Road Story

by Julienne van Loon

This remarkable novel reveals the strong bond of love between friends and the dark pervasiveness of addiction. As Diana Kooper runs from a car crash, scarcely looking back, she leaves her best friend, Nicole, slumped and bloody in the damaged vehicle. After hitching a ride to a remote community, Diana takes a job as a kitchen hand at Bob's, an isolated truck stop. At first she thinks she can predict the sort of rhythm her life will follow in this dusty, diesel-driven, lonely stop, but soon a series of unsettling events disturb her seemingly ordered existence—a dog is brutally stabbed to death and left as a warning beside one of the gas pumps, and when Bob disappears under suspicious circumstances, Diana is left to look after the roadhouse kitchen on her own. As everyday life becomes increasingly challenging, Diana is forced to confront her haunting past in order to deal with her present predicament.

Genres: Australia, Fiction

168 pages, Paperback

First published July 1, 2005

About the author

Julienne van Loon has written three novels: Road Story (2005), which won the Australian/Vogel’s Award, Beneath the Bloodwood Tree (2008) and Harmless (2013). Her novella ‘Instructions for a Steep Decline’ won the Griffith Review Novella Project VII and is published in Griffith Review 66. Her debut non-fiction The Thinking Woman (2019) has been hailed as “a revelation” (Australian Book Review), “surprising and resonant” (Sydney Morning Herald) and “an invitation to a thoughtful life” (Feminist Writers’ Festival). She lives in Melbourne, where she is an Associate Professor with the Writing and Publishing program at RMIT.

Reviews

[Debs · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a gift from Chelle. It’s the dusty, back roads tale of a young woman struggling with her past as she tries to make a life for herself at a truck stop in the Australian outback. I love the feel of this one.

[Adam Eric · Rating 4 out of 5]

Refreshing Australian read. This Vogal winner achieves a breathless point of view and offers the reader insight into the runaway life of the protagonist.

[Poppy Gee · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this story when I first read it in 2005. I absolutely adored it and since then I have probably read it about ten times. Surprised to see that I never got around to writing a review here! In any case, I highly recommend - it's exquisitely crafted on a microscopic level, every word, every line of dialogue, every character's gesture or mannerism has a powerful effect. The characters continue to remain vividly in my mind, like people I knew really well when I was younger but haven't seen for a while. A really great story!

[Lara-s111 · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book. It was so different to most books I read.
Xx

[Guy Salvidge · Rating 5 out of 5]

Second time I've read this. It's still good.

[Tamara Hutchins · Rating 2 out of 5]

although an easy read, the storyline invokes many questions - however, most questions are left unanswered due to what felt like a rushed ending

[Jade · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's full of mystery! This is about a girl from the city who has managed to end up working in a "middle of nowhere" roadhouse.

[William]

Want to read because: Recommended by Poppy Gee in her author's influences list for Bay of Fires

[Renee · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was slightly disappointed by this novel. I know it’s won a literary award but I was left hanging at the end with so many questions, it was like there was a rush to finish the book, it just finishes with little explanation. There is a build up throughout the story then nothing. I would recommend reading this book because it is a good story and I was captivated by it but I really thought the author could have done more with the ending.

[Claire · Rating 3 out of 5]

Running away from your past mistakes to an out of the way truck stop doesn't mean trouble won't come looking for you. As the ratings suggest, this book is good but not great