What do you think?
Rate this book
Kangaroos and Chaos: The True Story of One Backpacker's Insane Adventure Around Australia
The true story of one backpacker's insane adventure around Australia.
Julia is granted a one year working holiday visa and heads to Australia. Never one to do things quietly, she tours the country via a jumble of hostels, road trips and randomness. She attempts and fails to learn to surf, attends her very first festival and explores the open minded village of Nimbin.
Intoxicated both literally and metaphorically by the backpacker lifestyle, Julia decides to extend her visa. However, there’s a catch. To be eligible she must complete 88 days of farm work. To console herself she purchases a small car (which turns out to be totally impractical for cross country drives) and decides to spread the work over the course of her trip. A dairy, cattle station and a hippy commune are all on the list and the hazardous results are hilariously entertaining, as the city girl takes on rural tasks.
Back on the road she continues to unearth the history, culture and people of Australia. Through the dust of the desert she fossicks for sapphires; in the subtropical north man eating crocodiles leap from murky waters, and off the East Coast giant fish chase her across the Reef.
Julia boldly takes uncalculated risks in the name of adventure and is not afraid to look stupid doing so. From bagging bananas and branding cattle, to animal attacks and outback disaster, it’s an authentic Aussie experience which will change her life forever.
"From the big cities of Sydney and Melbourne, to the Great Barrier Reef, Whitsundays and Fraser Island; this girl knows no limit to reckless adventure. Couch surfing, hitch-hiking, sailing and four wheel drive action, its all there, alongside drunken mishaps and states of lust and inebriation to which we can all relate. Julia trails the Australian backpacker path in her own unique style."
Julia is granted a one year working holiday visa and heads to Australia. Never one to do things quietly, she tours the country via a jumble of hostels, road trips and randomness. She attempts and fails to learn to surf, attends her very first festival and explores the open minded village of Nimbin.
Intoxicated both literally and metaphorically by the backpacker lifestyle, Julia decides to extend her visa. However, there’s a catch. To be eligible she must complete 88 days of farm work. To console herself she purchases a small car (which turns out to be totally impractical for cross country drives) and decides to spread the work over the course of her trip. A dairy, cattle station and a hippy commune are all on the list and the hazardous results are hilariously entertaining, as the city girl takes on rural tasks.
Back on the road she continues to unearth the history, culture and people of Australia. Through the dust of the desert she fossicks for sapphires; in the subtropical north man eating crocodiles leap from murky waters, and off the East Coast giant fish chase her across the Reef.
Julia boldly takes uncalculated risks in the name of adventure and is not afraid to look stupid doing so. From bagging bananas and branding cattle, to animal attacks and outback disaster, it’s an authentic Aussie experience which will change her life forever.
"From the big cities of Sydney and Melbourne, to the Great Barrier Reef, Whitsundays and Fraser Island; this girl knows no limit to reckless adventure. Couch surfing, hitch-hiking, sailing and four wheel drive action, its all there, alongside drunken mishaps and states of lust and inebriation to which we can all relate. Julia trails the Australian backpacker path in her own unique style."
402 pages, Kindle Edition
First published November 30, 2013
4 people are currently reading
13 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
February 5, 2024
Horny, drunk woman in Australia. Traveling around, getting laid, getting drunk. That is about 90 percent of the book, the other ten percent it's about Australia.
The book sounded like it was written by a seventeen year old boy, whose mind is stuck on sex and alcohol.
The book sounded like it was written by a seventeen year old boy, whose mind is stuck on sex and alcohol.
June 8, 2019
Author fixed the spelling errors (Cooper Pedy...ARRGHHHHHHHH it's COOBER PEDY), so I upgraded my rating five years later, lol.
Want to read
February 25, 2016kindle 334 (travel)
January 1, 2019
2 Stars = Blah. It didn't do anything for me.
June 1, 2025
Omg, this author is so ridiculous with her drunkenness and sex activities. I gave up after about 50 pages.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews