Map to the Unknown

A Journey Inward

By: Isabella Huffington

Narrated by: Brina Palencia

Length: 5 hrs and 12 mins

Publisher's Summary

A riveting, darkly funny true story of illness and of learning to trust the Universe while living with pain and uncertainty 

“In a collective moment of loss and uncertainty, here comes Isabella Huffington to show us how to survive and thrive anyway. This book will be a balm to all in need of a little fiery hope.” (Glennon Doyle, author of number one New York Times best seller Untamed and founder of Together Rising) 

"Isabella Huffington’s Map to the Unknown captures her journey through illness with strength, vulnerability, and a great deal of good humor. Her wise-beyond-her-years memoir will inspire its readers to find joy amid all of life's challenges." (Sheryl Sandberg, COO of Facebook and founder of Lean In and Option B) 

One day, on her way to a date, Isabella Huffington gets hit by a bike. What begins as a concussion with a diagnosed recovery time of seven-to-ten days becomes more than two years of debilitating pain with no apparent end and a string of unhelpful doctor and specialist visits.   

In the wreckage, jobs are canceled. Leases are broken. There is no second date. What’s left is Isabella, her body, and her pain. Because the source of her pain cannot be located within the body, she is told over and over that her pain is psychosomatic. And Isabella believes it, over and over.   

What follows is a surprisingly funny medical and spiritual journey, during which Isabella must learn to trust in all that she cannot see or quantify: her pain, God, and her inner voice. Everything fell apart and then something new emerged.    

©2020 Isabella Huffington (P)2020 Audible Originals

This book is a must listen!

This book is the story of Isabella's journey after she suffers a concussion and her subsequent path to healing. She miraculously turns the mundane into the profound, gravity into levity and her very personal crisis becomes a shared and relatable story. She weaves together so many aspects of her life in such a raw and vulnerable way that is was impossible not to be touched deeply. I felt like I was along for every moment of this ride with her. I laughed and cried and sometimes at the same moment. I think everyone should listen to this book. I

I loved it!!!

Isabella is an amazing writer. She makes you feel you’re sitting right next to her on the rollercoaster called Life Journey. Her narration colors paint a very realistic, yet beautiful aquarelle painting. While this book is masterfully crafted and courageously written, sprinkles of humor make it that much better. I read it in one breath this morning!

Thank you Isabella

By sharing your own path you give hope to those who are navigating theirs. A hopeful, honest, vulnerable story. A good example of the twists and turns of life and the importance of patience and the power of the “frame” we put on things. I loved the shift about moving from being scared about not knowing the future to being excited about it. Highly recommend.

Story of Hope and Preseverance

I enjoyed this authentic and naked look into the life and mind of the author. 💖

This author is so talented

I was captivated by Isabella’s story from the very beginning and couldn’t stop listening. I finished it in 2 days. I needed to know how her story would end and if she would ever get better. I loved the narrator so much, i never once “zoned out” because she does such a great job keeping you interested. Overall, very well written story that is humorous, honest, dark and even hopeful. I felt every emotion with her as Isabella took us through the last 2 years of her life. Thank you Isabella for sharing your story. I truly hope you get relief from your illnesses and pains.

Great listen

Very addicting story.... makes you feel one way than another... if you’ve ever been down a road of medical problems like this it’s kind of a relief to know you’re not alone... the narrator is amazing... this audible was written very very well....much love to Isabella

Her own story... well written and read

We all have a story, and I found Isabella’s account of her life so far authentic, vulnerable, unfortunate (not pitying her), and interesting. I don’t know how similar the author’s voice and cadence is to the reader’s, but I found it easy to picture the author’s personality based on the reading. Very easy listen, well written and read, and the humor thrown in here and there added to the charm of this book.

Amazing new voice

A spiritual journey in the tradition of Joan Didion, and Glennon Doyle. Funny and deep, Isabella takes us deep into her journey and gives us a prospective so needed in today’s world which is filled with uncertainty where we are all trying our best ‘to figure out’ what’s next. Isabella offers a brilliant road map. The book is both healing and entertaining, a rare combination that has you turning pages, praying it will just go on. Thank you Isabella for this beautiful book.

A long dark tunnel with a speck of light at the end

I kept waiting for the light to grow, even just a bit. Hard to understand why someone would deny and ignore so much about themselves, so early in life, and continue to do so throughout adulthood.

Not Sure

I’m not sure how I feel about this book. There are nuggets of wisdom to be sure, but then there is some nonsensical rambling. Yes, life is full of the nonsensical, but I just don’t know how it fit in this book. I like a good quote, but this book is loaded with words that are not the author’s own, which could have had equal value. I also felt like it was written by two people, one was witty and fun, the other was not. Obviously certain chapters would not be witty and fun, but parts just didn’t even seem like the same style of writing. In the author’s notes, she stated she started writing to help with the difficulties she faced or felt (I don’t know the exact words she used), that may be part of why it feels like two authors too. I appreciated her full disclosure that her mom is Huffington Post, but a cynical part of me wonders if that’s why part of the writing doesn’t seem the same - possibly overly editorialized? Having said all of that, it was a quick listen and for the few nuggets of wisdom, not a waste of time. As for why I chose to listen, I’ve experienced 16 years of unending 24/7/365 head pain, daily average on the pain chart was 7 for 15 of those years and is now 8. I listen because I can’t read for more than a hour or two (with or without technology) without paying for it. I had no concussion, just woke up with a migraine like pain that has never gone away (and I know that I am not alone in this predicament). So, I listened for knowledge, hoping to hear something new. I’m still open to new over 16 years later. Despite my mixed feelings, I sincerely pray Isabella Huffington is healed , or at least her pain intensity lessened. If the writing of this book helped her one iota, it was worth it.