'Maria is travelling lightly. This means she is bringing the same amount of stuff as usual, but is in a relentless good mood. I am travelling heavily. The contrast is the story of my relationship with Maria: I set out with good intentions, and she ruins everything.'
Ex-boyfriend Jack drives his ex-girlfriend the 1,400 kilometres from Sydney to Adelaide in a small car. Maria is going to Adelaide to meet up with her new boyfriend. Jack offers her a lift because their former love relationship is now improperly defined.
'Hardly Beach Weather' is a road novel of unremitting Australianness: the sheep in the tuckerbag, a lone woman watching for snakes, mutual misinterpretations of city and bush. Along the way, Jack and Maria are assaulted by stories of love and heartbreak told by strangers in every country town, by shopkeepers, drinkers, hitchhikers; these are tales which bust through motel walls, interrupt the radio cricket and endlessly remind Jack of his and Maria's failures and shortcomings.
Despite all evidence, Jack maintains hope - and Maria is very, very patient.
