Barbara K's Reviews > Clear

If you have a few hours to spare, I doubt you could find a more rewarding reading experience than this short book. The writing is superb, all the more so because language itself is a central theme.

During the time of the infamous Scottish Clearances, when tenant farmers were forcibly evicted from their lands so that the owners could put them to more profitable use, impoverished minister John accepts the job of traveling to a remote island to remove the lone man still living there. Although this job is inconsistent with his sense of morality, he overcomes his qualms with thoughts of all the good the money he earns will do toward establishing his splinter Presbyterian sect.

Shortly after arriving, John is seriously injured in a fall, and discovered in a coma by Ivar, the local resident, who nurses him back to health. They do not share a language, but over the course of the ensuing weeks John is captivated by learning Ivar’s words for the natural world and the objects and activities of his daily life.

Meanwhile, John’s wife Mary, who has had objections to this venture all along, learns that the man who hired John did so because he expected violent resistance that he didn’t want to deal with himself. She determines to make her own way to the island where she will insist that John return to the mainland with her.

All three of these characters are immensely appealing, with each one’s story well balanced against the others. I am always in awe of authors who can use spare prose to create richly developed characters, and Carys Davies is clearly among the best at this.

You will have to be your own judge regarding the ending, which seems to be the one aspect of the book that has received criticism. I had no objections to it, as the tone was consistent with what what had built up to it.

Really, I can’t recommend this strongly enough. 5 stars over the North Sea!