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Car Crash

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Car Crash

By: Lech Blaine
Narrated by: Alec Snow
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About this listen

What is it like to survive a crash that kills your best friends, and how do you move on? From an exceptional debut author comes a stunning memoir about grief, perseverance and courage.

At 17, Lech Blaine walked away unscratched from a car crash that killed three of his friends and left two in comas.

On a May night in 2009, seven boys in Toowoomba, Queensland, piled into a car. They never arrived at their destination. The driver made a routine error, leading to a head-on collision. In the aftermath, rumours about speed and drink-driving erupted. There was intense scrutiny from the media and police. Lech used alcohol to numb his grief and social media to show stoicism, while secretly spiralling towards depression and disgrace.

This is a riveting account of family, friendship, grief and love after tragedy. In a country where class and sport dominate, and car crashes compete with floods and pandemics for headlines, our connection with others is what propels us on. Heartbreaking and darkly hilarious, Car Crash is a story for our times.

©2021 Lech Blaine (P)2021 Recorded by arrangement with Black Inc. (P) Bolinda Publishing Death & Dying Indigenous Creators Mental Health Awareness Sociology Funny Witty

Critic Reviews

"Scarifying and unforgettable...." (Tim Winton)

"A heart-soaring act of literary bravery where the ongoing cost of experience is exposed in every note-perfect sentence...." (Trent Dalton, author of Boy Swallows Universe)

"Blaine’s journalism has long made me suspect he’s one of the best writers of his generation. Car Crash confirms it, without a doubt." (Benjamin Law)

All stars
Most relevant  
Thank you for having the bravery to write this amazing book. Brilliant book. Eye opening to survivor guilt.

Powerful read

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Parts of this should be high school text book. In those years 99% of us have made decisions impulsively that as adults we wouldn't, and sometimes the consequences are severe for all involved. For this reason there are parts of this book that everyone should read so they can understand all sides.
As a fellow depression experiencer, this also was covered well although everyone has different experiences.
I loved this book from start to finish

Heart rendering

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This book was incredible. Absolutely heartbreaking, but also very relatable. I think the best part for me was realising the author obviously did become a writer- very inspirational.
Sometimes the first half a second of the audio was cutting out. Could still follow along but a bit distracting.

Amazing book, beautifully written

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I loved this book. Having grown up in Toowoomba I could identify with so many parts of this story. Loved the author’s poignant recollections of his lost mates and his struggles in dealing with the aftermath.

Beautifully written

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Absolutley blown away! Had to keep realising this was no fairytail and it actually happened to people I know as I also went to Downlands with the boys, RIP

Good Mates

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Found this book to be really interesting and engaging! Enjoyed listening from start to finish!

Great Book!

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loved it start to finish. emotional story that has some great life lessons :)

bloody good

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Brave and beautifully written, I was spell bound and enormously moved.
A most wonderful book.

Vulnerable amazing words

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Blasphemous rubbish. Cheap lives that want to ‘make out’ at first contact. Empty trash. Very little about the crash effect in early chapters.

Boting and yuck

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In the spirit of reconciliation, Audible acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of country throughout Australia and their connections to land, sea and community. We pay our respect to their elders past and present and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples today.