of learning more about him and where he came from. With university behind her, she aimed to find out. The trick was that his hometown was 13,000 kilometers away.

After a few letters to long-lost kin, a plan was put in motion. She gathered a passport, planned some initial adventures, and gamely left her old life behind. As soon as she stepped off the plane in Cape Town though, those plans quickly began to fall apart. Over the next several months, she learned more about her father’s homeland, and herself, as she trekked across Southern Africa. It wasn’t always easy, but growth never is.

Take a leap of faith and join Katherine as she explores her fears, sheds some tears, makes new friends, meets family, and experiences an incredible, life-changing journey that spanned 10 countries over 10 months. Grab a backpack…let’s go!

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About the Author

Katherine Krige is a Freelance Writer and Social Media Manager living in London, Ontario, Canada with two daughters. She graduated from York University with a B.A. in English and has taken several writing courses through Western University Continuing Studies. She fell in love with words at a young age and learned to manipulate them through regular journaling. These practices stood her in good stead when it came time to capture a journey of a lifetime in Africa. While nowadays she doesn’t get much further than her own backyard, her mind is still touring the world via memories, and she is always happy to share. You can find her on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and LinkedIn, plus the local coffee shop when they are open, scribbling in her latest journal.

www.katherinekrige.com
krigek@katherinekrige.com
https://www.facebook.com/KatherineKrigeFreelanceWriter
https://twitter.com/katherinekrige
https://www.linkedin.com/in/katherinekrige/

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Praise for Roughing it in Africa

“This book is both engaging and incredibly well written. You can actually feel, touch, taste, and see her experiences as she takes you on her amazing journey through Africa. I would highly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys a great read.”

– Suzanne Boles, Writing Instructor and Coach, Award-Winning Feature and Content Writer

“Not all of us are brave enough to head out on our own, travelling halfway around the world to discover our roots. Katherine Krige’s Roughing it in Africa lets us travel across foreign landscapes from the comforts of home. Part coming of age tale and part adventure story, this love letter to Africa will keep you turning pages. Equal parts excitement and introspection, this book takes us there and back again with a joyous enthusiasm and wry with. A truly enjoyable tale!”

– Corrie Haldane, Award-Winning Short Story Writer

“Katherine Krige’s new book takes readers on a wild adventure through 10 countries in 358 pages! One might think that this book is just a travel memoir—but it is so much more than that. This true backpacking story, Roughing it in Africa, tells of a once-in-a-lifetime journey many could only dream of.

Katherine’s story is about family connection, being in love (and losing it), being swept off one’s feet in quick and unexpected romances, and facing near death experiences. But other powerful topics are also addressed, such as white privilege, stereotypes, poverty, gender dynamics, bias and discrimination, and quite literally, the meaning of life.

Roughing it in Africa will feel like ‘a movie you can hold in your hands’ and just the trip that readers have been waiting for!”

– Daisy-Mae Hamelinck, Founder of Your New Leaf, College Professor, and Author

“Katherine’s words paint a wonderful picture of her adventures in Africa. Her book definitely entices me to visit many of the places she travelled to. Although, I confess, ‘roughing it’ is not so appealing, but I might consider ‘glamping’ in Africa.

I also love how Katherine was able to connect with relatives that she had never met. It was like she had a home-away-from-home, even if she was a whole other hemisphere away from her own bed.

Reading these personal tales has stoked the fire I have in me to return to Scotland and discover my roots. As a sixth generation Canadian, it might be a wee bit more difficult.

Congratulations on the launch of your book, Katherine!”

– Darin J. Addison, Parallel Creative Enterprises

“Roughing it in Africa grabbed my attention right from the first line. Katherine’s writing feels like a comfortable conversation between friends. I laughed, I cried, I learned, and now I’m inspired. I felt like I was right there with her!”

– Rebecca Summerfield, Career Services Consultant at Fanshawe College

“I’m 50 pages in and I’m hooked! The author has a way of taking you by the hand and leading you on adventures that you would swear were your own. I can’t wait to see what’s in store for us next!”

– Rick Stamp

“At a time when travel has been shut down and our homes have become the outer limit of our world, Roughing it in Africa, a travel memoir by Katherine Krige, is a wonderful adventure and much needed escape.

Roughing it in Africa transports us back to a time of youth and innocence as Krige ventures far from her home in Canada to South Africa, the birthplace of a father she never got to know. Her trip to South Africa is a journey to discover her roots, to leave behind a broken love, and to explore an unknown land that has called to her all her life.

Though Krige draws you in through her vivid descriptions—from the shanty towns of Cape Town to white water rafting on the Mighty Zambezi and the game parks of Zimbabwe—she leaves her mark through her recollections of friendships formed and bonds forged. Krige and her fellow travellers build connections through a mutual commitment to living in the moment, and to exploring and experiencing Africa to the fullest.

As Krige relays her adventures we see her growing awareness of the poverty and racism that continues to haunt South Africa to this day. And we see the beautiful awakening of a young traveller growing up and becoming a resilient, mindful, and compassionate young woman. Roughing it in Africa: Roots, Roads, and Revelations is a journey well worth taking.”

– Nancy Clarke, Owner/Artist at Acme Animal

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