Servo cover art

Servo

Tales from the Graveyard Shift

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Servo

By: David Goodwin
Narrated by: Barton Welch
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About this listen

 'Goodwin is a natural-born storyteller, effortlessly compelling whether he's talking about the draconian policies of his bosses, the mad ramblings of his regulars or his own forays into chemical-induced debauchery . . . However, the true secret to Servo's brilliance is that beneath its irreverent, gonzo stylings it's actually a heartfelt, coming-of-age memoir.' READINGS

An odyssey of drive-offs, spiked slurpees, stale sausage rolls and sleep-deprived madness.

Most of us have done our time in the retail trenches, but service stations are undoubtedly the frontline, as Melburnian David Goodwin found out when he started working the weekend graveyard shift at his local servo.

From his very first night shift, David absorbed a consistent level of mind-bending lunacy, encountering everything from giant shoplifting bees and balaclava-clad goons hurling cordial-filled water bombs from the sunroof of their BMW, to anarcho-goths high on MDMA releasing large rats into the store from their matching Harry Potter backpacks.

Over the years, David grew to love his mad servo, handing out free pies and chocolate bars on the sly as he grew a backbone and became street smart. Amidst the unrelenting chaos, he eventually made it out of the servo circus - and lived to tell the tale.

For anyone who's ever toiled under the unforgiving fluorescent lights of a customer service job, SERVO is a side-splitting and darkly mesmeric coming-of-age story from behind the anti-jump wire that will have you gritting your teeth, then cackling at the absurdity, idiocy and utterly beguiling strangeness of those who only come out at night.©2024 David Goodwin (P)2024 Hachette Australia Audio
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having gone through hard retail and hospo at the time in Melbourne, I felt very strongly connected to this wonderful odyssey

loved it David

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Absolutely loved this book, I’ve listened to it multiple times. It needs to be turned into a tv show. Imagine Donna, Ralph and Stevo brought to life. It’s highly entertaining and performed brilliantly. I’ve recommended it to so many people.

Aussie legend

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Great observations about a moment in time when Australia was going through a quiet social revolution. I was drawn in by every minute of this soft trip through the underside of Melbournes unloved servo industry.

A well told journey to adulthood

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the way this is written and performed captures the Aussie Bogan perfectly, and living in a low socioeconomic area I see all the people described in this story.

I was surprised

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I've listened to many books over the last few years, but 'Servo' is the standout winner.

A cracker of a story, I couldn't stop listening and binged it in a day, something I've never done before.

The writing is brilliant and beautifully descriptive, brilliantly narrated (which is SO important), a joy to listen to. I laughed out loud so many times, and felt myself there in the Servo, witnessing the crazy antics of the denizens of the night.

Think I will have to listen again, another new experience!

Keep writing David Goodwin.
Can't wait to hear more!

What a ripper of a book!!

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I really enjoyed this story of servo-life in the Melbourne suburbs. Lots of laughs. My partner and I listened to this on a long road trip and loved it!! Settle in for some hilarious anecdotes.

A pleasingly delightful listen…

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What an amazing insight into the creatures and events that frequent late night / early morning suburbia. Well worth the listen 🤣

An amazing insight

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There's so much to like about this book. It tells the story of the young person forced into working whilst at Uni and how that didn't work out. It tells tales of drug and alcohol use both as a fun thing and as a nasty thing needed as a form of self medication. It tells the stories of the Grumbletons and the myriad of reasons as to why or how different health care and other systems have let them down. It simply tells the reader about the ridiculous things that happen late at night and early mornings in an Australian 'Servo'. oh and the capitalism and exploitation of staff.

Interesting Observations of Humanity

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Masterfully crafted story full of traditional, English class, similes, metaphors and personification to describe the unstructured mess of humanity that frequents servos in the early AM. Loved that the story also more broadly described Dave’s life at the time too and how the work impacted his mental health. A great listen.

Brilliant collision of ideas

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Seriously good listen I love books like this that takes the reader behind the mundane suburban curtain.

Tale from Suburbia

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