Writing on the Road Campervan Love and the Joy of Solitude

by Sue Reid Sexton

This book is not just funny (or sad) stories of campervan trips in Scotland; it is not just 'Zen and the art of Campervan maintenance' with stories both sweet and light, and observations on travellers and life, and it is not just nature writing, with observations of wildlife in the western Scottish Highlands. But if you enjoy reading about how books are written, and about recovery stories from relationship breakdowns, and if you like reading about women travelling alone and all the things that can go wrong (and right), about strategies for facing fear, dealing with creepy crawlies and noises in the night, and about surviving all that life throws at you, then you will probably enjoy reading this book.

Genres: Travel, Nonfiction

288 pages, Paperback

Published April 7, 2016

Reviews

[Liz · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sue Reid Sexton is known more for her fiction writing (Mavis's Shoe, and Rue End Street) so this book is a new venture for her. There is a story line - the book explores her holidays as a kid in campervans, but those are about when her parents broke up. The arc of the storyline is then about the different campervans she has bought and traveled in, and these follow her second marriage which brought four step-children, her husband and her own two daughters into one house. She does not dwell on the details of the marriage but she does explain how she needed to escape overnight in the van to write, and to create some space for herself. The discretion she uses is touching and an asset in my view. Sue explains how she bought her campervan, and then details of journeys in the west of Scotland and the things that scared her traveling alone, however briefly. She discusses creativity and writing in a matter-of-fact way which appealed to me - there is no pretension or drama. There is a section on how to buy a campervan, a section on looking after one; a chapter on food that is ideal to make, and eat, and also a chapter on how she coped when the loo went wrong; and lots of details on how she coped when other things went wrong. There is a lot of detail on travel in the west of Scotland, and also very good descriptions of what night looks like, and feeling fear when alone in a layby, or up a long dark road alone with a dark canopy of stars overhead when you can't see anything else. I have never used a campervan, but am a touring camper-cyclist, and occasional wild camper, and have done both a lot alone, and I found the text sensitive and accurate in terms of how it describes coping with traveling alone in the countryside. I also found the descriptions of coping after a marital breakdown very helpful and inspirational in many places. The book left me with an over-riding feeling of hope and positive energy. It reminded me of 'WILD'. I loved the book 'WILD' very much. But while 'WILD' is dramatic and all encompassing, and totally inspiring, most of us who are over 40 and female with jobs, responsibilities and dependents can't just chuck our daily lives for a walk along the PCT (and we are not 26 anymore, sadly...). We can however, get an overnight somewhere, have a walk, drink some tea and escape to a sea view, however briefly, and read a book such as this to help come to terms with the stage we are at. I found 'WRITING ON THE ROAD' helpful, useful, thought-provoking, inspirational and very entertaining, and also, in respect to 'WILD', very practical.

[Sarah Goodwin · Rating 1 out of 5]

I am a writer who loves camping, and camper vans. It is my hope to one day write IN a camper van, therefore, this book was on my to-read list the moment it was recommended to me. The blurb says that it is also about recovery stories from relationship breakdowns and 'how books are written' which sounded promising.

Unfortunately it is not really a book about writing....or camper vans. It reads like reading someone's impersonal diary - many observations only of interest to them. There's no real structure to the book, it isn't a book that chronicles time from first camper van experience to present day. Neither is it separated into specific trips or topics, such as 'Writing freehand vs using a laptop' or other such practical headings. There are chapters with headings like 'Book Broth' and 'In a Romahome' but what is in the chapters doesn't vary between headings. I was dragged back and forth in time, trying to make sense of any of it, while being bored stiff by the tone and content. Occasionally the author made reference to a husband, or ex-husband, and eventually casually mentioned that they had children, but it was hard to work out a timeline of events from these assertions.

I would say this is not a book about writing, but a book about being an 'author' (pronounced 'aw-toor') - lots of stuff about tea, classical music, not being bothered about watching television and a very overwritten 'poetic' style of writing that produces long, long paragraphs of 'musings'.

There are a few anecdotes that entertain or inform, but for the most part the writer seems to be talking about her experience overall, and not interested in such things as 'setting a scene' or entertaining the reader. Mostly the preoccupation seems to be with 'I do these things and think they're wonderful and ah, birds, grass trees, I did some writing, had tea, I drove to these towns and thought no, I should head north, I made cous cous' but over and over again. There's no warmth, or charm, or anything to beguile you into spending more time with the writer. I felt like she'd carry on whether I was there or not.

I tried to power through and got to page 124. During this time I cannot say I learnt anything about how books are written, much less how they are written on the road. On page 124 some people are described as 'Oriental looking'. At this point I checked the copy-write page, assuming the book was written in the 70s - the front says 2016.

I was not prepared to stick it out with casual racism on top of everything else.

[Intellectual Magpie · Rating 3 out of 5]

sadly I think this book is alittle misleading, a few bits here and there but mostly I felt like I was reading a book about the area and locations she went to…. Where I was expecting a book about writing while traveling in a van.. I understand the point, the solitude of being in the van away from her home life allowed her to write… but that’s about it..

[Claire O'Sullivan · Rating 4 out of 5]

A lovely, gentle meander around Scotland in the company of an inspiring woman and her campervan.
This is not a book on how to write or travel, but is a good read, an insight into the musings of a woman trying to do both 😊

[Moira McPartlin · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book, I read it over a couple of very stormy days in my campervan on the gorgeous west coast of Scotland. But you don’t need to be a writer or campervaner to enjoy this book, you just need to be a lover of life with a yearning for solitude and serenity. Having said that this book is far from serine. The book is split into two sections Outer and Inner and in the first section there are lots of mishaps with the various campervans the author has owned, some funny, some quite scary. The book is filled with many fascinating facts about the places visited as well as some interesting nuggets about all sorts of things from pirates’ eye patches to the benefits of drinking oolong tea.
The style and beauty of the writing and some of the sections in the book remind me of Sara Maitland’s Book of Silence and H is for Hawk by Helen MacDonald, but Writing on the Road is much friendlier and wittier.

[Little BigGirl · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting glimpse into the authors world.

[Ruth Turner · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a fantastically gorgeous book - I got his for Christmas from my lovely wee sister (I think because I'm the owner of an old, falling apart VW campervan and go on lots of adventures on the West Coast of Scotland - and this book did not disappoint! It was so down to earth and funny, and the literary descriptions of some of my favourite places on the planet was pitch perfect. Buy this book if you are either thinking of writing a book, thinking of buying an old camper and need a reality check of some of the challenges or you are an adventure curious about some of Scotland's wee hidden gems. I really really really hope I end up in a lay-by next to Sue one of these days!
Just a brilliant read!

[Susan Addyman · Rating 2 out of 5]

I really wanted to love this book . I enjoy campervanning and have only on a couple of occasions campervanned alone . This made me really want to relate to this book , but it didn’t.
I felt there was not a lot of structure to the book which for me rambled from one topic to another and back again . I did find it had to follow on occasions.

I feel if I read it again I would get more from it , maybe I will in the future .

I enjoyed the last few chapters best of all .

[Rosemary · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book but towards the end I did feel it became repetitive. I certainly learned a lot about campervan life - something I'd always thought I'd love, but now realise I'd only enjoy in the luxury version. The author is much hardier than I could be!

[Sarah Hamilton · Rating 5 out of 5]

A lovely read. Made me want to go straight out and buy a camper!
I love books about writing and this is a hidden gem.
I'd recommend it for anyone who loves Scotland, the outdoors, camper vans or writing.

[ruthfarrer · Rating 2 out of 5]

In theory I should love this book as it is based on all the things I enjoy. But in fact I didn't. I could not identify at all with the writer. She does not seem to show much emotion really. I just did not get on with it.

[Sue Flint · Rating 4 out of 5]

As a fellow person centred counsellor and writer this is an encouraging REAL read. I have campervanners I know who have wild camped too and have toured Scotland so know sone of the places the author mentions. Enjoyed every minute.

[Karen's World · Rating 4 out of 5]

A brilliant book for camper van enthusiasts, very true and in some parts funny. I loved it.