Sylvanus Now

Sometimes a book may not have an action packed plot-line, but the words on the page transport the reader into the day-to-day world of the story so eloquently, that one feels as if they have been there. I know what the wind from the point of a tiny town on Newfoundland tastes like. I've heard the crash of the waves, and the sting of the salt as the fish are set to dry. I've lived with the people of that town, through their sorrows, and seen their hopes.

I was fascinated to learn about the coastal fishing life off the Newfoundland coast. I've heard about problems of overfishing etc, but never parlayed it into terms of technology vs tradition. I remember the salted fish, so common in my childhood, that could be seen in the delicatessens of my youth. The coppery color of the skin fascinated me as a child, though the taste didn't win me over. I now realize that I don't see those same salted, dried fish many places, though there seems to be an abundance of frozen or canned fish. I never thought on what that change might have meant to the fishermen who pulled the fish out of the waters. And though I'd heard of jigging, never understood the rhythm of it until this book.

If you're looking for a monumental, fast-paced read, put this book down. If you're looking for a complex mystery, this isn't the book for you. But if you want a glimpse in a time gone by, want to see how modern day life can change a way of life, want to immerse yourself in a world of real people, pick this book up. ( )

This is a story about a fisherman, Sylvanus Now, who marries Addie just as the Newfoundland fishery starts to collapse. The characters are well drawn, and the story add somethng to the popular theme it explores , that of the collapse of the cod fishery. The evolution of the fishery mirrors the evolution of Sylvanus's and Addie's marriage, although one is dying and the other is growing. But both require a change in assumptions, and a letting go of past realities. Friends tell me Ms. Morrissey's writing has gotten stronger since this early work. If that is the case, it must be excellent, and I will be reading more. ( )

I loved this book and the characters in it. It really transports you to outport Newfoundland in the 1950s, and highlights the devastation of the fisheries industry on a family level, instead of on a macro level as presented in news reports. I also highly recommend What They Wanted, Morrissey's follow-up novel about the next generation of the Now family. ( )

Beautifully written. The title character and his wife and mother will break your heart. Felt like I was in Newfoundland in the 1950s with the fishermen and their families. ( )

Sylvanus, ein junger Fischer aus einem entlegenen Küstenort in Neufundland, lebt im Einklang mit sich und der Natur.