The Ship of Brides
by Jojo Moyes
The problem with Australia is there are just way too many good books to choose from. And yes, I know that should be "from which to choose," but it just doesn't sound right in casual conversation or writing, so I'm throwing the rule out the window for the moment.
Anyway, I spent nearly as much time searching for the right book set in Australia as I did the countries where there are hardly any options at all. I came close to reading The Narrow Road to the Deep North, by Richard Flanagan, which just won the 2014 Man Booker prize, which is my favorite literary prize (see book nerd survey.) I even bought a copy in hard back, anticipating that I would love it so much I'd want to have a copy to keep, share, and feature prominently on my bookshelf. And I do plan to read it ... just not right now. After I hemmed and hawed for days, maybe even weeks, I realized that I was stalling because I just wasn't in the mood for a prize-winning novel at the moment. I wanted something lighter, easier to read, a distraction from the busy calendar of the moment. So when someone suggested The Ship of Brides, by Jojo Moyes, I grabbed it.
Jojo Moyes is the author of one of my all-time favorite contemporary romance novels. I don't actually read much romance, but the occasional romantic comedy (think The Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion) or one with a little twist of fairy tale (think The Snow Child by Eowyn Ivey) is perfect for a day when your brain is already on overload. The first Jojo Moyes novel I read was Me Before You, and I absolutely adored it. I fell in love with both Louisa and Will. I laughed and I cried, both with the characters and all alone when the book was over. If you haven't read it, you really must. It's endearing.
The Ship of Brides had a different style and mood than Me Before You. When writers successfully tell different kinds of stories and demonstrate linguistic versatility, I'm impressed. I think it must be challenging to shift the voice of your writing, much as I'm sure it's challenging for actors to portray different types of characters successfully enough that you forget who is actually doing the acting. I didn't love The Ship of Brides as much, but I enjoyed reading it and felt I'd learned an interesting bit of history I hadn't been familiar with before.
The novel is about young Australian women who travel by ship, courtesy of His Royal Navy, at the end of World War II to join their British husbands who'd been shipped back home once the war ended and their military tours of duty in Australia were over. We meet a handful of the several hundred aboard the naval ship, each from a different background and each leaving home for different reasons and with different hopes and dreams for the future. There's Maggie ... a down to earth farm girl; Avice ... the over-indulged, socialite who thinks too highly of herself and is ill-prepared for the disappointment she must face; Jean ... bawdy and crass but lovable in her desperation for a better, happier life; and Frances ... running from her difficult past and frantically trying to stay hidden in the shadows.
We don't get to meet the men in their lives, except through what they share with each other, but the naval personnel who are charged with transporting such unusual cargo feature prominently. Not all of them are nice characters, but it was easy to become attached to the Captain and to Nicol, the introspective sailor whose trauma serves to remind us that the journey is happening because of an ugly war.
There wasn't a lot of action, but the story of Frances is mysterious enough to add a little intrigue. I especially loved Jojo Moyes's dedication at the front of the book where she hints at her grandmother having been a war bride and perhaps the inspiration for the novel. I just wonder which of the characters is based on Grandma Moyes!
Anyway, I spent nearly as much time searching for the right book set in Australia as I did the countries where there are hardly any options at all. I came close to reading The Narrow Road to the Deep North, by Richard Flanagan, which just won the 2014 Man Booker prize, which is my favorite literary prize (see book nerd survey.) I even bought a copy in hard back, anticipating that I would love it so much I'd want to have a copy to keep, share, and feature prominently on my bookshelf. And I do plan to read it ... just not right now. After I hemmed and hawed for days, maybe even weeks, I realized that I was stalling because I just wasn't in the mood for a prize-winning novel at the moment. I wanted something lighter, easier to read, a distraction from the busy calendar of the moment. So when someone suggested The Ship of Brides, by Jojo Moyes, I grabbed it.
Jojo Moyes is the author of one of my all-time favorite contemporary romance novels. I don't actually read much romance, but the occasional romantic comedy (think The Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion) or one with a little twist of fairy tale (think The Snow Child by Eowyn Ivey) is perfect for a day when your brain is already on overload. The first Jojo Moyes novel I read was Me Before You, and I absolutely adored it. I fell in love with both Louisa and Will. I laughed and I cried, both with the characters and all alone when the book was over. If you haven't read it, you really must. It's endearing.
The Ship of Brides had a different style and mood than Me Before You. When writers successfully tell different kinds of stories and demonstrate linguistic versatility, I'm impressed. I think it must be challenging to shift the voice of your writing, much as I'm sure it's challenging for actors to portray different types of characters successfully enough that you forget who is actually doing the acting. I didn't love The Ship of Brides as much, but I enjoyed reading it and felt I'd learned an interesting bit of history I hadn't been familiar with before.
The novel is about young Australian women who travel by ship, courtesy of His Royal Navy, at the end of World War II to join their British husbands who'd been shipped back home once the war ended and their military tours of duty in Australia were over. We meet a handful of the several hundred aboard the naval ship, each from a different background and each leaving home for different reasons and with different hopes and dreams for the future. There's Maggie ... a down to earth farm girl; Avice ... the over-indulged, socialite who thinks too highly of herself and is ill-prepared for the disappointment she must face; Jean ... bawdy and crass but lovable in her desperation for a better, happier life; and Frances ... running from her difficult past and frantically trying to stay hidden in the shadows.
We don't get to meet the men in their lives, except through what they share with each other, but the naval personnel who are charged with transporting such unusual cargo feature prominently. Not all of them are nice characters, but it was easy to become attached to the Captain and to Nicol, the introspective sailor whose trauma serves to remind us that the journey is happening because of an ugly war.
There wasn't a lot of action, but the story of Frances is mysterious enough to add a little intrigue. I especially loved Jojo Moyes's dedication at the front of the book where she hints at her grandmother having been a war bride and perhaps the inspiration for the novel. I just wonder which of the characters is based on Grandma Moyes!
Other Books Considered:
The Sound of One Hand Clapping, by Richard Flanagan
The Narrow Road to the Deep North, by Richard Flanagan
Riders in the Chariot, by Patrick White
The White Earth, by Andrew McGahan
The House at Riverton, by Kate Morton
Past the Shallows, by Favel Parrett
The Lieutenant, by Kate Grenville
The Daughters of Mars, by Thomas Keneally
A River Town, by Thomas Keneally
The Paperbark Shoe, by Goldie Goldbloom
A River Town, by Thomas Keneally
The Paperbark Shoe, by Goldie Goldbloom
Previously Read:
Coldwater, by Mardi McConnochie
The Book Thief, by Markus Zusak (Australian author; set in Germany)
The Secret River, by Kate Grenville
The Forgotten Garden, by Kate Morton
The Light Between Oceans, by M. L. Stedman
The Rosie Project, by Graeme Simsion
The Silent Wife, by A. S. A. Harrison
Mr. Pip, by Lloyd Jones
The Silent Wife, by A. S. A. Harrison
Mr. Pip, by Lloyd Jones
Rabbit Proof Fence, by Doris Pilkington
