He Drown She in the Sea: A Novel [Paperback]

Shani Mootoo (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 9, 2006

Set on a fictional Caribbean island during World War II and in modern-day Vancouver,He Drown She in the Seais the spellbinding story of two childhood friends reunited late in life. As children, Rose Sangha and her housekeeper's son, Harry, are inseparable, blissfully unaware of the subtleties of class hierarchy until the night Harry is banished from the Sangha home. When Harry and Rose meet again in Canada years later, the gulf separating them is not so apparent. They have a life-affirming affair and Rose dares to reroute their destinies. This is a haunting, sensuous, and suspenseful story about love against all odds, and the sacrifice and euphoria that come with defying the life one is born into.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

The fictional island of Guanagaspar is again Mootoo's primary setting in his second novel, and, like Cereus Blooms at Night, the story is rich in the patois and daily rhythms of the Caribbean. Half-caste Harry St. George and his childhood love, Rose, the daughter of his mother's employer, are driven apart by the island's systemic patriarchy and racism, while also shaped by its simple beauty and languorous charms. Decades after their forced separation, Harry has made a good life for himself in British Columbia, but he can't forget his homeland or Rose. One of Mootoo's real accomplishments is his portrayal of the expatriate Harry. A quiet and unassuming man who takes pride in his seaside house and landscaping work, Harry socializes infrequently and dates with shy ineptitude. He is constrained by longing and memories of Rose, but remains stoic, accepting his condition even as it continues to torment him. Meanwhile, Rose still lives in Guanagaspar, married to the powerful attorney general of the island. She lives like a minor celebrity, but her life is not fulfilling. She begins to feel that Harry was the only one to ever look past her beauty and see her real self. Rose's daughter, now residing in Vancouver, provides a ready excuse for her to travel to Canada and reconnect with Harry. The trip itself, like much of the novel, is recounted in snippets and flashbacks, from many points of view, which gives the tale a fine-grained, beautifully textured finish. Agent, Maria Massie. (May)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Booklist

*Starred Review* As childhood friends on the fictional Caribbean island of Guanagaspar, Rose Sangha and Harry St. George are blissfully unaware of the social distinctions that place them light years apart. But islanders frown upon the bond between the well-to-do Indian girl and the half-caste Indian boy whose mother works as a maid for the girl's family. When American military troops occupy the island after the outbreak of World War II, Rose's kindhearted mother becomes uneasy about Harry and his mother's safety and asks them to stay the night rather than return to their neighboring village. She never suspects her estranged husband will arrive at her door. After finding the two preadolescents asleep in the same bed, Mr. Sangha immediately banishes Harry and his mother from the house. Harry and Rose go on with their lives (Harry eventually moving to Canada when island racial tensions escalate), until an encounter in Vancouver prompts a remembrance of things past. Mootoo, who was born in Ireland and raised in Trinidad, pays tribute to her eclectic roots with a pair of pitch-perfect narratives--standard English and the colorful patter of the Caribbean. She delivers on the promise of her first novel, Cereus Blooms at Night (1998), with this transcendent tale of souls wounded by circumstance and rehabilitated by love. Allison Block
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 336 pages
• Publisher: Grove Press (June 9, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0802142605
• ISBN-13: 978-0802142603
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.5 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.1 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #348,364 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Voted Best New Author 2005, March 8, 2006

By 

Mahogany Book Club "Mahogany Media Review" (Albany, N.Y.) - See all my reviews

This review is from: He Drown She in the Sea: A Novel (Hardcover)

I can't believe there are no reviews for this novel. This was a moving story and was very well crafted. The story keeps you and holds you. I'm looking forward to reading more from this outstanding author. Check it out. You will like this novel.

Reviewed by
Dawnny
Mahogany Media Review
Albany, N.Y.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars How pleased I am to have found this wonderful novel, March 18, 2010

By 

shanarufus (Asheville, NC) - See all my reviews

This review is from: He Drown She in the Sea: A Novel (Paperback)

A reviewer at The Millions blog had a terrific piece on the idea of disappearance and vanishing and she included some book suggestions. He Drown She was one of the Canadian recommendations and my library had only one copy--at my branch. Meant to be! Really loved this book. Unlike any other which is certainly high praise. The action moves back and forth between Harry the adult man living in Vancouver, BC, and Harry (always called "the boy" in the island section) living his Caribbean life on a fictional island called Guanagaspar.

It is an epic in that the novel takes place over the course of generations. But to its credit and my delight, it didn't feel like an epic. I don't like epics. I don't like the arc of epics and He Drown She never lost its smallness in the fascinating and essential minutiae of daily life and the characters' desires--for autonomy, for freedom, for respect. We have characters whose ancestors were from India, characters whose ancestors were African slaves. Strong central characters, especially Dolly, Harry's mother. White people are unknown until they come to fortify the island at the beginning of WW2. Of course the island changes over time, but how the people change, the ones we come to know with great fondness--that is the core of the book.

The language is in dialect but it is not difficult. It's not a creole language, just their way of English. I heard the lilt as the words were spoken on the page.

I have a bunch of people in my life who like my taste in books and are eager for my recommendations. I have sent an email around telling them of this wonderfully original novel.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Well worth reading, April 8, 2009

By 

N. A. Norman (Plymouth, MN USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: He Drown She in the Sea: A Novel (Paperback)

Read for Books In The Woods -- a northern Minnesota excursion. The first chapter's language is worth working through. As you become more comfortable, it adds a wonderful layer to a story that is both compelling and delightful. High recommendations from me and the group in northern MN.