Rush Oh!

Shirley Barrett's Rush Oh! caught my eye when it appeared on the long list for this year's Bailey's prize. The book is set in a town called Eden and is a joy. Narrator Mary Davidson is lacking in affectation, a straightforward young woman with dreams of being a painter, who yet knows her own short comings. The story is peppered with her sketches (they're actually done by an illustrator called Matt Canning). Barrett breathes a fictional life into her historical characters and I felt as though I was there with them, living on the east coast of Australia, dependent on luck to get by.

The descriptions of the whale chases were exciting. The vignettes that showed the whalers' lives made me think of the hardships of the men on the gold trail in show more the US. That weird camaraderie that comes more from necessity than actual liking.

In amongst the tales of whale chases and the life of the whalers are snippets of family history. The most poignant of these was the story of how the youngest brother enlisted for the Great War and the repercussions that had for the family. The father, Fearless George Davidson, is revealed to be simultaneously a man with depths of unspoken emotion and a man whose entire being is focused on spotting and hunting down the next whale.

I really liked the humour in Barrett's characters. Mary is so earnest and unworldly, and so concerned with how to behave in order to attract the attention of a man. She has various theories from magazines, but her practice of them is woeful. Her sister Louisa is a spiky article, very dry in her observations and judgements, very sure of herself until it comes to properly deep emotions, very cutting about other people. Younger brother Dan is delightful in his determination to be older than his years, and older brother Harry is a man in the wrong occupation, trying to live up to his father's unspoken expectation and failing.

I was sad to say goodbye to the Davidsons and the whalers. There were ends left loose, which I liked. This was Barrett's debut, but I will definitely read another book by her, when she writes it. show less

Rush OH! is the battle cry when one sees a whale – a call to arms to run to the boats.
Set in the early 1900s in New South Wales, Rush OH! is a snippet of history when whalemen along the Australian coast would rush the waters to lance their fortunes. Unlike in America, the whalemen were not gone from their homes for years at a time, but instead lived along the coast to chase the whales near shore.

This is the tale of the life Mary Davidson, the 19-year-old daughter of a brave whaling captain, who lives among the oarsmen boarding in her home. Mary is learning her role in the family after the death of her mother: she must cook and feed the crew, take care of her younger siblings, and parcel out her feelings for one new whaler in show more particular, John Beck. Rush OH! is a coming-of-age tale based loosely on historical anecdotes from the area, including one Killer whale named Tom who assisted the whalemen in herding and trapping the whales.

There are humorous stories of the whale crew, but there are also some dark corners in the backgrounds of these men. The feast-or-famine life of whaling is full of hardships, and often attracts men who have nothing left to lose.

I appreciated the care taken to create an atmosphere in this story: the description of the flensing of the whales, the excitement and fear of the whale hunt, and also the depictions of the Australian coastline with local flora and fauna. The descriptions and inclusions are necessary to the story without being pedantic, which makes for a compelling setting. The characters also represent the differences of interpretation of whaling and how the fear, adrenaline, and desperation can affect people in different ways.

This is a quick read sprinkled with small illustrations that add to the vintage feel of the book. I really enjoyed this one. show less

I didn’t know what to expect from ‘Rush Oh!’ Whaling is frowned on these days and somewhat gory. But I am so pleased I read it. Shirley Barrett has drawn a setting which comes alive. Australia, New South Wales, 1908. It is the story of Mary Davidson, the daughter of a whaler, it is her memoir of one year in her family’s rural life at Eden. It is not simply a story about whaling.
The historical context is so rich, so believable. The first page introduces the vivid setting: Mary’s home with its scent of boiling blubber for five months of the year, the rib cage of a 90ft blue whale sits in the front garden surrounded by jonquils, and a footpath laid with the pulverised vertebrae of whales. In this house in Eden lives Mary with show more siblings and their widowed father, the famous whaler George Davidson. During the whaling season her father’s whaling crew also live with the family and Mary and her sister cook meals and do the laundry. It is a hard life, harder when the whales do not appear in the bay and the general store will not further extend the credit line. Into this scene walks John Beck, former Methodist minister, offering his services as an oarsman. So this is a family story, a whaling/nature story, and a tale of teenage love.
George Davidson is a true character, his exploits were recorded in the local newspapers of the time and whale skeletons are on display at the Eden Killer Whale Museum. The ‘Author’s Note’ explains how Barrett combined history with invention in the writing of Mary’s memoir. As it is a memoir we know Mary is writing it years after the events she depicts, and there are hints of what may befall Mary and her family after the book has finished. The last two chapters are set later in her life and fill in some of the gaps.
I don’t like gory stories and don’t like whaling, but I found the story fascinating. Man v Beast fighting for survival, with an added twist: the whaling crew is aided in its hunt of the right whales by a group of Killer whales. Any catch is shared between men and killers. Again, factually correct. So, a story of Man + Beast interacting for the benefit of both.
Oh, and I loved the illustrations too. An unusual novel, but definitely worth a try.
Read more of my book reviews at http://www.sandradanby.com/book-reviews-a-z/ show less

Enjoyable (and in places very funny) novel e.g. >236 told from the POV of the eldest daughter of the director of a whaling crew that works with killer whales. Set in 1908 in Eden, Australia, things are all very basic. They are also rather desperate, as the last year the whales didn't visit the bay. A 'new chum' to the whaling crew catches Mary's eye as she feeds, cleans and washes for her large family. He claims to be a former minister, but is he really?

Despite the focus on killing whales, a horrible thing that seems incomprehensible now (Barrett has the author compare whales to cows, a clever way to show just how little was known about these beautiful animals), I found the descriptions of whaling engrossing. The novel is written at show more the point when the market is about to collapse, as competition from other products begins, so as readers we know it's a way of life that is about to end. Engaging read. show less

Rush Oh! was a sneak up on you charmer. Yeah, part of you is recoiling from the whale hunting and part of you is waiting for the moment when her innocence is her downfall but mostly, you're just enjoying yourself.

I very much enjoyed this book. Barrett's tight writing encompasses bigger stories while keeping the focus on the characters--not all of which are human. I've never thought of whaling as anything other than an activity of the northern First Nations and the New England states. Reading about the industry in Australia was fascinating. Although not a strictly-true account, the book is based on historical events.

I recommend this for anyone interested in strong character development, historical fiction, and romanticism.

I started this book feeling a little skeptical, but I thoroughly enjoyed it, largely because of the wry, thoughtful first-person perspective. The plot isn't earth-shattering, but I thoroughly enjoyed the time I spent in Mary's company.