"You could say that this is a story about friendship, and the betrayal of friendship, and friendships lost and regained," notes the narrator of this often elegant but just as often elusive novel from Australia. Set in the seaside town of Broome in northwestern Australia, it opens in 1946, when Hart Penrose son of a pearl lugger and a race-conscious Englishwoman begins looking back at his complicated relationship with Mitsy Senosuke, daughter of Japanese immigrants. He thinks about the years before the war, especially his 17th birthday, when he falls in love with Mitsy and worries about Jamie Kilian, a rival for Mitsy's affections. Disher offers plenty of drama: Hart's mother returns to England; Hart is almost lost at sea in a cyclone but is saved by Mitsy's father, who drowns; an Aborigine is framed for assault; the war breaks out; Jamie enlists but Hart, injured from the accident at sea, cannot. The Japanese residents of Broome come under suspicion as the Australians increasingly fear invasion, and Hart's loyalties are tested, especially when his sister Alice, an army nurse, is reported missing after Japanese bombers attack her ship. While Disher (The Bamboo Flute) does a superb job of recreating the tensions of the period, the central bond between Hart and Mitsy feels flimsy, more stated than demonstrated, and Mitsy herself doesn't come to life. Despite the subtitle, this is less likely to engage readers looking for a love story than those with a strong interest in the setting. Ages 14-up. (May) Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information.
Gr 9 Up-Winner of a young adult literature prize in Australia, this novel tackles mature themes of love and prejudice against the backdrop of World War II. Its circular structure begins and ends in 1946 as Hart is waiting for Mitsy, the young Japanese-Australian woman he loves, to return to him following the war. As he backtracks and describes their life in the small coastal town of Broome on the eve of and during the early years of the war, readers grow to understand how complicated Hart's life is. Mitsy is his sister's best friend and the daughter of one of his pearling-master father's divers; despite the ups and downs in their relationship, her family remains closely connected to his even as they experience loss, racism, and internment. Notable for its vivid sense of place, its complex characters, and an abundance of action, this book will be most appreciated by readers familiar with history, who will notice the many similarities between the way that some people in the United States and Australia thought of and treated their native peoples, and in the treatment of the Japanese during the war.-Ellen Fader, Multnomah County Library, Portland, OR Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information.
Set in a small northwest Australian coastal town, this WWII story is about friends and enemies close to home. It's also about love and family heartaches and discovering personal courage and betrayal. After the war, Hartley Penrose tells his story, looking back to 1938 when he was 16, and he and his sister, Alice, were best friends with Mitsi Sennosuke, who was born of Japanese Parents and raised in Australia. With a big cast and an action-filled plot, Disher creates a vital, physical sense of the place as well as the secrets of the community. Even before the war, the official and personal racism is clear, toward "Japs" and also toward Aborigines, who are looked on as black "impurities" in the way of the white immigrant settlers. The characters are drawn without sentimentality. Mitsi is angry as well as loving; submissive at home, raucous with her friends. For a brief, rapturous period, Hartley and Mitsi are lovers, but then he's torn between loyalties. Readers will recognize the political parallels with the U.S., as well as the personal truth of how feelings can change from friendship and love to hate and indifference--and maybe back again.--Booklist, April 15th 2002, starred review
Winner of a young adult literature prize in Australia, this novel tackles mature themes of love and prejudice against the backdrop of World War II. Its circular structure begins and ends in 1946 as Hart is waiting for Mitsy, the young Japanese-Australian woman he loves, to return to him following the war. As he backtracks and describes their life in the small coastal town of Broome on the eve of and during the early years of the war, readers grow to understand how complicated Hart's life is. Mitsy is his sister's best friend and the daughter of one of his pearling-master father's divers; despite the ups and downs in their relationship, her family remains closely connected to his even as they experience loss, racism, and internment. Notable for its vivid sense of place, its complex characters, and an abundance of action, this book will be most appreciated by readers familiar with history, who will notice the many similarities between the way that some people in the United States and Australia thought of and treated their native peoples, and in the treatment of the Japanese during the war.--School Library Journal
Winner of a New South Wales Premier's Literary Award in 1999, this novel takes place in Broome, Australia, in the years just prior to and during World War II. Characterization is strong, centering on Hart, his sister Alice, and her best friend, Mitsy, a girl of Japanese ethnicity. Hart harbors a love for Mitsy, but because of strong racial divisions, he keeps his feelings silent. The three friends grow up together. While both Alice and Mitsy train as nurses, Hart works in his father's pearl boat. When Hart is disabled in a boat accident, Mitsy nurses him back to health. The war makes the Japanese targets of resentment in Broome, and Mitsy and her mother are evicted from their home. Hart's father brings Mitsy and her mother into his home, where Hart and Mitsy engage in a passionate affair. The story ends with Hart waiting for Mitsy's return after she and her mother are sent to an internment camp. Told as a personal memoir, the story is narrated by Hart. Although filled with family conflict and tragic events, the story is riveting and brims with images that evoke the flavor of the country and the time. The book highlights the perils of racial discrimination and portrays a bittersweet love. It will take mature readers to understand the complex relationships between the characters. Although readers might stumble over some of the Aussie phrases and unfamiliar culture, they will finish the story with a better understanding of the depths of love.--Voice of Youth Advocates, August 2002
