Queen of the Road: The True Tale of 47 States, 22,000 Miles, 200 Shoes, 2 Cats, 1 Poodle, a Husba...
A pampered Long Island princess hits the road in a converted bus with her wilderness-loving husband, travels the country for one year, and bring... read full description
reviews
Jul 08, 2008
Annette
rated it: 
I was waiting in line at my local bookstore when I spied a pile of books entitled "Queen of the Road". Being an avid traveler and lover of memoirs, I picked one up. I read the first 2 pages and forgot why I wanted the book I held in my other hand. I was hooked...laughing out loud in the check out counter line! "Queen of the Road" by Doreen Orion is a hysterically funny laugh out loud as well as thoughtful and touching memoir about a mid-40ish woman who was convinced by h
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Mar 13, 2009
Heather
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Bought this at the airport. It was boring and the protagonist was kind of a whiny pain in the ass. Don't read it.
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May 20, 2008
John
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This is an entertaining tale of two shrinks and a bus. I went to visit them - the shrinks and the bus - in Boulder, Colorado. I saw the bus in its lair. I saw the author on the loose, and her husband practicing medicine in a converted Denver warehouse.
I even went in an automobile with them.
There is a high liklihood you will find this story enthralling and amusing, and you will learn to mix exotic drinks, and you will gain valuable insight into the kind of person who More...
I even went in an automobile with them.
There is a high liklihood you will find this story enthralling and amusing, and you will learn to mix exotic drinks, and you will gain valuable insight into the kind of person who More...
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Jan 02, 2011
Carol
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I enjoyed Queen of the road, but entered into it expecting a light read. Like other reviewers, I found Doreen only moderately interesting at the start, but the saga of embarking on a year-long bus adventure kept me reading. The constant "Prada this, Richard Tyler that," failed to make a spark with the anti-label consumer, but I definitely got the message that Doreen is/was materialistic. Someone who is familiar with the "Sex and The City" lifestyle will most likely fi
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Sep 03, 2009
Marigold
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This book has a cocktail recipe at the beginning of each chapter, so really, how can you go wrong?! The story sounds like the beginning of a bad joke - "two psychologists get on a bus...." Doreen enjoys sitting around the house in her pj's, watching TV, & buying shoes. Her husband Tim does all the cooking, cleaning, and all vehicle related maintenance! All Doreen has to do is stand around with a martini & admire his skills. (Where do I hire a guy like this?!) They have a pretty great l
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Aug 01, 2009
Jemima
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Doreen and her husband Tim decide to travel America for a year in a converted bus. Well, it is Tim's dream and Doreen reluctantly agrees to go along with it. They are both psychiatrists, though Doreen usually works at home processing insurance cases. She freely admits that she is lazy and practically a shut in. She enjoys sleeping in, watching TV, and has a fetish for designer shoes. When departure date arrives they load into the fully decked out bus; pets, shoes and all. After embarking on thei
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Jun 19, 2011
Heila
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The story of two psychiatrists who rent their house, buy a converted bus and live in it for a year. LOL funny in several places. Interesting and fun to hear her perspectives and observations of the places they visit. During the journey, she has realizations about her own over-reliance on possessions for happiness and closing herself off from the world and how those things are actually making her stressed. Relationships mattering instead. Only thing missing - and I realized this a day or so
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Nov 20, 2008
Jen
rated it:
Funny, hilarious! I think I almost wet my pants a couple of times... This was the most fun I've had reading a book in a long time!!! I get the distinct feeling that this is as close as I want to get to a life on the road but will gladly live it through Ms. Orion! :)
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Jan 30, 2010
JoAnn/QuAppelle
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I started out really liking this book and the author's humor, but it quickly grew tiresome. I think it would have been much more enjoyable from the husband's point of view because Doreen was just so obnoxious. She was so negative, manipulative, and whiny before and during the trip - what a spoiled brat! I found the constant use of - or reference to - her title of "princess" (self-proclaimed) to be annoying. It ceased being cute after the 50th time! She tried way too hard to be funny a
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Jun 20, 2009
Stephanie "Jedigal"
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What I learned:
Nice people don't necessarily make entertaining writers.
Reading about traveling is not nearly as good as traveling.
I'm not the only to believe that things are not as important as people, but yet to cling to my things. But at least one of us (the author) has let go, so if she could do it, so could I. Something to remember and consider.
I didn't much like this book, the author seemed to be so busy trying to make her story funny/cute/entertaining, that More...
Nice people don't necessarily make entertaining writers.
Reading about traveling is not nearly as good as traveling.
I'm not the only to believe that things are not as important as people, but yet to cling to my things. But at least one of us (the author) has let go, so if she could do it, so could I. Something to remember and consider.
I didn't much like this book, the author seemed to be so busy trying to make her story funny/cute/entertaining, that More...
Jul 30, 2008
Lorie
rated it:
This book was very entertaining and I would highly recommend it. Plenty of adventures to keep you laughing.
After reading this book, I want to buy a bus of my own and head out on the road to visit many of my good friends throughout the country!
After reading this book, I want to buy a bus of my own and head out on the road to visit many of my good friends throughout the country!
May 12, 2009
Jane
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Wow...this book was soooo funny! Perhaps it was so much fun because I could truely identify with the characters! My husband and I embarked on an 18 month trip across the US. We had similar adventures, saw some of the same sights, enjoyed the same music and books, and had our dog with us! Personality traits were also similar. The writer and her spouse (both psychiatrists)embark on a one year trip across the US. Doreen is a self diagnosed "indoor person with a bus phobia" but goes
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Oct 31, 2008
amanda
rated it:
A quick travelogue read. The author changes her style and tone from pampered princess to country lovin' RV-er as she learns life isn't all about shopping and reality TV, and that scenic hikes aren't death marches.
(I needed something light after finishing Tom Friedman's "The World is Flat")
(I needed something light after finishing Tom Friedman's "The World is Flat")
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Oct 30, 2010
Pamela
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I recently finished a refreshing and fun read, “Queen of the Road” by Doreen Orion. This book was lent to me by a co-worker who had no idea who owned it, nor how she acquired it. I perused the back cover and decided, “O.K. why not?”
From the beginning, I was enraptured by the honest humor and the idea of “chucking it all” and traveling across the U.S. for a year. But, what I didn’t expect were moments of introspection and a time of learning from mini history lessons about the various More...
From the beginning, I was enraptured by the honest humor and the idea of “chucking it all” and traveling across the U.S. for a year. But, what I didn’t expect were moments of introspection and a time of learning from mini history lessons about the various More...
Apr 08, 2011
Dhara
rated it:
The Queen of the Road by Doreen Orion is an intensely entertaining love story of couple journey across 47 states in a bus. Doreen is ‘princess’ who has not a care in the world except her nail polish, shoes, and handbags. Her husband, Tim, is and outdoorsy, do-it-your self dedicated psychiatrist. The odd couple manage to get along throughout the year without world war three erupting. Doreen at the end of the book appreciates her priceless husband (even more she did before) and realizes the mall i
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Aug 13, 2010
Rachel
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This is going to be the perfect book for summer ... funny in spots and poking fun at oneself ... love it so far!
I finished it. I might not have 200 pairs of shoes nor live the life on a fancy RV bus ... but I thoroughly enjoyed this book so much that it's a keeper in my personal library. Doreen is funny ... she writes with good humor and pokes fun at herself for being such a princess and I just love it. I love the stories of their travel and wish there were some photos included in th More...
I finished it. I might not have 200 pairs of shoes nor live the life on a fancy RV bus ... but I thoroughly enjoyed this book so much that it's a keeper in my personal library. Doreen is funny ... she writes with good humor and pokes fun at herself for being such a princess and I just love it. I love the stories of their travel and wish there were some photos included in th More...
Jul 20, 2009
Tara
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I'm not a non-fiction reader, but this was this month's book club read, so I gave it a shot...and loved it!
It's an account (written by a self-professed Long Island princess possessing over 200 pairs of shoes) of how a woman and her husband set off for a year-long trek across country in a 340 square foot bus...and about all the things they saw and the lessons they (or mostly she) learned along the way.
She is so sassy and humorous and honest...her dry humor accounts of thei More...
It's an account (written by a self-professed Long Island princess possessing over 200 pairs of shoes) of how a woman and her husband set off for a year-long trek across country in a 340 square foot bus...and about all the things they saw and the lessons they (or mostly she) learned along the way.
She is so sassy and humorous and honest...her dry humor accounts of thei More...
Jul 13, 2011
Julie
rated it:
I almost put the book down in the first 40 pages, wherein she brags about her spoiled and lazy lifestyle.
However, it later became clear that she included that to show the changes that she experienced during their fabulous adventure, so I guess it makes sense.
I love traveling and stories about traveling, and of course road trips are an extra special kind of adventure. Also...I kind of want to live in a bus now--what a perfect way to drive cross-country!
One set of m More...
However, it later became clear that she included that to show the changes that she experienced during their fabulous adventure, so I guess it makes sense.
I love traveling and stories about traveling, and of course road trips are an extra special kind of adventure. Also...I kind of want to live in a bus now--what a perfect way to drive cross-country!
One set of m More...
Jun 28, 2011
Mandy
rated it: 
This was my least favorite book I have read in a long time. In fact, I might even use the "H" word to describe my feelings for it. It's honestly the first book I didn't finish in my lifetime.
In no particular order here are the reasons I h-worded this book:
-the protagonist was not likeable, not well-developed, and her epiphany came way too late in the book--in fact the last 10 pages. Calling her husband "project nerd" was not funny, the protagonist just seeme More...
In no particular order here are the reasons I h-worded this book:
-the protagonist was not likeable, not well-developed, and her epiphany came way too late in the book--in fact the last 10 pages. Calling her husband "project nerd" was not funny, the protagonist just seeme More...
Jul 03, 2009
Alison
rated it:
This was a book that made me glad I'm in a book club. It's something I never would have picked up on my own (and I admit to not being ambivalent about having to read it) but I enjoyed it. Basically, it's the story of how the author and her husband buy a converted bus and spend an entire year driving around the country, exploring. They visit family and famous sites, and there are some funny anecdotes. Orion's prose is breezy and chatty, but I liked her and her husband and enjoyed reading about he
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Oct 15, 2011
Wendy
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In August of this year, my husband Bill and I spent a long weekend in Colorado. In Denver, we ventured into the beautiful Barnes & Noble right in the middle of downtown, and wandered around for a couple of hours... what a rare treat for 2 people who are incredibly busy with work, children, life, etc...
I strolled into the travel section particularly because I seem to have a travel bug lately--so many places I want to see and so little time..
It was there that I saw " More...
I strolled into the travel section particularly because I seem to have a travel bug lately--so many places I want to see and so little time..
It was there that I saw " More...
Mar 09, 2010
shannon
rated it:
I started out hating this woman. But I think she kind of hated herself. She was like a bad 'Sex and the City' paraody - she couldn't shut up about shoes and track suits and martinis. I think people tend to tone themselves down in print, the make themselves look better than reality, which turned me off even more toward Ms. Orian. But as the book progressed and she eased up, I liked her more and more. By the end, she arcs into a character you can understand, and she's come to understand herse
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Jul 24, 2009
Debbie (Readerbuzz)
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After the virtually joyless trip I just took with Troost in Lost on Planet China (not Troost's fault...China is just not a pretty world these days), I was happy to climb aboard with Doreen Orion in Queen of the Road and travel around the (relatively) clean U.S. of A. Orion's husband convinces her to buy an enormous bus, convert it to a travel-mobile, and set out on a yearlong adventure across America. Orion is a fun traveling companion and seems to find every quirky spot and person in the countr
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Aug 27, 2010
Michelle
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers.
To view it, click here
Jul 13, 2009
Kelly
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I was excited to read this book because I have traveled to 45 of the 50 states with my 4 kids (as of 7/09)and plan to get to the other 5 in the next few years. This book sounded like lots of fun.
Alas, I was disappointed in the book. The writing style is okay, and the author does use humor for her travels, but the passages seem cursory to me. I would have preferred she write of a few of the places more in depth rather than trying to cover so many and link them all thematically perhaps More...
Alas, I was disappointed in the book. The writing style is okay, and the author does use humor for her travels, but the passages seem cursory to me. I would have preferred she write of a few of the places more in depth rather than trying to cover so many and link them all thematically perhaps More...
Sep 17, 2008
Nicole
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This book was great. I started the book with great interest waiting to hear the tales of the author and her husband on their one year journey cross country in their converted bus. I was not disappointed. My only true disappointment was that they skipped KY (My home State). I loved hearing about little known destinations as well as some of the more well known places that they visited. I even learned a thing or two while I read. I also took mental notes on some of the places I would like to
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Aug 29, 2008
Blair
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I expected to love Doreen Orion's QUEEN OF THE ROAD--and to connect at a personal level. I was not disappointed. This book is a light-hearted romp with depth.
Doreen's story bears some similarity to my own. A female shrink, happily married and settled comfortably into her life, goes on an unexpected midlife journey, emerges transformed--and writes a memoir about her experiences.
Doreen's adventures center on a converted bus, piloted by her psychiatrist husband Tim, who ha More...
Doreen's story bears some similarity to my own. A female shrink, happily married and settled comfortably into her life, goes on an unexpected midlife journey, emerges transformed--and writes a memoir about her experiences.
Doreen's adventures center on a converted bus, piloted by her psychiatrist husband Tim, who ha More...
Jun 15, 2009
Did not enjoy this book AT ALL. For a highly educated doctor, I expected the writing to be of better quality.
It was extremely disappointing considering I have an interest in not only travel books, but recently, also in memoirs. Since I am on the road over 300 days of the year myself, driving an 18-wheeler with my boyfriend and having traveled the United States and Canada extensively, I did not find the descriptions of any of the places she had been enticing enough to make me want More...
It was extremely disappointing considering I have an interest in not only travel books, but recently, also in memoirs. Since I am on the road over 300 days of the year myself, driving an 18-wheeler with my boyfriend and having traveled the United States and Canada extensively, I did not find the descriptions of any of the places she had been enticing enough to make me want More...
Jul 24, 2009
Breann
rated it:
With a title like this, how could I not pick it up at the airport last week? Started off with humor and charm but lost its luster after about 80 pages. The author apparently kept a blog during her journey and turned it into a book. The story probably would have been more enjoyable as a blog or in small doses. Taken as a whole, the "I'm a princess on the road who can't lift a finger to do anything" schtick grew weary and the humor became a tad mean-spirited.
Aug 03, 2008
Katie
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I fell in love with Doreen's book for a million reasons: It made me belly laugh. I fucking screamed my way through this book. My sides hurt, my belly burned and the book fell from my hands on numerous occasions, I laughed that hard. Doreen isn't just funny, she's a comic genius. I also cried, feeling her angst, wonder and frustration while she journeyed on a bus with her incredible husband through the US. These two are soooooo in love, their romance is delicious. In the end, what I took from Que
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