Just Drive

Life in the Bus Lane

By: Deke N. Blue

Narrated by: Kevin Meyer

Just Drive: Life in the Bus Lane provides a rare look at life from the driver’s seat. Spanning five years, this audiobook is a collection of posts from a Portland, Oregon, bus operator’s blog about his job.

From the unique perspective of a “contemplative bus driver”, this audiobook chronicles Deke’s career from trainee to seasoned operator. Sharing his adventures from the tragic to the wondrous or hilarious, he adds color to one of the world’s most stressful occupations.

Deke's blog covers a wide range of thoughts and feelings as he maneuvers his bus along the quirky and often unforgiving streets of this Northwestern metropolis. People have described his writing as riveting, engaging, and vividly descriptive.

Join the legions of Deke’s fans who enjoy his entertaining, free-flowing style that describes a realistic view "from the driver's side".

©2017 Just Zakanna Productions, Inc. (P)2018 Just Zakanna Productions, Inc.

Probably really entertaining for bus drivers

There were some true nuggets in this memoir of an Oregon city bus driver. I live in an area that has very limited public transportation, so there were lots of things I wasn’t aware about the day-to-day operation of city bus. Blue shared this knowledge usually through little amusing anecdotes.

I was very surprised by how often bus drivers are accosted, physically or verbally. I was sad to hear how their management gave them so little support in these instances, and in some cases even dealt out punishments to the drivers. I was horrified and amused by how often people physically challenged a bus! Hello! That’s not a fight you can win!

The book does ramble a bit. Originally, it was a series of blog posts and that’s openly talked about in the book. However, I think this was the main drag about the book too. A good edit could have condensed this down in to half the book, allowing the more amusing or insightful moments to really shine. As it was, I had to slog through the boring bits for the good stuff.

Also, I wanted a bit more fire. I feel the author has some great things to say, but I also feel he held back because he doesn’t want to be reprimanded by his management for using strong language or being disparaging. As the reader, I find books that try to please everyone to usually be boring.

Over all, there’s some few moments that made me laugh out loud, or gasp in surprise. I want more of this and I think the author can deliver. I especially loved those flirtatious scenes with his wife. 3.5/5 stars.

The Narration: Kevin Meyer did a great job narrating this story. He sounded like a natural Pacific Northwesterner. He was upbeat, always sounding engaged with the story. I loved how he managed the unique voices for all the various characters. There were no issues with this recording. 5/5 stars.

I received this audiobook as part of my participation in a blog tour with Audiobookworm Promotions. The tour is being sponsored by Deke N. Blue. The gifting of this audiobook did not affect my opinion of it.

Well Written. Interesting read.

Deke tells it like it truly is. He has the gift of making you feel like you're sitting there at the wheel right there with him. So many of his stories I can remember happening to me as a "newbie". My biggest regret from his book? Saying there won't be a sequel. So many new things have happened since this book...I hope he reconsiders. Wonderful job Deke. Great read!

It was a joy reading Deke's clever similies and metafores.

"Just Drive" should be required reading for bus drivers and passengers alike. Members of management could learn a thing or two as well.