Around the world, islands ignite our imagination and influence life far beyond their shores.

Let us follow historian and author Alice Albinia as she explores 20 islands, weaving each one with the history, geography, and testimonies she gathers from the female population of each place. Some islands in this book preserve history and culture that elsewhere tends to disappear, while others, like shooting stars, move swiftly toward the future as pioneers, seeking ways to help us face the dangers of rapid global warming.