Riding in the Shadows of Saints: A Woman's Story of Motorcycling the Mormon Trail
Written with searing candor and a beguiling lack of sentimentality, Riding in the Shadows of Saints is rich in history and detail regarding the origin beliefs, rituals, and social mores of the Mormon culture. Richman, born into the Mormon Church but no longer a member, explores the meaning of faith and the perils of middle-age motorcycling with equal aplomb.
Traveling blue highways into the nation’s heartland, visiting graveyards, chatting with missionaries, and soaking in the rituals of the faith she so casually shrugged off as a teenager, Richman begins to unravel her family’s mysteries and confront her own long-held prejudices about the Mormon Church.
Praise for Riding in the Shadows of Saints:
“Well crafted, intimate, and engaging: an unorthodox rite of passage with ruminations on faith, feminism, and more.”
-Kirkus Reviews
“Beautifully poetic . . . exploratory . . . thought-provoking.”
-New Orleans Times-Picayune
“Tartly funny.”
-Chicago Tribune
“Universally compelling.”
-Publisher’s Weekly
“Surprising and refreshing.”
-Philadelphia Inquirer
"Jana Richman understands that we can never escape our connections to our ancestors, and neither would we want to. In this busy and disconnected world, Richman has taken the time both to make peace with and embrace her heritage; her story serves as an inspiration to us all."
—Dawn Prince-Hughes, author of Songs of the Gorilla Nation
"An extraordinary story of a woman who travels cross-country on a bike—the rip-roaring, motorized, macho kind—in search of what it means to have and keep faith. Richman leavens the history of Mormonism—America's fascinating, authentically homegrown religion—with her investigation into her roots and her adventures riding the Mormon trail. Like all great memoirs, Riding in the Shadows of Saints engages the heart while delighting the mind."
—Fenton Johnson, author of Keeping Faith
"In this profoundly appealing memoir, Jana Richman travels a road that connects her to family, history, and the haunting landscapes and haunted people of the West. What she finds along the way makes for a marvelous journey—and a most memorable book."
—Gregory McNamee, author of Gila and Blue Mountains Far Away
"Faith for Jana Richman, who can trace her Mormon roots back to the founding of the Church, is not a dogma but a process of engagement with place, history, and mystery. She writes with disarming honesty, and the wonderful surprise of the book is to witness the strength and integrity of five generations of women who managed to empower themselves within the belly of religious patriarchy. This book makes a significant contribution to feminizing the history of the American West."
—Alison Hawthorne Deming, author of Writing the Sacred into the Real
"A poignant mother/daughter love affair, a heart-wrenching father/daughter schism, a classic coming-of-age story, and a timeless quest for spiritual meaning. That its setting is the splendor of the American West only adds to the book's richness."
—Sally Denton, author of Faith and Betrayal