Three Women Awheel
A Victorian Cycling Club Story
Book VI in the Tales of Chetzemoka
Buy it on Amazon!
In the springtime of 1886, three women leave their comfortable homes and head out for a mountain retreat, bound for adventure and self-discovery. Addie's old friend Ethel has been away at the Territorial University of Washington for the past four years, earning her Bachelor of Science degree. So much has happened in that time, they scarcely know each other any more. When Ethel proposes a trip to a hot spring on Mt. Rainier that the other students raved about, it seems like a perfect opportunity to re-build old bonds and create new ones. Addie invites her friend Lizzie along, sure that the trip will become a golden memory for all of them. But as they head out to the mountain together, each woman carries the problems of home with her. On the eve of their departure, Addie makes a discovery that shakes her faith in her perfect marriage to its very core. Lizzie can't stop thinking about her own failure to realize her ultimate dream, and Ethel wonders if she'll ever work out what, exactly, it means to be a woman. Their journey together presents its own challenges, not the least of which begin when Ethel adopts an orphaned owl chick and decides to bring it along with them. Before they can all go home again, each of the three women will have to look to her friends for advice on dealing with life's difficult issues, and at the same time look within herself to find her own definition of womanhood.
Manuscript pages of Three Women Awheel
Recipes From The Book:
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Cheylesmore tricycle
(Catalog illustration of Addie and Lizzie's tricycles.)
Rotary Roadster
(Catalog Illustration of Ethel's tricycle.)
"…She was the color of a peach dipped head-first in chocolate. Her fluffy body was a soft apricot color, while her head was a rich brown with a V-shaped splash of white that looked like fierce little eyebrows. Her eyes, deep and mysterious, had irises the color of a harvest moon around pupils like a silent midnight. Ethel had heard of love at first sight, but she'd never known what it was until she looked into the eyes of this beautiful little creature…"
--Three Women Awheel, chapter VIII
Antique Victorian playing cards, from our private collection. Get them printed on bags and other merchandise on Zazzle!
"…Ethel adjusted her spectacles, then looked up from a page filled with complicated mathematical equations. She had been amusing herself by drawing random cards from a deck she'd brought with her and then calculating the probabilities of the hands she'd dealt herself…"
--Three Women Awheel, chapter VI
"…Ethel… realized that Addie and Lizzie were looking at her impatiently, waiting for the rest of the story.
She went on: "He could have easily taken his pick from the lady students, but instead he set his eye on the one and only choice who outclassed all of us —and not just us, but himself as well. Our Latin and Greek teacher, Professor Hansee."…"
--Three Women Awheel, chapter VII
"…"Is this a Peacemaker?"
Ethel shook her head. "Rainmaker. Different grip."
He nodded, re-examining the curved birds-head grip. He checked that the piece was loaded, then looked at the firing mechanism. "This is a fancy sleeve for a lady to be carrying through the woods."…"
--Three Women Awheel, chapter XX
Longmire's Mineral Springs
"…A large wooden structure matched the picture of the hotel which had been on the advertising flyer. A small outbuilding stood to one side of the hotel; a barn was at the edge of the alpine glen; and construction had just begun on another building. Everything was simply made of cedar clapboards and shingles without any architectural frills, but they all looked sturdy enough to withstand a harsh mountain winter.
Addie stretched her stiff limbs and draped her mule's reins across its back. "You two rest for a minute," she told Lizzie and Ethel. "I'll let them know we're here."…"
--Three Women Awheel, chapter XV
"…Her thoughts wandered back home again, to the meringued coffee she liked to make for Jacob. Strong coffee, with sugar, hot milk and whipped cream. She'd found the recipe in one of her cookbooks, and Jacob always said that it was the most romantic way to make coffee that he'd ever encountered. He said that having it on their breakfast table was like having a touch of Vienna or Paris magically transported to the American West."…"
--Three Women Awheel, chapter XV
A 19th-century recipe for meringued coffee appears at the end of the book!
Slideshow: Wrappers advertised in the 1886 Bloomingdale's catalog
" "—And it's not the only thing. At least we're all wearing wrappers."
Lizzie sighed and nodded but Ethel asked curiously, "Why does that signify?"…"
--Three Women Awheel, chapter XXIV
"…"Can we start with that breakfast dish you tried to show me before?"
…"Eggs on foam?"
--Three Women Awheel, chapter XXIV
A 19th-century recipe for eggs on foam appears at the end of the book!
"…Athena loved Addie's shiny brass telescope and spent a considerable amount of time inspecting her queerly distorted reflection in the side of the tube…"--Three Women Awheel, chapter XXIX
"…As for the sound of Ethel's typewriter, it always drew Athena like a siren's call…"
--Three Women Awheel, chapter XXIX
Extra notes from the appendix of Three Women Awheel:
In Chapter XXV of Three Women Awheel, Ethel's pet owl Athena tries to kill Addie's sock, thinking it's prey. I got the idea for the scene from falconry expert Elke Emmermann, whose pet barn owl Lookie attacks unguarded socks. There's a hilarious bit in one of Elke's recent videos where Elke is trying to educate people about owl ownership, and at about the 4 minute mark Lookie flies off to steal a sock: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=smu-N6KFrH4&feature=em-uploademail&fbclid=IwAR0zcz4hRFqQxnFmmT-OrustfvMT6LN7Y1b3lXymA-3WYhJnpFr5YTqEfVg I love Elke's reaction when she realizes Lookie's not going to give up her "prey": "This sock is about to die. I'm sorry, Sock…"
More about Lookie and socks https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hTbUV_iQsZs&t=330s
I hope everyone who enjoyed this book will check out Ms. Emmermann's website: <http://owl-falconry-learn-how-to.blogspot.com/>
She also makes owl-themed merchandise! https://teespring.com/stores/vegan-hippie
In Chapter XXV of Three Women Awheel, Ethel's pet owl Athena tries to kill Addie's sock, thinking it's prey. I got the idea for the scene from falconry expert Elke Emmermann, whose pet barn owl Lookie attacks unguarded socks. There's a hilarious bit in one of Elke's recent videos where Elke is trying to educate people about owl ownership, and at about the 4 minute mark Lookie flies off to steal a sock: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=smu-N6KFrH4&feature=em-uploademail&fbclid=IwAR0zcz4hRFqQxnFmmT-OrustfvMT6LN7Y1b3lXymA-3WYhJnpFr5YTqEfVg I love Elke's reaction when she realizes Lookie's not going to give up her "prey": "This sock is about to die. I'm sorry, Sock…"
More about Lookie and socks https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hTbUV_iQsZs&t=330s
I hope everyone who enjoyed this book will check out Ms. Emmermann's website: <http://owl-falconry-learn-how-to.blogspot.com/>
She also makes owl-themed merchandise! https://teespring.com/stores/vegan-hippie
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Praise for Three Women Awheel on Amazon:
Another lovely historical fiction from Sarah Chrisman!
brooksiesgal
Another lovely story in the Tales of Chetzemoka series. This one is mainly ladies and deals with some more tender subjects that, while set in a historic context, are certainly relatable to a modern audience. Once again I found myself whisked along on a well-wheeled journey in history in this novel that I can share with my daughter and my grandmother alike. Good clean fiction that's easy to read and hard to put down.
Wonderful! Wild! Women! Wheels!
Rachel A.
Sarah Chrisman has done it again! I can't help but laugh that Jacob, Felix, and Ken's vacation in *A Trip and a Tumble* is all furs and gasogene sodas while Addie, Lizzie, and our new friend Ethel end up pushing their cycles through the Pacific Northwest mud. One of the most feminist stories I've ever read, Sarah Chrisman, once again, seamlessly draws together perspectives on history, society, and culture that ring true throughout history. Her extensive research into naturalist (scientific) practices of the day, Tacoma, Mt. Rainier, owl habits, and even the firearms of the day adds an irreplaceable vivacity to the story and captures the imagination unlike anything else could. Her characters feel truly alive and I hope we can all strive to be as creative and well-read as Addie, as compassionate and humble as Lizzie, and as determined and reasonable as Ethel. I can't wait for the next chance to return to Chetzemoka and everyone's magnificent adventures!
Obviously a labor of love.
Soup Girl
Sarah Chrisman has done it again, bringing us a delightful exploration of factual history seamlessly woven into a sweet story that shows how 19th century relationships have a lot more in common with our modern lives than we might think. Her characters are well developed and relatable. Her details of late 19th century life are highly entertaining, a product of her extensive research and experiential living. Sarah’s love of this historical time period is obvious throughout the book. I look forward to the next installment with impatient curiosity.
Praise for Three Women Awheel on Amazon:
Another lovely historical fiction from Sarah Chrisman!
brooksiesgal
Another lovely story in the Tales of Chetzemoka series. This one is mainly ladies and deals with some more tender subjects that, while set in a historic context, are certainly relatable to a modern audience. Once again I found myself whisked along on a well-wheeled journey in history in this novel that I can share with my daughter and my grandmother alike. Good clean fiction that's easy to read and hard to put down.
Wonderful! Wild! Women! Wheels!
Rachel A.
Sarah Chrisman has done it again! I can't help but laugh that Jacob, Felix, and Ken's vacation in *A Trip and a Tumble* is all furs and gasogene sodas while Addie, Lizzie, and our new friend Ethel end up pushing their cycles through the Pacific Northwest mud. One of the most feminist stories I've ever read, Sarah Chrisman, once again, seamlessly draws together perspectives on history, society, and culture that ring true throughout history. Her extensive research into naturalist (scientific) practices of the day, Tacoma, Mt. Rainier, owl habits, and even the firearms of the day adds an irreplaceable vivacity to the story and captures the imagination unlike anything else could. Her characters feel truly alive and I hope we can all strive to be as creative and well-read as Addie, as compassionate and humble as Lizzie, and as determined and reasonable as Ethel. I can't wait for the next chance to return to Chetzemoka and everyone's magnificent adventures!
Obviously a labor of love.
Soup Girl
Sarah Chrisman has done it again, bringing us a delightful exploration of factual history seamlessly woven into a sweet story that shows how 19th century relationships have a lot more in common with our modern lives than we might think. Her characters are well developed and relatable. Her details of late 19th century life are highly entertaining, a product of her extensive research and experiential living. Sarah’s love of this historical time period is obvious throughout the book. I look forward to the next installment with impatient curiosity.
Get the Tales of Chetzemoka books on Amazon.
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Image credits:
Baby saw-whet owl: https://photographymag.tn/animals/baby-animals/baby-animals-baby-northern-saw-whet-owl/amp/
Edmund Meany: https://www.washington.edu/alumni/125/index.htmlwww.washington.edu/alumni/125/index.html
Mattie Hansee: digitalcollections.lib.washington.edu/digital/collection/peiser/id/4
Colt Rainmaker: https://unblinkingeye.com/Guns/Colt1877DA/colt1877da.html
Longmire's Mineral Springs: https://www.oldoregonphotos.com/longmire-springs-the-first-hotel-at-mt-rainier-c-1895.html
Typewriter: www.antiquetypewriters.com/typewriter/crandall-1-typewriter/
Telescope advertisement: "Outing" magazine, April 1892.
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