Truckies: Life Behind The Wheel

Well-respected academic and former police officer, Dr Jann Karp, spent four years travelling with and writing about interstate truck drivers to discover the truth about life on the road. The result is Truckies, a rare passenger eye’s view of the drivers’ world that tells their story with sympathy and insight. Truckies reveals the strength and even heroism of the people who embrace this dangerous and sometimes isolating work, overturning common misconceptions while never flinching from some of the hard truths of the trucking life. Anyone who is interested in understanding the lives and working conditions of truck drivers better, either for personal or policy reasons, should read this book. Praise for Truckies: “Without an efficient and effective road transport industry this vast country would be like a third world banana republic. Truck drivers are at the heart of this industry. Truckies is a unique window into what happens behind the wheel.” - Stephen Hutchins, former Senator, Australian Parliament (1998-2011) “A unique and seminal work that will dispel the myth of ‘truckies’ as ‘irresponsible cowboys’. A must read for policy makers, union officials, and anyone interested in the hidden inner-workings of complex and dangerous industries.” - Dr Xanthe Mellett, Forensic Criminologist “Jann Karp takes the reader on a journey as if we are in the passenger seat, and we too can see the road wind ahead to the horizon through tired eyes and lonely spirits. This is a story that had to be told.” - Mark Findlay, Professor of Law, University of Sydney About Jann Karp: Dr Jann Karp spent 23 years as an officer in the NSW Police Force before pursuing an academic career. Her work has taken her from fighting entrenched corruption in a law enforcement bureaucracy to lecturing at universities to reporting from the frontlines of the Australian workplace as a "working class girl writing about working class people.” Her first book, Corruption and Crisis Control: The Nature of the Game (VDM Verlag, 2008), was well-received internationally. When she is not on the road seeking out these stories, she lives in Rocky River NSW. Learn more about Jann at www.jannkarp.com.