We all know Monarch butterflies are beautiful creatures of flight—like whispers of magic.

They don’t start out that way on Earth, of course. They’re hatched from a speck-size egg, creep and crawl as tiny, 2-inch caterpillars, feasting on milkweed, until they weave into a silken chrysalis and finally burst forth as a butterfly—a stunning specimen.

It’s a unique, meticulous journey full of sacrifice, danger and discovery—the perfect metaphor for a young, twentysomething woman, Luz, who follows her heart and the wings of her grandmother to a land unknown in The Butterfly’s Daughter (Gallery Books, $25).

A nature metaphor like this could be written to sound very unnatural, yanking the reader back and forth from educational butterfly tidbits to the fictional story at hand creating a disjointed storyline. But not for author Mary Alice Monroe, who is a master at weaving real issues growing in the natural environment with a texturally enriching fictional tale.

Luz Avila, once sheltered and raised by her loving abuela after her mother’s death, honors her grandmother’s dying wish: to journey from their home in Milwaukee to the mountains of Mexico, just as the Monarchs do. Luz leaves behind a dear boyfriend, a job and everything she’s ever known, but gains friendships and life lessons from several women along her route. And realizes she taught them a thing or two.

You won’t be able to stop turning the pages, as the events of Luz’s trip into the past and future reveal the love, mystery, mess and intrigue that mirror our own lives. If you can’t afford a summer vacation, think of this as your way of taking one, in the passenger seat of Luz’s VW bug from Milwaukee to Mexico.

You may even be inspired, as I am now, to raise your own monarchs—to help hatch and spirit more beautiful butterfly journeys. Monroe is giving away 10,000 milkweed seeds on her book tour.

Visit www.maryalicemonroe.com