CanadianReader's Reviews > Past the Shallows

Parrett's debut novel concerns the three sons of a violent, embittered Tasmanian fisherman with a dark secret. It is a spare, lyrical, almost mythic piece. The boys lost their mother some years back in a car crash which two of the boys, Miles--now 13, and Harry--8, survived. These two now live with their father in a run-down house on the rocky, harsh, and remote southern coast of Tasmania. The eldest son, Joe--19, escaped to live with his maternal grandfather some years previous, after his arm was badly broken by his father in one of his characteristic rages. As the novel opens, the boys' grandfather has recently died, their aunt is set to sell the house and land, and Joe, who has worked on building his own boat, intends to escape the place for good. Miles has been pulled from school to man THE IDA, his father's fishing boat, as his father and other men dive, often illegally in protected waters, for abalone. Harry is regularly left alone on shore and spends his days wandering. On one of his walks, he encounters a dog that belongs to George, a kindly hermit, disfigured by a cleft palate and burns from a fire that killed his family in his youth. George befriends Harry, and the two youngest boys seek refuge with the old man when their drunken father attacks them one evening. However, their father's mad fury must play itself out, and Miles and Harry must bear witness to it out on the wild sea.

PAST THE SHALLOWS is a bleakly beautiful, elemental work that demands slow, mindful, and patient reading. It is a story of secrets and survival. For those willing to put in the effort, it is well worth it.