The Sea (Banville, John) (2005) John Banville (Author)
Award Winner
Recently-widowed art historian Max Morden, in the autumn of his life and the year, visits a coastal Irish village called Ballyless to drink, think, and remember. Max had been there before, on a summer holiday, when, as a young boy, he fell in love for the first time, but the object of his affection, Chloe Grace, soon met a tragic end. Now he reflects back on his time with Chloe and on the last year of his wife Anna's life, as she suffered from cancer. Seeking a way to make sense of the losses and disappointments he has borne, Max poetically expresses his thoughts, moving back and forth in time and reinterpreting past events in the light of later experiences. This interior monologue makes for a nonlinear and somewhat unreliable narrative that nevertheless provides a small measure of comfort in the end.
MAIN CHARACTERS :
Max Morden, Widow(er) (of Anna), Art Historian, Neighbor, Myles Grace, Twin (of Chloe), Chloe Grace, Neighbor (of Max, in resort town), Twin (of Myles), Anna Morden, Spouse (of Max)
SETTING(S) :
Europe, Ireland, Western Europe
SUBJECT :
Aging (Biology), Death, Grief, Literature, Memory, Interpersonal relations, Summer, Writing
TIME PERIOD :
21st century AD, 20th century AD
BEST SELLERS LIST
Globe and Mail National Bestseller: Hardcover Fiction
Total Number of Weeks: 3
First Appearance: November 19, 2005
Last Appearance: January 21, 2006
Highest Position Achieved: 9
Los Angeles Times Book Review (Southern California): Hardcover Fiction
Total Number of Weeks: 9
First Appearance: November 20, 2005
Last Appearance: February 19, 2006
Highest Position Achieved: 1
Gale Document Number: GALE|M1300133465
Gale Database: What Do I Read Next?, 2009
SOURCE CITATION : "The Sea (Banville, John)." 2009. Books & Authors Gale. Gale Internal User. 7 Nov 2009 <http://bna.galegroup.com/bna/start.do?p=BNA&u=gale>
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