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YA Review: The Brides of Rollrock Island by Margo Lanagan

8/20/2012

17 Comments

 
The Brides of Rollrock Island cover
The Brides of Rollrock Island
Author: Margo Lanagan
Publication Date: 9/11/12
Publisher: Knopf Books for Young Readers
[Goodreads|Amazon]

Blurb(GR): On remote Rollrock Island, men go to sea to make their livings—and to catch their wives.

The witch Misskaella knows the way of drawing a girl from the heart of a seal, of luring the beauty out of the beast. And for a price a man may buy himself a lovely sea-wife. He may have and hold and keep her. And he will tell himself that he is her master. But from his first look into those wide, questioning, liquid eyes, he will be just as transformed as she. He will be equally ensnared. And the witch will have her true payment.

Margo Lanagan weaves an extraordinary tale of desire, despair, and transformation. With devastatingly beautiful prose, she reveals characters capable of unspeakable cruelty, but also unspoken love.


Review:

There’s no question in my mind that this book is brilliantly written.  I’ve been consistently impressed and moved by Margo Lanagan’s prose since my first experience with her work a few years ago and this book does not disappoint in that regard.  However, and this will actually be a positive for many readers – this book is far more tame and accessible than Tender Morsels.  It’s even more accessible than the short story of hers that I read in Zombies vs. Unicorns last year.  And that’s not to say that this book is all softness and happiness and rainbows – far from it.  But compared to the other two works of hers that I’ve read, this one just isn’t as…traumatizing.  As I said, this will actually be a positive for many readers.  I would definitely suggest this book for anyone who wants to give Margo Lanagan a try without being overwhelmed.  This is the book you should start with.  However, as someone who loves her darker and more gruesome side, I actually really missed the shock factor that I’ve come to expect from her.  I loved this book quite a lot, but I know that it won’t linger in my mind quite as much as Tender Morsels still does.*

This book is absolutely brilliant though, both in its poetic beauty and in its technical precision.  She is one of the few authors I know of who seems to marry those two elements effortlessly.  I appreciate both (although I think maybe I have a slight preference for poetic beauty over technical precision) but when I see them come together in one work of art, it never fails to leave me in awe.  Not only does she seamlessly connect six different narrators, she tells this story in a sort of spiraling timeline.  She starts in the middle, moves to the beginning, and then moves through the start to reach the end.  In a less-skilled author’s hands, all of these narrators and the shifting timeline could easily become a huge mess.  But she makes it feel absolutely perfect – like the only way this story could possibly be told.

I don’t typically enjoy reading through a whole cast of narrators, but Margo Lanagan makes me love it.  Her stories are handed off from one pair of eyes to another, like a relay, and the result is an incredibly three-dimensional view.  We get to see through the eyes of young Misskaella, a girl with a power that she doesn’t understand, but that seems to scare or disgust everyone on the small island where she lives.  As she grows and even her family seems to wish she were never born, as her isolation and bitterness increase, it becomes easier to see why she would want to punish them all.  From within the soft, blubbery bodies of female seals, she pulls forth girls: tall, pale, graceful, and biddable girls.  Girls who seem to bewitch every single man on the island.  Through the span of decades, she changes the entire face of the island, effectively removing it from the modern world and isolating everyone who chooses to stay.  The torch of narration is passed through the wives and children of these men, who are cast aside; to the men themselves, who are hopelessly lost to the selkie brides; to the children born of these new marriages; and finally back into Misskaella’s life through the eyes of her apprentice.

I fell so hard into each one of these different characters that it was sometimes hard to move on.  But it was exciting too – like having my firmly held beliefs proven wrong over and over again.  (Am I the only one who really enjoys that?)  The only small gripe I have is that I wish she had included a selkie bride as one of the narrators.  It sort of happens with Daniel Mallett, the son of one of these women, but not completely.  I really wonder why she chose not to include that point of view.

Her writing is just absolutely stunning though.  For example – this passage, which is about giving up a child for his own well-being:

“All the years to come crowded into that time, and I lived them, long and bitter and empty of him.  The rightness of what I had done, and the wrongness both, they tore at me, and repaired me, and tore again, and neither of them was bearable.”

I have never gone through that courageous and painful act, but she made me feel as if I had.

Perfect Musical Pairing
The Cranberries – Dreaming My Dreams

Whenever I listen to this song, I think about my children growing up and heading out into the world and leaving me behind.  And I feel such a mix of emotions – pride, grief, desperation to hold onto their little selves, eagerness to prepare them for adulthood.  I think that the old cliché is right – one of the truest tests of love for another person is the ability to let him or her go.  And I think that it’s interesting that in The Brides of Rollrock Island, it is the “villain” who is able to let her loves go, while her “victims” can’t seem to.  They are so desperate to hold on to their loves that they strangle the life out of them.  So this is where I come to the * from above.  After writing this review, I realize that this book left more of an impression on me than I originally thought.  This book is quieter and more subdued than Tender Morsels but it still lingers.

4/5 Stars
Readventurer C Signature
17 Comments
Reynje
8/20/2012 08:57:02 pm

This review is absolutely gorgeous, Catie. I agree with you that this is more "tame" than Tender Morsels, and would make a good starting point for the uninitiated :) So glad you enjoyed it.

Reply
Catie (The Readventurer) link
8/20/2012 09:39:50 pm

Thanks Rey! Now I really need to go read your review again (and Leanne's!). The more I think about this one, the more it seems to expand in my mind.

Reply
Jasprit link
8/20/2012 09:07:33 pm

Wow such a beautiful review Catie! For some reasons I had just presumed that this was Margo's debut novel, and when I first saw it pop on my feed I didn't really pay it much attention. But I'm read some stunning reviews like yours and it's convinced me to give it a try, it's a lot different to what I usually would pick up, but I have a good feeling about it! Also thanks for sharing little tidbits about her previous novels, I'm going to go and check them out right now! :)

Reply
Catie (The Readventurer) link
8/20/2012 09:43:11 pm

Her books are often published in the YA category but they could easily find a home in the adult section as well, Jasprit. Although with the YA fantasy/paranormal boom happening right now I'm kind of glad that they chose to market this that way - maybe more people will read it as a result! I hope you pick this one up! This is definitely the book I'd recommend for the person who wants to try out Margo Lanagan! Thanks Jasprit!

Reply
April Books & Wine link
8/20/2012 11:33:06 pm

I'm not really into a large amount narrators either. It just feels overwhelming to me, so the fact that you recommend this book definitely stands out. All I've read by Lanagan was her story in Zombies Vs. Unicorns, which I liked even though it was kind of weird. That stated, I totally am going to get a move on and read my copy of Tender Morsels, I like dark books that linger. And eventually I think I will read this one, The Brides of Rollrock Island as well.

Reply
Catie (The Readventurer) link
8/21/2012 09:01:38 am

Yes, don't shy away from this one because of all the narrators - she makes it work. I remember that she also wrote her story in Z vs. U that way and you're right; it was pretty weird but I really loved it. If you can't get into Tender Morsels, I would definitely pick this one up!

Reply
roro @Roro Is Reading link
8/21/2012 01:07:59 am

i hope i read this1 soon. its on my wishlist.gr8 review

Reply
Maja
8/21/2012 06:50:15 am

The quote alone made my heart ache, but your review, Catie... You have this way of offering small bits of yourself and blending them seamlessly with the rest of your review that makes me want to hug you every time.

And I love that you'd choose poetic beauty over technical precision, althought I never would have guessed. Shows what I know.
I guess I'm a bit scared of Lanagan. This shockingness (God I hope that's a word) of her prose I keep reading about is pretty intimidating. Is it for me or am I really just a wuss? ;)
This book is probably a great way to find out.

Reply
Catie (The Readventurer) link
8/21/2012 09:07:44 am

Oh gosh, didn't it? Her writing tore me apart in a few places. Reading that passage it was like I had this sudden clarity about what that experience would be like. She's such a gifted writer. When I think about technical precision without poetic beauty, I think of the highly successful mass-producers of writing. I really do enjoy a great formulaic romance or procedural sometimes, but they (typically) just don't have that depth of emotion that you'll find with writers who really pour themselves into their work. Whereas, when I think about poetic beauty without technical precision...I think about something like Night Beach by Kirsty Eagar, which I loved even though it was a little messy. In fact, I feel like I loved it BECAUSE it was a little messy. So there you go!

I think you would like this Maja. I'm not sure about Tender Morsels but I'm pretty sure that you'd like this one.

And thanks as always for your kind words. And for stopping by. :)

Reply
Flannery (The Readventurer) link
8/21/2012 11:05:55 am

I used to be fascinated by selkies and that movie, "The Secret of Roan Inish." I don't think I've read anything a book about them, though. I think I might go for Tender Morsels, though. I *like* when books are pretty disturbing...

This is some of your best work, IMO.

Reply
Catie (The Readventurer) link
8/22/2012 06:21:23 am

Apparently there's a book for The Secret of Roan Inish - someone commented about it on my goodreads review. You should do a BvM. :) Tender Morsels is pretty great on audio, if you need a new one - very disturbing for sure. Thanks Flannery!

Reply
VeganYANerds link
8/21/2012 11:27:06 am

Lovely review, Catie. I have a copy of Sea Hearts, I started it but I wasn't as focused so I put it down in favour of other books so I am glad to hear it's a good read, I'll give it another go. I did get to hear Margo read from Tender Morsels and she really does have a magical way with words

Reply
Catie (The Readventurer) link
8/22/2012 06:23:18 am

Yeah, she really does. I hope you do try it again because it's really a beautiful book. I want her to tackle allllllll the paranormal creatures. I'd read her whole set. :)

Reply
Sam @ Realm of Fiction link
8/22/2012 03:46:18 am

Like Jasprit, I assumed this was the author's debut novel too! I will have to check out some of her other works, but will be sure to start with this. It sounds beautiful! The multiple points of view sound incredibly well handled too. Thanks for the helpful review, Catie!

Reply
Heidi link
9/1/2012 02:00:02 am

I love this review, Catie!

I had so many similar thoughts upon finishing this book. It was one of my most anticipated for the year (even though it was going to be my first Margo Lanagan, and I agree that it was a good place to start), and it has made its way to being one of my favorites I've read in 2012. I loved that this was haunting, and beautiful but horrible at the same time, and it has me excited to take on some of her more gruesome work. Have you listened to any of the audio? I've almost checked out Tender Morsels on audio countless times.

I loved how the narration worked here, I loved that they overlaid one another and that it wasn't head jumping at all, but a way for us to see every (well, almost every as you pointed out) perspective. I love when I can really understand the good and bad sides of both villains and heroes, it's one of my favorite things.

Reply
Catie (The Readventurer) link
9/2/2012 12:25:36 am

Yes, I did listen to Tender Morsels on audio and it was great. I forget who the narrator is but I remember enjoying it. The beginning of that book is just horrifying. But good.

I love the way she handles perspective too - her stories feel so well-rounded and whole - never one-sided. I love grey villains and heroes too - also one of my favorite things.

Thanks Heidi!

Reply
Cam Morris link
9/8/2013 02:51:36 am

Great blog, love the template.

Reply



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