Ash Road

Ash Road by Ivan Southall is an Australian Young Adult (YA) novel set in country Victoria. First published in 1965, Ash Road tells the story of two separate groups of children and their various reactions to diversity. Wallace, Graham and Harry are a group of teenage boys on their first foray into the world without adults. Camping on a suffocating summer night, the boys accidentally set the bush ablaze. On the other side the mountain, the children of Ash Road are left alone when their parents leave to fight the fire and assist with the evacuation of nearby towns. However, the blaze is soon out of control and the children are left to cope alone with the impending disaster.

On the surface, Ivan Southall’s Ash Road seems like a typical YA show more coming of age story but stating so would be doing this impressive piece of writing a disservice. While this book does contain some elements of growing up and leaving childhood behind, it is so much more than that. As characters of all ages stare into the face of disaster, they are forced to confront their own reactions, delving deeply into their own self-image, and ultimately growing as people.

Ash Road was the recipient of several literary awards, including the Book Council of Australia Australian Children’s Book of the Year 1966 and the American Library Association Notable Book 1966, and it is not difficult to see why.

Ash Road is written in a stream-of-consciousness style from various points of view, lending a sense of urgency and anxiety that keeps the pages turning. The characters are, for the most part, well fleshed out and show clear development throughout the story, but some of the characters, such as the Robertsons are a bit wishy-washy. Modern teens might also find the outdated currency and slang a bit jarring, but that is to be expected, and it’s not so bad as to detract from the enjoyment of the reader.

The true strength of this story, however, lies in Southall’s strikingly vivid descriptions of the Australian countryside, the heat of the Australian summer and sheer majesty and terror of an approaching bushfire. The reader can hear the crackling of leaves underfoot, feel the dry heat of the North wind, smell the acrid sweetness burning eucalypts.

Overall, Ash Road is an enjoyable novel which delves far more deeply into the psychology of human nature than an initial glance would imply. Southall is a truly talented writer who transports the reader into a world of fear and guilt, where every decision is life or death. This isn’t just a book for children, but a superb piece of writing that deserves a place on everybody’s shelf. show less

It's a hot day in January, the wind is blowing fiercely, and conditions are perfect for a wildfire near the town of Tinley. At the same time, three teens head out into the brush, away from adults and their unfair rules, like obeying the law about open burning...

This is the first book written by Ivan Southall that I've read, and I found myself fascinated by his storytelling talent. The children and adolescents are 'real', speaking and acting just as those who populate the world around us do. I also found myself engrossed, wanting to know what would happen to the people in this story.

Labeled as YA, it is quite suitable for adult readers, too.

Three boys go camping for a week on their own and accidentally start a fire that sweeps through the dangerously dry outback. The story follows the actions of several families living along Ash Road, how the adults seem to bungle through their instincts to help, and how a handful of children are left alone and possibly trapped by the oncoming flames. A YA thriller, I suppose, but without much in the way of thrilling bits. The writing needed to be more immediate and intense, I think, to pull it off. I love a good disaster/thriller story, but this one lacked the seat-edgy excitement.

Ash Road is a thrilling story about a group of kids stuck in a huge bushfire without any adults. This book was published in 1965, so things like currency and slang are not current, but it doesn't affect the understanding (or enjoyment) of the story. Although this book was written for kids, I would also recommend it for adults. I have read it many times over the years, and it still makes my heart race and gives me butterflies in my tummy.

The quality of writing in Ash Road is outstanding. The descriptions of a hot day in the Aussie bush are such that one can smell the Eucalypts, and the description of the fire is thrilling. This is a great read for child and adult alike.

As I read this book the outside air is thick with smoke from the many bushfires thathave been burning for weeks. The grass is dead . It is hot and windy. And the watertanks are almost empty ....
Three teenage boys on a bush adventure have little insight into the dangers and consequences of lighting fire in the dry australian bush, until it is too late and homes and lives are threatened by a fast growing out of control fire. The residents of Ash Road dont think their rural properties are under threat when the leave their children at home and go to fight the fire.
Australian childrens book of the year 1966

The boys never meant to cause trouble. They’d planned to go camping, but somehow the fire got started and soon all the lives and possessions of everyone along Ash Road were in jeopardy.

An amazing story of adventure and survival as a wildfire sweeps through the countryside.

To share the language of the book, here’s a little excerpt:

“(The fire) came upon (Grandpa’s) vision as something living and evil, shapeless and formless, constantly changing, huge beyond comprehension: an insane creature of immense greed consuming everything around it whether the taste pleased it or revolted it, rejecting what it did not care for only after it had mauled and savaged it, then pitching it aside or spitting it into the heavens.”

This book is probably the least depressing of all Ican Southall's. It was an enjoyable but haunting read.