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Over the Hill and Up the Wall
A heart-warming journey with parents of a certain age and a son who thinks he knows best
'Warm, witty, honest. With a healthy serving of humour, Todd Alexander has written a marvellous, touching and insightful book. You'll laugh, cry and hope your own kids love you this much. I'll be more patient with my parents after reading this' Better Reading
Of course, we love our parents. Even if they do so many things that drive us bonkers.
Like how a mother - for argument's sake, let's say mine - taps her fingernails on the car window whenever she sees a place of interest (seven taps for a regular haunt, up to twenty for somewhere fascinating). Or the way a father - let's call him Dad - practises deafness but can miraculously hear a suggestion of no ham at Christmas over the roar of cricket commentary. It might be the way your mum works herself into a tizz over a call from Azerbaijan one week and Nigeria the next. Or how your dad has an answer to everything (despite his information being forty years out of date) and 'a guy' for all fixes (if only he could find his Rolodex).
When do we stop being our parents' child and become their parent? After all, they did pretty well on their own for decades - why do they need our intervention now? And that tendency for them to drive us up the wall ... could it be because we are entering middle age and starting to recognise some of those traits in ourselves?
Over the Hill and Up the Wall is an affectionate, funny look at the frictions of taking a more active role in our elders' lives. It's a nod to every child who has waited three hours for a parent to fasten their seatbelt, and every parent whose child assumes they can't count to twenty. And, if your parents are just hitting middle age, it may well be a warning of things to come!
'Warm, witty, honest. With a healthy serving of humour, Todd Alexander has written a marvellous, touching and insightful book. You'll laugh, cry and hope your own kids love you this much. I'll be more patient with my parents after reading this' Better Reading
Of course, we love our parents. Even if they do so many things that drive us bonkers.
Like how a mother - for argument's sake, let's say mine - taps her fingernails on the car window whenever she sees a place of interest (seven taps for a regular haunt, up to twenty for somewhere fascinating). Or the way a father - let's call him Dad - practises deafness but can miraculously hear a suggestion of no ham at Christmas over the roar of cricket commentary. It might be the way your mum works herself into a tizz over a call from Azerbaijan one week and Nigeria the next. Or how your dad has an answer to everything (despite his information being forty years out of date) and 'a guy' for all fixes (if only he could find his Rolodex).
When do we stop being our parents' child and become their parent? After all, they did pretty well on their own for decades - why do they need our intervention now? And that tendency for them to drive us up the wall ... could it be because we are entering middle age and starting to recognise some of those traits in ourselves?
Over the Hill and Up the Wall is an affectionate, funny look at the frictions of taking a more active role in our elders' lives. It's a nod to every child who has waited three hours for a parent to fasten their seatbelt, and every parent whose child assumes they can't count to twenty. And, if your parents are just hitting middle age, it may well be a warning of things to come!
- GenresNonfiction
320 pages, Paperback
Published March 8, 2023
15 people are currently reading
111 people want to read
About the author
Todd Alexander
26 books28 followersTodd Alexander was born in 1973 and has been writing for over 20 years. His work has been published in magazines and periodicals and his first novel, Pictures of Us was published in 2006. How to Buy and Sell on eBay.com.au – The Official Pocket Guide has sold in excess of 30,000 copies.
In 2010, an advanced guide to eBay How To Make Money on eBay was published by Allen & Unwin, followed in 2011 by Why Pay Retail (also Allen & Unwin). Hachette Australia released Get Your Business Online... Now! in March 2012, followed later in the year by Every Day Internet at Any Age. 2013 marked the release of Todd’s fully comprehensive guide to The New eBay followed in 2014 by Check 100: Tips for a Successful eBay Business (both published by John Wiley).
In 2015 Todd returns to fiction, his first love, with the release of Tom Houghton (published by Simon & Schuster).
Todd has 6 years' experience as a bookseller and head office buyer and spent 12 years working at eBay, one of Australia's most recognised brands. He lives in the Hunter Valley of NSW with his partner (cat, pigs, chooks and ducks) where they run a boutique vineyard and accommodation business, Block Eight. Todd has travelled to Africa, Europe, Asia and North America. A graduate of Macquarie University, he has degrees in Modern Literature and Law.
In 2010, an advanced guide to eBay How To Make Money on eBay was published by Allen & Unwin, followed in 2011 by Why Pay Retail (also Allen & Unwin). Hachette Australia released Get Your Business Online... Now! in March 2012, followed later in the year by Every Day Internet at Any Age. 2013 marked the release of Todd’s fully comprehensive guide to The New eBay followed in 2014 by Check 100: Tips for a Successful eBay Business (both published by John Wiley).
In 2015 Todd returns to fiction, his first love, with the release of Tom Houghton (published by Simon & Schuster).
Todd has 6 years' experience as a bookseller and head office buyer and spent 12 years working at eBay, one of Australia's most recognised brands. He lives in the Hunter Valley of NSW with his partner (cat, pigs, chooks and ducks) where they run a boutique vineyard and accommodation business, Block Eight. Todd has travelled to Africa, Europe, Asia and North America. A graduate of Macquarie University, he has degrees in Modern Literature and Law.
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Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews
July 25, 2023
Hilarious read!🤪
March 5, 2023
Thank you Harper Collins for sending us a copy to read and review.
I was attracted to the cheery and colourful cover of this book, it spelt fun and frivolity.
As I don’t read the back I had no idea what it was about but was drawn in immediately after the first page.
Parent child relationships are in most households, they form a cornerstone that is often passed through generations.
Todd has captured and shared many funny and relatable anecdotes of his parents and the dynamic they share.
The stories cover many scenarios like travelling in the car, air travel and technological challenges and they represent the fondly remembered ones and the nuisances.
The reflection that these memories will be priceless, as we grow older and lose the older generation.
As time lapses we will no longer have mums carry hankies that are used for wiping faces, carry jars of mints for car rides and humorously battle through hazy lines of political correctness.
The nostalgia this evoked was priceless.
The mere acknowledgment that eventually we turn into our parents is funny and true even though I’m sure we vowed we wouldn’t.
Those foundations are sometimes hard to replace.
I loved the honest and witty approach to this book.
I’m of a generation caught between aged parents and the generation zyx types and hope these innocent observations and anecdotes don’t die out with a generation who are glued to technology and are more self assured and absorbed.
I was attracted to the cheery and colourful cover of this book, it spelt fun and frivolity.
As I don’t read the back I had no idea what it was about but was drawn in immediately after the first page.
Parent child relationships are in most households, they form a cornerstone that is often passed through generations.
Todd has captured and shared many funny and relatable anecdotes of his parents and the dynamic they share.
The stories cover many scenarios like travelling in the car, air travel and technological challenges and they represent the fondly remembered ones and the nuisances.
The reflection that these memories will be priceless, as we grow older and lose the older generation.
As time lapses we will no longer have mums carry hankies that are used for wiping faces, carry jars of mints for car rides and humorously battle through hazy lines of political correctness.
The nostalgia this evoked was priceless.
The mere acknowledgment that eventually we turn into our parents is funny and true even though I’m sure we vowed we wouldn’t.
Those foundations are sometimes hard to replace.
I loved the honest and witty approach to this book.
I’m of a generation caught between aged parents and the generation zyx types and hope these innocent observations and anecdotes don’t die out with a generation who are glued to technology and are more self assured and absorbed.
April 12, 2023
A very funny memoir, much needed after reading books with doom and gloom of late. I love that the setting for the memoir was in a car during a road trip with ageing parents, interspersed with reflections and memories. I could identify with so many things Todd mentions that at times I didn’t know whether to laugh or cry as I empathise with some frustrations of dealing wish your parents. Ultimately it is a book reflecting on what it means to age, what it means being the child of ageing parents, but also becoming that parent to your kids, and what legacy and parts of ourselves we pass from one generation to the next.
April 28, 2023
In Todd Alexander’s recent memoirs (Thirty Thousand Bottles of Wine and a Pig Called Helga and You’ve Got to be Kidding) about his and his partner’s tree change from Sydney to a vineyard in the Upper Hunter, he often mentions his parents, who live nearby.
In Over the Hill and Up the Wall, having now sold the vineyard, Todd and his partner Jeff are ostensibly taking Todd’s parents to view a house they are considering buying in Gloucester. The car journey provides the framework as Todd relates a series of anecdotes about his parents, and reflects on his changing relationship with them as they age.
As a Gen-Xer with Boomer parents, there was a lot I could relate to in Todd’s stories, though it’s my dad who has a tin of special mints just for car rides, and my mum to her credit, is impressively tech savvy. The way his parents interact with each other actually reminds me more of my grandparents which brought back fond memories.
Todd also reflects on his relationship with his teenage children and notes how he is beginning to recognises behaviours of his own that echo his parents. His comments about the ‘music gap’ stood out to me, my husband in particular believes there has been no good music released this century much to the amusement of our Millennial and GenZ kids.
Written with humour and affection, Over the Hill and Up the Wall is an entertaining and often moving read.
In Over the Hill and Up the Wall, having now sold the vineyard, Todd and his partner Jeff are ostensibly taking Todd’s parents to view a house they are considering buying in Gloucester. The car journey provides the framework as Todd relates a series of anecdotes about his parents, and reflects on his changing relationship with them as they age.
As a Gen-Xer with Boomer parents, there was a lot I could relate to in Todd’s stories, though it’s my dad who has a tin of special mints just for car rides, and my mum to her credit, is impressively tech savvy. The way his parents interact with each other actually reminds me more of my grandparents which brought back fond memories.
Todd also reflects on his relationship with his teenage children and notes how he is beginning to recognises behaviours of his own that echo his parents. His comments about the ‘music gap’ stood out to me, my husband in particular believes there has been no good music released this century much to the amusement of our Millennial and GenZ kids.
Written with humour and affection, Over the Hill and Up the Wall is an entertaining and often moving read.
August 29, 2023
A funny and fun read, and so relatable. Loved it. 💕
June 24, 2023
BIG fan of Todd's adventures and this one is no different.
All the quirks our parents bring to the table built into a fun road trip.
All the quirks our parents bring to the table built into a fun road trip.
May 18, 2023
A very funny memoir, much needed after reading books with doom and gloom of late. I love that the setting for the memoir was in a car during a road trip with ageing parents, interspersed with reflections and memories. I could identify with so many things Todd mentions that at times I didn’t know whether to laugh or cry as I empathise with some frustrations of dealing with your parents. Ultimately it is a book reflecting on what it means to age, what it means being the child of ageing parents, but also becoming that parent to your kids, and what legacy and parts of ourselves we pass from one generation to the next.
Read by Suzie
Read by Suzie
September 13, 2023
This is so enjoyable, a real treasure. Todd takes his parents and his partner on a short road trip that is fraught with all the things ageing parents and their baggage represent. It starts out with frustration about health, communications, technology and travel but ends up as a lesson in life about love and humility, the two gifts we should value most.
May 13, 2023
After having read the first 2 books re Helga, farming, wine making etc, I found this book somewhat slow, almost depreciation & didn’t grab me. By the end of the book, I was getting what he was saying.
I give this 4 stars 🌟
I give this 4 stars 🌟
December 17, 2023
Througout the book it felt like he was talking to my gran in the back seat. She had such similar quirks and mannerisms. It was truly lovely to ride along with this family. I laughed the whole journey long. Lovely story that I think almost everyone can resonate to.
February 29, 2024
An easy read, although I must point out that on page 23 the author writes 'Cue the classic Simon and Garfunkel hit, Silence Is Golden.' I think you will find that was a hit for the Tremeloes. Should have been The Sound Of Silence. But that is just me being picky.
February 18, 2025
A warm (& humorous) tale of when we assume the parenting role for our parents. I vividly recall the day of my mother’s cancer diagnosis, and I poured and served the shots of Chivas, a job previously the sole responsibility of my father. Nostalgic!
May 6, 2023
A lovely ode to aging and caring for parents as they manage their later years.
June 27, 2023
Hilarious to the point of giggling out loud... Initially all I could see was my parents being the same humans then as I got further into this beautiful book, I felt completely seen...
A must read!
A must read!
July 10, 2023
3.5 stars
A charming, witty, loving book about dealing with ageing parents, especially when we can see that we may be becoming just a little like them ourselves.
A charming, witty, loving book about dealing with ageing parents, especially when we can see that we may be becoming just a little like them ourselves.
July 18, 2023
Interesting and amusing.
September 16, 2023
Absolutely delightful. I was cackling almost right away… anyone with aging parents can’t help but relate.
November 22, 2023
This was the first book I have read in a long time & it was a hilarious book, was just so apt in many ways. Was a very enjoyable relaxing read, thank you.
January 2, 2024
Funny, but also rather predictable. Not as good as his previous books.
January 25, 2025
A humorous and entertaining easy read although not quite as enjoyable as his previous books
April 21, 2025
So funny and so relatable. A great read!
December 21, 2025
Took awhile to listen to but got there in the end
September 12, 2023
This book made me laugh, so much so that numerous times my husband would glance over at me with a strange look on his face and say, ‘What are you laughing at now?’ Yep, I was giggling as I was reading. Why you may ask, well simply because it was funny.
Now let me give you a little heads up first…..If you are in your 70s to 80s, or in your 20s to 30s, you may not see the humour quite as much as say someone in their 40s to 60s that have parents in their 70s to 80s. This book has been written by Todd Alexander and it is obvious that he loves his parents and family a great deal, but also has an enthusiastic sense of humour and can see the funny side of frustrating and stressful situations involving loved ones.
It may be that I fit into the required age categories and still have my sense of humour intact despite the best efforts of my loved ones, but I see the hilarious side of this trip that Todd and Jeff have embarked on with Todd’s parents. Yes, there is no doubt a little exaggeration of the retelling of the tale by Todd, and possibly a tad difference in the time it actually takes to perform certain tasks, but hey, if artistic licence makes for funnier story then I’m all for it.
I love how he weaves in his absolute admiration for his parents (especially his amazing connection with his mum) throughout the story so you can be assured that he is not going to abandon them on the side of the road, and how he is starting to see these little traits appear when he is with his own children. He is quite willing to admit to his own shortcomings, even if he does try to hide his ‘minor’ incidents when it comes to attending flight departures at the correct time.
You wouldn’t think that simple items like mints, water bottles, car stereos, mobile phones, car windows and menus could make for such stressful situations and hilarious tales, but with Todd’s unique way of storytelling they most certainly do. Even words and pronunciations that are frequently used by his parents are up for scrutiny as well. I see so much of my own parents, siblings, and of course myself in this tale which is a little scary, but I guess it’s what makes me enjoy the humour of it, and I’ll admit that it did also make me look at our older generation through different eyes for a while.
An added bonus throughout the book are the Twilight Waters notices for the residents, from nuptials of the 97 year old and 102 year old, to the ban on residents using the jumping castle, they fit with the tale so well.
For a light funny read and a road trip with a difference, grab a copy of Over the Hill and Up the Wall. You might be pleasantly surprised by what else you walk away with.
Thank you,
Management 😉
#overthehillandupthewall
#toddalexander
#greatlaughs
Now let me give you a little heads up first…..If you are in your 70s to 80s, or in your 20s to 30s, you may not see the humour quite as much as say someone in their 40s to 60s that have parents in their 70s to 80s. This book has been written by Todd Alexander and it is obvious that he loves his parents and family a great deal, but also has an enthusiastic sense of humour and can see the funny side of frustrating and stressful situations involving loved ones.
It may be that I fit into the required age categories and still have my sense of humour intact despite the best efforts of my loved ones, but I see the hilarious side of this trip that Todd and Jeff have embarked on with Todd’s parents. Yes, there is no doubt a little exaggeration of the retelling of the tale by Todd, and possibly a tad difference in the time it actually takes to perform certain tasks, but hey, if artistic licence makes for funnier story then I’m all for it.
I love how he weaves in his absolute admiration for his parents (especially his amazing connection with his mum) throughout the story so you can be assured that he is not going to abandon them on the side of the road, and how he is starting to see these little traits appear when he is with his own children. He is quite willing to admit to his own shortcomings, even if he does try to hide his ‘minor’ incidents when it comes to attending flight departures at the correct time.
You wouldn’t think that simple items like mints, water bottles, car stereos, mobile phones, car windows and menus could make for such stressful situations and hilarious tales, but with Todd’s unique way of storytelling they most certainly do. Even words and pronunciations that are frequently used by his parents are up for scrutiny as well. I see so much of my own parents, siblings, and of course myself in this tale which is a little scary, but I guess it’s what makes me enjoy the humour of it, and I’ll admit that it did also make me look at our older generation through different eyes for a while.
An added bonus throughout the book are the Twilight Waters notices for the residents, from nuptials of the 97 year old and 102 year old, to the ban on residents using the jumping castle, they fit with the tale so well.
For a light funny read and a road trip with a difference, grab a copy of Over the Hill and Up the Wall. You might be pleasantly surprised by what else you walk away with.
Thank you,
Management 😉
#overthehillandupthewall
#toddalexander
#greatlaughs
Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews