Jellicoe Road

by Melina Marchetta

Abandoned by her drug-addicted mother at the age of eleven, high school student Taylor Markham struggles with her identity and family history at a boarding school in Australia.

• ISBN10: 0062007335
• ISBN13: 9780062007339
• Publish Date: 6 April 2010 (first published 1 September 2006)
• Publish Status: Active
• Publish Country: US
• Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers
• Imprint: Collins
• Format: eBook
• Pages: 432
• Language: English

Reviews

[Jyc]

★★★★ // i am no stranger to a Melina Marchetta novel, having read Saving Francesca a few years back. but this one feels a different kind of heavy to a point when things finally fell into place, there’s just this hovering emptiness and hollowness in your chest. it was not an easy read, especially because i found the origin story of the core five slightly tedious and muddled. i couldn’t find the time to deeply care for them as they simply felt like people in the past—even as certain revelations were reached. despite this, i couldn’t help but be drawn to this story. maybe because its themes of overcoming self-loathing is something i can identify with, not to mention its extremely romantic take of Taylor and Griggs’ past and present connection. going back, it provokes a good question of how far we are willing to forgive other people and ourselves. there are things in life that are surely out of our control, but our reaction to it is placed on our hands. after all, we create our own fate.

”But grief makes a monster out of us sometimes, Taylor, and sometimes you say and do things to the people you love that you can’t forgive yourself for.”

[maggiefan]

I almost cried at the end.
This book made me very emotional. It's just so unfair, what happened to these beautiful people in their lives.
Too bad that the beginning was very confusing...

[Sam@WLABB]

I have always heard so much about Melina Marchetta's books, and after loving Saving Francesca, I was ready for more. This is one of her books, that has been heaped with praise, so I thought it would be a great next book.

I must say, the book was a journey, for both me and the characters. I went from "this is weird" to "what the heck is happening" to "THIS IS AMAZING!".

There was this beautiful story of connection, forgiveness, love, and friendship wrapped up in a mystery. Taylor had been abandoned on Jellicoe Road at age eleven, and more or less, cared for by Hannah, whose disappearance set the whole story in motion. In her search, Taylor found Hannah's manuscript, and though it seemed random at the time, she was soon able to draw parallels between the fictional lives of the characters and her own.

At the same time, Taylor was leading her team in the annual boundary battle between her school, the townies, and the cadets. Alliances formed, and grew into something quite wonderful. These unlikely friendships brought me so much happiness, and it meant a lot to me, that Taylor found her people.

As Taylor found more and more clues in her search for Hannah, I watched all the pieces fall into place, and then, all the feels were unleashed on me. Once it started, I couldn't stop the avalanche of emotions that began filling me up. There were lots of tears as it all became clearer, but there was a lot of joy in there too.

I had to be patient, and let Marchetta lay the foundation for this wonderful tale. And, let me tell you, I was rewarded ten-fold as all the seemingly separate threads began to weave themselves together. To quote The Dead, "what a long strange trip it's been", and it's one I don't regret taking.

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[bumblingbookworm]

I'm so conflicted on what rating to give this... While this book is a 5 star read for me every day of the week, I didn't really enjoy the audiobook experience. I wasn't a fan of the narrator and this really impacted on my enjoyment of this book in audio format. I didn't like the voices she did for each character and found it hard to distinguish between them. Also, the voices of the characters in year 7 sounded like 5 year olds and this really bugged me! It was all a bit too ocker and the characters sounded caricature-ish. As a result this version really lacked the heart and emotion of the book, which still never fails to make me cry no matter how many times I've read it.

Audiobook rating - 3 stars

[Bianca]

*reread*

2019 Popsugar Reading Challenge
03. A book that makes you nostalgic

My father took one hundred and thirty-two minutes to die. I counted. It happened on the Jellicoe Road. The prettiest road I’d ever seen, where trees made breezy canopies like a tunnel to Shangri-la. We were going to the ocean, hundreds of miles away, because I wanted to see the ocean and my father said that it was about time the four of us made that journey. I remember asking, “What’s the difference between a trip and a journey?” and my father said, “Narnie, my love, when we get there, you’ll understand,” and that was the last thing he ever said.

— Still as hauntingly beautiful as I remember it to be. Sad, sweet, and well, nostalgic. I love this book with all my heart and soul 😭❤️

[lizarodz]

This is one of those books that I’m sure I will never be able to do it justice. It is SO good that I’m not sure why it took me so long to read it either. On the Jellicoe Road is such an amazing read.

“My father took one hundred and thirty-two minutes to die.

I counted.

It happened on the Jellicoe Road. The prettiest road I’d ever seen, where trees made breezy canopies like a tunnel to Shangri-La. We were going to the ocean, hundreds of miles away, because I wanted to see the ocean and my father said that it was about time the four of us made that journey. I remember asking, ‘What’s the difference between a trip and a journey?’ and my father said, ‘Narnie, my love, when we get there, you’ll understand,’ and that was the last thing he ever said.”

On the Jellicoe Road is a combination of two parallel stories. On one hand we follow Taylor’s story, a story of heartbreak, friendships and lost love. Taylor’s story is told by her, in the first person. On the other hand, we have Narnie’s story, a story with a tragic ending that Taylor slowly uncovers by reading Hannah’s manuscript. Both stories intercept and intertwine in unexpected ways. I loved the mystery, the revealing of these truths. Underlying everything is the war for territory between cadets, townies, and students that takes place once a year, when the cadets come to camp near the Jellicoe School.

Taylor is such a complex character. She tries really hard to not care about anything or anyone because she was abandoned by her mother. She tries, but of course, the heart cannot be controlled, on the contrary, her emotions seem to be always raw and in turmoil. She’s a combination of strong and fragile, brave, fearless, and afraid at the same time. As I said, complex, loyal, and trying to find the truth about herself.

Now we come to Johan Griggs *sigh* He’s the leader of the cadets and had a short past encounter with Taylor. She was his redemption at a moment when he needed it more, but she doesn’t know it. It’s so nice to see how he tries to protect Taylor at every turn, and at the same time trying to understand her and to support her, even if her decisions are not always sound. He’s such a sweetie at heart and he loves Taylor so much. Did I mentioned he’s swoony too?

Their relationship grows slowly due to misunderstandings, pride and even prejudice (*pun intended*). But, it is a true pleasure to watch. These two characters are straightforward, honest to the point to rudeness, and perfect for each other.

“When I turn around, he cups my face in his hands and he kisses me so deeply that I don’t know who is breathing for who, but his mouth and tongue taste like warm honey. I don’t know how long it lasts, but when I let go of him, I miss it already.”

There are so many amazing characters in this book. Besides Taylor and Jonah, we get to know Santangelo, the leader of the townies who turns into a true friend for all of them. Raffy, who sticks to Taylor, no matter what, and who seems to have a story with Santangelo. Jessa, who admires and understands Taylor like few others can. Ben, who also sticks to Taylor, because he believes in her. Even Hannah, Webb and the rest of the five seem to come alive in the pages of the book. These characters are flawed, some heartbroken, some happy, some sick, some depressed, some in love, some looking for love. I great cast of characters!

The writing is so beautiful. I hope that the miracle of Marchetta’s storytelling continues throughout her work, I already purchased Saving Francesca so I can continue to experience her lyrical, insightful style. The plot of the story is confusing at times, but I think that’s my fault since I started the book in audio and it wasn’t always clear to me when the stories of Narnie and Taylor. I then switch to the eBook and it went much better. I promise that it all makes sense at the end.

“This isn’t romance. This isn’t a declaration of love or affirmation of friendship. This is something more.”

Overall, On the Jellico Road is an outstanding story of loss, redemption, and the power of love. A most read.

About the cover: To be honest, the cover doesn’t do anything for me.

[KitsuneBae]

Proper review to come soon.

[Joséphine]

I was unsettled. Death is a major theme, yet somehow I didn't pick up on that when I started reading. Had I known, I probably would not have chosen to read it right then when I did. I was looking for something a little less heavy. Given the five stars I gave it though, clearly I'm glad I read it.

Truth be told, the first half of the book did not seem entirely promising to me. The plot somehow did not convince me at first. In the end, what did it for me and captured my attention was Melina Marchetta's style of writing and the characterization. As the story began to unfold in the second half of the book, I was totally drawn in and disturbed; disturbed in that I couldn't stop reading, even though I could predict quite a bit what was gonna happen next, because Marchetta knew exactly which buttons to push next in my heart as I read on. No wonder "Jellicoe Road" won a couple of literary awards.

[nightingalereads]

3.75 stars

I really loved this book. I'd heard going in that the first 100 pages or so are confusing, but the writing was so beautiful and entrancing that I didn't mind at all. The story feels carefully woven and every single character feels real. If you enjoy group dynamics similar to The Raven Cycle by Maggie Stiefvater, you'll like the relationships in this book. And the story is so very clever. Every little thread of the story is connected, and you don't get the full picture until the end.

Suffice it to say, this book definitely deserves the praise it gets.

[Amanda]

3

Melina Marchetta is a well-loved author in many parts of the blogosphere. I decided to try out one of her books, and I chose Jellicoe Road to start with. I think maybe because Alissa (The Grammarian’s Reviews) recommended it to me. I definitely enjoyed Jellicoe Road, and I need more Melina Marchetta now. (I will take Melina Marchetta recommendations if there are any.)

Though it took me a while to get into, Jellicoe Road eventually sucked me in and kept me up far past my bed time and wishing I could read all night. I don’t stay up late at night to read much anymore, so you know that if a book makes me want to, it has to be good. Part of the reason why it took me some time to get settled into the story is that you’re thrown in the Taylor’s world without much explanation. It takes a bit to stretch out and find a comfortable spot, but once you do, you don’t want to move until you absolutely have to. (You know, like until the end of the book.)

I loved the alternating stories of the past and present. I was able to piece together some of the mysteries pretty easily, but that didn’t take away my enjoyment at all. Melina Marchetta weaves a very nuanced story with layers and depth. I loved how the story (stories) unfolded. There is just so much here. An supposedly abandoned child learning to make it on her own. Taylor is both a tragic and strong figure, trying to find her way. And Jonah! And Taylor’s friends! Jessa! The Cadets and Townies and Houses.

And despite its heavy subject matter, Jellicoe Road retains a sense of subtle humor. Just enough to keep your lips curled up in amusement. I can very easily see why Melina Marchetta and her books are loved as much as they are.