Jane Wilson-Howarth facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Jane Wilson-Howarth
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Wilson-Howarth in Madagascar
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| Born | Jane Margaret Wilson 1961 Epsom, England, United Kingdom |
| Pen name | Jane Wilson-Howarth |
| Occupation | author, lecturer, physician |
| Nationality | British |
| Genre | travel narratives, travel health, fiction |
| Subject | Nepal, Madagascar |
| Spouse | Simon Howarth (married 1987) |
| Children | Alexander David (died 1996) Sebastian |
Jane Wilson-Howarth is a British doctor, teacher, and writer. She has written many books, including guides on staying healthy while traveling. She also writes exciting travel stories and a series of wildlife adventures for kids.
Jane has shared her stories in other books too. She has written many health articles for everyone to understand. She has also written scientific papers for experts.
Contents
About Jane Wilson-Howarth
Her Early Life and Family
Jane Wilson was born in Epsom Hospital in Surrey, England. She was one of three children. Her mother, Peggy Thomas, was from London. Her father, Joe Wilson, loved books and was from Ballymena in Northern Ireland.
Jane grew up in Stoneleigh, a town near Ewell Village. She is married to Simon Howarth. They live in two places: East Anglia in England and Kathmandu in Nepal.
Her School Days
Jane went to Stoneleigh East County Infants, Junior, and Senior Schools. She also attended Cheam High School. Learning was sometimes hard for her because she had dyslexia. This means her brain works differently when reading and writing.
At 16, she left school to study sciences at Ewell Technical College. This college is now called North East Surrey College of Technology.
Her University Studies
Jane then studied biological sciences at Plymouth Polytechnic. She focused on small creatures without backbones, like insects. She also studied how pollution affects nature.
For one project, she explored Radford Cave many times. She studied tiny creatures called collembola that live in caves. This led to her first published work. She collected many cave creatures to learn about life in dark places.
In 1976, she won a special scholarship from the Winston Churchill Memorial Trusts. This helped her travel to Nepal.
Her time in Nepal led to a job researching rabbit parasites. She earned a master's degree from Corpus Christi College, Oxford. This work made her interested in immunology, which is how the body fights off sickness. She decided she wanted to help people in poorer countries. So, she went on to study medicine at the University of Southampton.
Becoming a Doctor
After becoming a doctor, Jane Wilson-Howarth worked in different medical fields. She worked in general medicine and helped with births and women's health in Swindon. She also worked with bones in Salisbury and with children at the John Radcliffe Hospital in Oxford.
She worked on projects to help children stay healthy in many countries. These included Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Indonesia, India, and Nepal. For over 15 years, she was a family doctor in Cambridgeshire. There, she also taught Cambridge medical students.
Jane also gives talks about staying healthy when you travel. She has written for many medical textbooks and national newspapers. In 2016, she helped Syrian refugees in Greece with Médecins du Monde (Doctors of the World). She also volunteers for Voluntary Service Overseas in places like Nepal and Nigeria.
From 1993 to 1998, Jane lived in Nepal. She moved back there in 2017. She volunteered to write medical guides for paramedics in Nepal. She also helped doctors and nurses in small mountain villages. She has written articles about Covid-19 for a Nepali newspaper.
Adventures and Discoveries
Sports and Expeditions
Jane Wilson-Howarth loves adventure. She started exploring caves and scuba diving when she was at university. She even did special deep dives in an underground lake in Pridhamsleigh Cavern. She might have been the first woman to do these dives there.
In 1973, she won two national canoe races in one day. She also won the national colleges sailing championship.
She spent six months traveling overland to the Himalayan region. Her team looked for new caves in Pakistan, India, and Nepal. They also studied the creatures living inside them. She researched diseases like histoplasmosis and bat rabies. She collected many animals for the Natural History Museum, London.
In 1978–79, she rowed for Corpus Christi College, Oxford. Her team was the first ladies' rowing team from the college.
While studying medicine, she went on more expeditions. She traveled to Madagascar and led a team of eleven people to Peru. She also helped with a medical project for Save the Children in Ladakh. In 1983, she received a special medal for her bravery and determination.
Madagascar Discoveries
Her first trip to Madagascar led to a second one. Her work helped show that the Ankarana Massif is an important home for animals. These include the rare crowned lemur and Sanford's brown lemur. They also found a new type of blind fish.
The Ankarana Massif was also a place where important old bones of giant lemurs were found.
Jane's Books and Media Work
Her Writing Journey
Jane Wilson-Howarth's books are almost always about travel. Her first book, Lemurs of the Lost World (1990), is about her trips to Madagascar. Another famous travel writer, Dervla Murphy, called it the best book about Madagascar at the time.
Her helpful guide to travel health was first called Bugs Bites & Bowels in 1995. It is now in its sixth edition and is called Staying Healthy When You Travel. She also wrote Your Child Abroad: a travel health guide with another doctor.
A Glimpse of Eternal Snows (2012) is a touching story set in Cambridge and Nepal. It has been praised by many. This book was also chosen for a national reading project and by BBC Radio Cambridgeshire.
Her first novel, Snowfed Waters, was published in 2014. It is a made-up story that continues the tale from A Glimpse of Eternal Snows.
Jane has spoken at many book festivals. She has also written for several collections of travel stories. She has written over 200 travel health articles for magazines like Wanderlust and Condé Nast Traveller. She has also written for The Independent newspaper. A travel editor called her one of the most impressive travel experts.
She often gives talks and readings, especially in East Anglia. She is part of the Society of Authors and Cambridge Writers. She also works with a group called Walden Writers. This group helps authors promote their work and share ideas.
On TV and Radio
Jane Wilson-Howarth has appeared on TV shows like BBC Breakfast and Rip-off Britain. She has also been on many BBC Radio 4 programs. These include shows about travel and medicine.
She has been interviewed live on radio shows in the US, Canada, South Africa, Australia, and Ireland. She is often on BBC Radio Cambridgeshire.
