136. Queen of the Road

Queen of the Road: The True Tale of 47 States, 22 000 Miles, 200 Shoes, 2 Cats, 1 Poodle, a Husband, and a Bus with a Will of Its Own by Doreen Orion

Pages: 289
Finished: Aug. 4, 2008
First Published: June 10, 2008
Genre: Travelogue, Memoirs
Rating: 4/5

Reason for Reading: I was offered a review copy and accepted.

First sentence:

When my long-dreaded thirtieth birthday arrived, I really wasn't as upset as I imagined I'd be, for I had achieved a much more important milestone: my sartorial centennial.

Comments: Doreen and her husband, Tim, are both psychiatrists in their mid-forties. Tim is a dedicated workaholic with a demanding practice. Doreen has given up practice and works filing insurance claims from the comfort of her bed in her pajamas and is proud of the fact the she hardly ever leaves the house. Out of the blue, Tim convinces her that they will take a year off and drive around the United States in a converted bus. This book details that journey.

At first I wasn't sure whether I would like Doreen's narrative as her rich, material world lifestyle is the exact opposite of my own lifestyle but I couldn't have been more wrong. I found myself relating to her throughout the whole book. Doreen is simply hilarious, an outspoken person who will say just about anything. I was chuckling joyously chapter after chapter and even found myself reading parts aloud to my husband quite often, which rarely happens around here as he is a non-reader.

Humour aside, the journey they take was very interesting and informative to me. As a Canadian my knowledge of US geography is middling but even those who are experts on the topic will find Ms. Orion's journey of interest. While they do go to some famous tourist spots, Doreen chooses mostly to talk about lesser known tourist attractions, RV parks, the automotive challenges they experienced and the people they met on the way.

This is the type of book one can pick up and read a chapter at a time and pick up again later and not loose the flow of the narrative. Highly recommended, especially for summer beach reading or winter armchair travelling.