Categories: book-review
Tags: book review
Date: 20 November 2008 18:41:40
This is a book I've wanted to read for ages, so was really pleased that it was our book group book this month. It is the story of a not-very-good journalist, Quoyle, who returns to his family origins in coastal Newfoundland from the USA following the death of his no-good wife. Along with his aunt and his two young daughters, Bunny and Sunshine, the book traces how he gradually settles into the community, getting a job writing the shipping news for the local paper. There is stuff about family history (with a mad old cousin, stories of past abuse, and finding out about how the family ended up where they did, but also about Quoyle's relationship with Petal, his wife, and his inability to get over her despite her utter disdain of him). There is also the story of Quoyle's emerging relationship with a local widow, Wavey. However, what I enjoyed most about it was the portrayal of all the various local characters. It seemed to be a highly disfunctional yet totally believable community, with some hilarious characters. It also - I felt - was brilliant at evoking a sense of place: you could almost feel the coldness and bleakness and isolation.
The only thing about it was that I had to keep reminding myself that it was set in the present-day (well, early 90s - it was published in 1994). The community seemed so old-fashioned, and the place so remote and almost primitive, that references to things like putting on a CD felt really odd. But at the same time, I could imagine that in any isolated rural or coastal community like this, at the mercy of the elements, the community would be on the odd and somewhat old-fashioned side. So that's not a criticism at all, just that it did make me feel like I was reading about a totally different world, very different from my own.
I'd definitely recommend this book, I really enjoyed it. I hope the next book group book is as good.