A Long Way From Home in Around the World in 80 Books

Dec 26, 2019 Tony rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: setting-oceania, historical-fiction, novels

Peter Carey is a reliably good writer, so when I saw he'd written a novel set in the 1950s and based on an auto rally that circumnavigated Australia, that was enough to pull me in. The hook is the real life Redex Trials, which ran from 1953-55 and were a points-based rally that required drivers to reach certain checkpoints within certain time-frames, all in the ostensible service of establishing which make and model of various cars were the most reliable. (There are some 1950s British Pathe shor Peter Carey is a reliably good writer, so when I saw he'd written a novel set in the 1950s and based on an auto rally that circumnavigated Australia, that was enough to pull me in. The hook is the real life Redex Trials, which ran from 1953-55 and were a points-based rally that required drivers to reach certain checkpoints within certain time-frames, all in the ostensible service of establishing which make and model of various cars were the most reliable. (There are some 1950s British Pathe short films online with the original footage that are great for getting a flavor of the race.) The plot revolves around a team of entrants consisting of a husband and wife, and their odd but friendly neighbor. What unfolds within the framework of the preparation and realization of the race is a densely layered story about race, family, gender, and history in post-war Australia.

Depending on your reading, the story is either a little haphazardly constructed, or a cunningly woven narrative designed to suck one in and then deliver some dark home truths. The opening carries a somewhat light and comedic tone, in describing Irene and Titch Bobbs, who are attempting to set themselves up as independent car dealers. They face constant hassle from Titch's overbearing colorful father, who has a ruthlessly competitive and toxic approach to being a father. Meanwhile, they gain an interesting new neighbor, in the form of a bachelor schoolteacher of German heritage, named Willy Bachhuber. This all culminates in a crazy plan to enter the Redex trials, with the Bobbs as drivers and Willy as navigator, and the kids left at home with Irene's unreliable sister.

As the book shifts into road-story mode, the tone also shifts, as they face various perils of the road and relationships strain. Irene's status as a female driver is particularly irritating to others, and as the rally continues, the comedy recedes in the rear-view mirror. Then in the final third or so of the book, the rally is basically left and instead the story shifts to Willy's experience -- which to say too much about would be to spoil the book. Suffice to say the story becomes very much about the criminal mistreatment of Aboriginal people in post-war Australia. None of it is a surprise if you know how colonial cultures have interacted with indigenous ones across the world, but it's a far cry from the domestic comedy that the book starts out with. Personally, I found the tonal and thematic shifts somewhat forced and awkward.

All in all, despite the structural and tonal shifts, the characters are engrossing multi-layered people, and the writing is quite good. I gather that some readers have struggled with the rhythm and idiom of spoken Australian English as it appears in the book, but I didn't find it tough going. ...more

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