Sea of Tranquility

Ronald Charles Epstein is a Toronto-based freelance writer and published poet.

Nova Scotia resident Lesley Choyce has examined his province in his
novels World Enough and Sea of Tranquility. The former is set in Halifax
and his current work, which takes place in 1997, deals with an isolated
fishing community called Ragged Island.

The collapse of the traditional Atlantic fisheries has forced its
residents to improvise. Phonse Doucette transforms his junkyard, which
offers used consumer products as targets. Moses Slaunwhite pilots
whale-watching cruises for ecotourists. Unfortunately, such ingenuity
may not prevent the parsimonious provincial government from closing the
ferry service that links the island to the mainland.

The uncertain present and rugged past, as viewed by octogenarian Sylvie
Young, are both examined. Her fragmentary memories are dovetailed into
the narrative.

Knowledge of Atlantic Canadian history may be useful. When “The
Honourable Dancy Moxon” announces his government’s plans to close
the ferry, Slaunwhite’s wife, Viddy, asks him, “‘Who are you, Joey
Smallwood?’” Those who know that Smallwood was the Newfoundland
premier who eliminated his province’s isolated fishing villages can
accurately gauge the emotions behind that sentiment.

Sea of Tranquility is not as picaresque as World Enough—no blind teen
motorists or pugnacious politicians here. Both works denounce
neoconservative “Mother Courage” economics. Choyce refuses to save
society by throwing its children to the wolves.

It may be unfair to judge a book by its author’s cover photo, but the
shaggy-haired boomer writes like a middle-aged hippie. Readers can
decide whether or not that is a virtue.