Surviving Nature
An Unexpected Journey into the Amazon Rainforest
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Pub Date 12 Jan 2027 | Archive Date 5 Dec 2026
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Description
She had an itinerary for everything. The jungle didn't care.
When a hyper-organised Australian uproots her predictable life to follow love to French Guiana, she expects an adventure. Instead, she gets a four-year crash course in survival. What was meant to be a romantic new chapter quickly dissolves into a roof that leaks like bad luck, moths that fire toxic darts, and a bureaucratic landscape more treacherous than the swamp.
As the chaos threatens to overwhelm her—and a bone-shattering tropical disease pushes her to the brink—Donna accepts a job at an isolated scientific research station deep within the Amazon rainforest. Marooned in a world where nothing is cushioned and nothing is convenient, the real test begins.
To survive, she must wage a hilarious turf war against the local wildlife, find sanctuary beneath the canopy of a magnificent old tree, and learn that the wilderness is not a playground for her personal enlightenment but a living, breathing ecosystem that refuses to move at her speed.
Witty, candid, and rich with the absurdities of life in the wild, Surviving Nature is a travel and nature memoir about what happens when the world refuses to cooperate with your plans. For anyone who has ever felt out of place, it offers a different way of looking at wild places—and the unexpected possibilities of finding home.
A Note From the Publisher
This memoir is based on four years spent living in the Amazonian rainforests of French Guiana and the Guiana Shield. It combines humorous travel writing with wildlife encounters to unexpected living conditions, and evolves into deeper reflections on belonging and healing in nature.
Advance Praise
Vivid, sharp, compelling... I surfaced from each page with a huge smile.— Miriam Lancewood, author of Woman in the Wilderness
A beautifully written, stunning story... This is such an important book for the times we live in.— Sandra Ingerman, author of Soul Retrieval
An Amazonian wilderness extravaganza... a funny, vibrantly colourful, exhilarating account. Donna’s prose is as alive as the jungle.— Jennifer Barclay, author of Taverna by the Sea
Surviving Nature doesn’t just take you somewhere – it drags your boots through the mud beside the author. It’s vibrant, sharp, and utterly alive... It’s about letting [the wildness] claw its way under your skin.— Margi Prideaux, author of FIRE: A Message from the Edge of Climate Catastrophe.
It’s not just in our imaginations that we feel good when we brush up against nature. It’s in the science... [We] have to face down the fear of what we might encounter.— Becca Lawton, author of Reading Water
Rich, vibrant and captivating like the Amazon rainforest. This dive into the wild will inspire you to rekindle a connection with the natural world, and yourself...— Sylvia Heike, Pushcart Prize-nominated author
None of us knows the direction life will take us. It is only when we open our heart and eyes that opportunities present themselves... Written with honesty, wit and from the heart.— Ron Melchiore, author of Off Grid and Free: My Path to the Wilderness
Donna Venna is not trying to recreate a soft life in the jungle: she’s seeking something deeper... [getting] her bearings to uncover a new spiritual depth.— Maria Theresa Stadtmueller, author of Songs That Are to Come
Marketing Plan
NetGalley advance reader reviews to generate early reviews;
Goodreads giveaway campaign commencing Dec 2026
Author interviews and features with online literary publications.
Public outreach to bloggers, nature writers and reading communities.
Available Editions
| EDITION | Ebook |
| ISBN | 9781763935617 |
| PRICE | $4.99 (USD) |
| PAGES | 144 |