I have become mesmerized by Michael Crummey's considerable writing skill. His prose is precise yet lush. His characters are real, understandable, compelling, even though their particular experience may be utterly foreign to the reader -- such is Crummey's ability to create from only words living, breathing, knowable individuals. And his ability to create a plot, hang a story from it, replete with sensory surround, is nothing short of formidable.

His ability to do all that once again in his novel, The Wreckage proves true.

In this tale, Crummey weaves the complexities of religious prejudice, clan ideology, and PTSD into a horrifically mesmerizing story about two young, would-be lovers who are separated not only by their families' demands, but WWII, and their own inability to speak the truth they cage within themselves.

Within that seemingly simple story, Crummey examines the concept of wreckage: that of the tsunami which transformed the lives of many Newfoundlanders in 1929, of the people isolated by prejudice, of Japanese-Canadians who found themselves wrecked politically, culturally and socially, and of veterans who daily have to deal with the trauma of torture and trauma they endured.

This is not a beautiful story. And yet it is. It is a remarkable and unforgettable journey Crummey chains you to. It is also a novel worthy of your time. ( )

Don't know how I failed to include this book previously on my lists. One of my all time favorites. One of his other books, set in Australia was a bit of a let down -- but me expectations were sky high. I now have a third book of his sitting on my shelf. Galore. A little bit afraid to start it.... ( )

so freaking good. michael crummey's brain is the most awesome place and if i could take writing courses from anyone in the world, it would be him! man, oh man! crummy has this genius ability to create characters and scenes that just stun with their vividness. i love the way he uses place as a near-character too. everything i have ever read from him is evocative and gets right under my skin. his prose is fluid, beautiful and haunting. the stories he creates seem so real and knowable. and he has a crazy understanding of people that he brings into his writing - all of the big things and little things, the nuances and secrets, dreams and realities that make people who they are...he will expose them, in the process having you confront more abut yourself than usually happens in reading a novel. and maybe more than you will be comfortable with. ( )

I enjoyed this book. It is about two teenagers who meet in Newfoundland. Her parents are against the relationship because they are of a different religion. The boy, Wish, ultimately leaves for Halifax as a result and joins the Army. She follows him but gets there too late to find him and waits for him throughout the war. His experience as a prisoner of war in Japan are described. They are eventually reunited 50 years later. I found it interesting how the author handled the reunion. ( )

The intersecting storylines are engrossing and the main and even more peripheral characters are all strongly delineated. At first, I thought the ending of the book was kind of shambling and inconclusive, but then I remembered the book's title - "The Wreckage". Just as Mercedes finds something important and concrete in the literal wreckage of her old home, all of the characters are striving to find something similarly real amidst the wreckage of their respective lives. The wreckage imagery is also echoed hauntingly in Wish's experiences after the bombing of Nagasaki. The title of the book, in fact, satisfyingly encapsulates so much. ( )