Iona Iverson's Rules for Commuting

Iona Iverson’s Rules of Commuting (2022) by Clare Pooley is an adult fiction novel first published in Great Britain under the title The People on Platform 5. The ensemble cast is held together by Iona Iverson, a middle-aged advice columnist who, one morning on her commuter train to London, witnesses Piers Sanders choking. Iona calls for help and Piers is rescued by Sanjay, an empathetic nurse, who has a crush on Emmie, a pretty young woman who works in advertising. Later, Martha, a bullied schoolgirl, joins the “train gang” as well. While the others depend on Iona for advice, Iona tries to hide her career and personal struggles as she confronts a reality very different from her glamorous past.

This guide uses the hardcover edition published by Pamela Dorman Books in the US in 2022.

Content Warning: The novel deals with ageism, brief mentions of suicidal ideation, abuse in romantic relationships, nonconsensual pornography, and anti-LGBTQ bias and discrimination.

Plot Summary

The story is told in third-person points of view alternating among a cast of characters that begins with Iona Iverson, 57, who works at a British women’s magazine.