Queen Of The Road

A pampered Long Island princess hits the road in a converted bus with her wilderness-loving husband, travels the country for one year, and brings it all hilariously to life in this offbeat and romantic memoir. Doreen and Tim are married psychiatrists with a twist: She’s a self-proclaimed Long Island princess, grouchy couch potato, and shoe addict. He's an affable, though driven, outdoorsman. When Tim suggests “chucking it all” to travel cross-country in a converted bus, Doreen asks, “Why can’t you be like a normal husband in a midlife crisis and have an affair or buy a Corvette?” But she soon shocks them both, agreeing to set forth with their sixty-pound dog, two querulous cats—and no agenda—in a 340-square-foot bus. Queen of the Road is Doreen’s offbeat and romantic tale about refusing to settle, about choosing the unconventional road with all the misadventures it brings (fire, flood, armed robbery, and finding themselves in a nudist RV park, to name just a few). The marvelous places they visit and delightful people they encounter have a life-changing effect on all the travelers, as Doreen grows to appreciate the simple life, Tim mellows, and even the pets pull together. Best of all, readers get to go along for the ride through forty-seven states in this often hilarious and always entertaining memoir, in which a boisterous marriage of polar opposites becomes stronger than ever.

Relates the misadventures of Miss Armitage as she makes increasingly complicated modifications of her bicycle.

'Dina Lal wasn't moving . . . Hindu or not, he wasn't, goddamnit, going anywhere.' Lahore, 1947. Dina Lal, a true-blue Lahori, refuses to leave, staying put in Five Queen's Road, a house he bought, in spite of his wife's greatest misgivings, from an Englishman who was deeply reluctant to part with it. To insulate his family from the mayhem on the streets, Dina Lal converts to Islam and as added protection invites Amir Shah, a Muslim colleague, and his children, Javid and Rubina, to share the house with him. But the events that unfold over the next few months make a mockery of Dina Lal's plans. While Dina Lal and Amir Shah cross swords with each other at every given opportunity-though unexpectedly and in spite of themselves rushing to the other's defence in moments of crisis-a furtive friendship blossoms between Dina Lal and Javid.

Describes travel down the Appian Way while analyzing the meaning of the road in modern and ancient context.

When the car her uncle gave her loses parts all over the road, Mrs. Armitage takes it in stride, but a gang of friendly motorcyclists is impressed with the results.

"Angela needed a miracle...She didn't expect it to come in the form of a red 18-wheeler. Juggling two jobs, raising her four-year-old daughter alone and drowning in debt, Angela Ranger is struggling to survive. So when Angela's father offers her a job driving trucks in the tiny rural town of Munirilla, she accepts. After all, it's only temporary. Despite taking to the road with ease, Angela finds moving to Munirilla may not be the godsend it seemed. Her accommodation is dingy, her fellow truckies are less than happy to see a woman on the road, and the locals are reluctant to use her services. There is one local who's glad to see her, though. Fill-in farm manager and loner, Coop, resists his natural tendency to avoid personal connections when he meets the efficient and gorgeous Angela. But Coop has problems of his own - sheep are going missing, his neighbours are acting strangely and the demons of his past are urging him to move on again. In Munirilla, both Angela and Coop will face the ultimate test of character. Will they follow reason and leave? Or follow their hearts and build a home in the small town...together?" -- Back cover.

Photographer Denis O'Regan accompanied Queen on all their tours, from the very first to the last. Drawing on his own and other photographer's material, he pays a tribute to the spectacle of Queen live, as well as showing life backstage for the band.

Imagine being alongside one of the greatest bands in the history of rock, touring the world and being there as they perform at some of the best and biggest music venues in the world. Peter Hince didn't have to imagine: for more than a decade, he lived a life that other people can only dream of as he worked with Queen as head of their road crew. In 1973, Queen was the support act for Mott the Hoople, for whom Peter was a roadie. Back then, Queen had to content themselves with being second on the bill and the world had not yet woken up to the flamboyant talent of Freddie Mercury. Peter started working full time for Queen just as they were making A Night at the Opera, the album which catapulted them to international stardom. In this intimate and affectionate book, Peter recalls the highlights of his years with the band. He was with Freddie when he composed 'Crazy Little Thing Called Love'; he was responsible for making sure that Freddie's stage performances went without a hitch - and was often there to witness his famed tantrums! He was also party to the sex, drugs and rock 'n' roll which are invariably part of life on the road with a rock band.