Getting Away

June M. Blurton is a retired speech pathologist.

The protagonist of this novel takes a year’s leave of absence from a
Toronto university to finish a study of Jane Austen. To find the peace
he needs, he returns to the North Shore of Nova Scotia, a place where he
vacationed as a child, and moves into a deserted, broken-down house near
a small fishing village. He quickly makes friends with the villagers,
and eventually abandons his attempts to finish his book. Instead he
chronicles the events of the 10 months he spends among the local
fisheries.

The early descriptions of the characters, the countryside, the
seashore, and the weather capture the outward serenity of the community,
but wear thin and eventually become tedious as the novel progresses.
Getting Away is filled with events and developments: violent storms, the
desperation of fishless fishers, a car accident, a sudden death, and
subtle changes in human relationships. There is no overt sex and little
violence. Unfortunately, there is also no dramatic tension, which makes
this story a pleasant but less-than-stimulating read.