A Million Miles

My Peace Corps Journey

By Jody Olsen

When Jody Olsen enlisted as a Peace Corps volunteer in Tunisia in 1966, she was fleeing familial tragedy and the stifling societal norms of her Salt Lake City upbringing. However, her service in Tunisia upended her religious and cultural beliefs and propelled her into a six-decade career with the Peace Corps, culminating in her directorship of the agency.

Olsen’s captivating memoir, A Million Miles, reveals the personal and professional challenges she faced throughout her career, which spanned the Reagan era, 9/11, and the Trump administration. She writes candidly about her struggles as a woman in leadership, as well as personal hardships such as the
sudden death of her brother and her emotionally difficult divorce after her husband’s coming out. This memoir is a sharp, vulnerable portrait, a testament to the transformative power of leadership and self-discovery.

Jody Olsen served as director of the Peace Corps from 2018 to 2021. She was a Peace Corps volunteer in Tunisia (1966-1968) and served the agency in five other senior positions, including as deputy director.

Praise and Reviews:"In her candid and inspiring memoir, A Million Miles: My Peace Corps Journey, Jody Olsen faithfully tells her story and in so doing reveals authentic moments of pain, loss, and achievement. While her brilliant tenure as Peace Corps Director represents the culmination of her impressive professional career, she draws on lessons learned from being born into a prominent political family, abandoned by her mother, her own Peace Corps service, motherhood and career. Readers will prize her honesty and read this memoir with admiration for the author's life of consequence and her gift for storytelling and lessons learned. Olsen's memoir adds a literary contribution to the many ways she has advanced the Peace Corps with her passion for peace building and cross-cultural understanding."—Mark D. Gearan, President, Hobart and William Smith Colleges, and former Peace Corps Director, 1995-1999

“Olsen's deeply personal and inspirational memoir offers a blueprint for global leaders who want to address and serve emerging needs.”—Claudia Kuric, former Peace Corps official and author

“A deeply intelligent book about modern Utah and Mormon history, the Peace Corps, Second Wave feminism, and more. The author is a likeable protagonist, and I was rooting for her all the way.”—Jana Riess, senior columnist for Religion News Service and author of The Next Mormons