Memories of Mum are the only thing that make Holly Hogan happy. She hates her foster family with their too-nice ways and their false sympathy. And she hates her life, her stupid school and the way everyone is always on at her. Then she finds the wig, and everything changes. Wearing the long, flowing blonde locks she feels transformed. She's not Holly any more, she's Solace: the girl with the slinkster walk and the super-sharp talk. She's older, more confident - the kind of girl who can walk right out of her humdrum life, hitch to Ireland and find her mum. The kind of girl who can face the world head on.

So begins a bittersweet, and sometimes hilarious journey as Solace swaggers and Holly tiptoes across England and through memory, discovering her true self, and unlocking the secrets of her past. Holly's story will leave a lasting impression on all who travel with her.



Dowd's telling of the story is gritty, realistic and unflinching.
Solace of the Road is a novel that is ultimately full of hope... It's the kind of book that, from now on, I'll be pointing anyone who doubts the quality of YA fiction towards. If you're looking for a story with emotional depth and irresistible charm, this one has all that and more. It's just beautiful.
I Was A Teenage Book Geek

Solace of the Road has it all really: grit, pathos, humour, sharp observation, and a central character who catches your heart and doesn't let it go. [A] Heartbreaking road trip novel with an unforgettable central character. Moments of intense pathos combine with humour to create a book of tremendous quality. Highly recommended.
thebookbag.co.uk

An amazing book for those who love a road trip story with gritty drama and great laughs woven in.
Hannah WoodStoke on Trent Sentinel Series

. . . a memorably touching story with a suitably emotional ending
Julia EccleshareGuardian

This page-turner invests mundane experience and every-day language with the resonance of poetry
Nicolette JonesSunday Times

For readers more at home with awkward reality than sentimentality, Solace of the Road has a lot to offer. Siobhan Dowd meets every challenge with the authority of a born writer
Nicholas TuckerIndependent

. . . unexpectedly life affirming, wise and mature
Amanda CraigThe Times

. . . this gritty, realistic novel which deploys Dowd’s talent for humour, will appeal to the older teenage reader
Daily Telegraph

Real, touching, at times gritty, but laced with humour throughout it will delight teenage and adult readers alike
Irish Post

My first thought when I saw this book was how pretty the cover is...I enjoyed this story and I really liked the ending. I'd give this book 4 out of 5 stars.
Another Book Blog Whore

An amazingly poignant, truthful and emotive book.
The Bookette

Wise and compassionate picturesque novel.
Bournemouth Daily Echo

A finely constructed novel, beautifully written by a master storyteller
INIS

Very good, indeed. With added exclamation marks. 4 stars
The Book Bug For Tweens and Teens