the pull of the ocean

Ragina Shearer
5653 Multicultural Children’s and Young Adult Literature
Book Review – Culture 1 –International Literature – the pull of the ocean


1. BIBLIOGRAPHY
Mourlevat, Jean-Claude. PULL OF THE OCEAN. ISBN 0-385-73348-8

2. PLOT SUMMARY
The story is set in a town a short journey from the Atlantic Ocean. It is a mystery, the author lets the reader know from the beginning that the youngest brother Yann was going to disappear, yet how or why are not revealed. There are 7 boys in this family the first 6 being three sets of twins. The seventh, Yann is a ten year old midget; he is very bright but does not speak. The older boys have never done very well in school. The boys are dirty and malnourished and the parents show them no love or compassion, beating them often. One night Yann overhears his father saying he will kill them all in the morning. Yann awakens his brothers and they escape into the night. They endure many hardships and struggles and finally make it to the ocean. The brothers are rescued and taken away by ambulance, but Yann escapes only after telling one of his brothers that the father was only going to kill the cats not them after all. Each chapter is told from the point of view of one of the brothers and/or a witness who encountered them along their path.

3. CRITICAL ANALYSIS (INCLUDING CULTURAL MARKERS)
It is revealed by several of the witnesses telling the events that this story resembles the story of Perrault’s Tom Thumb. The French author re-tells the story of Tom Thumb in a modern day French setting. Seven brothers leave their poor farm home in fear. The struggles they endure reveal their love, compassion and bond for one another. They travel the French countryside to reach the ocean. A tragic story that is set in poverty and fleeing from an abusive home. The brothers are led by the youngest who even though he is mute is still the most intelligent and the brother can understand him. It is told in many versions from witnesses along their path whose interpretation could be marred by their own age and/or occupation in life. The chapters must be pieced together to reveal the whole story and this is for older readers. The purpose and intent are a mystery throughout even in the ending.


4. REVIEW EXCERPT (S)
Winner of the Batchelder Award

Booklist: “Yann is a miniature, no more than two feet tall. However, despite his diminutive stature, his youth, and the fact that he is mute, he is the cleverest of the lot and their unquestioned leader.”

Hornbook: “The details of the brothers' journey are plausible and realistic, yet Yann remains a deeply mysterious character. Genius? Victim? Manipulator? Saint? Equal parts”

Kirkus Review: “ This French recasting of Perrault's Tom Thumb into a surreal contemporary version is both mesmerizing and strange.”

5. CONNECTIONS

Look for three other ocean books:

Frasier, Debra. OUT OF THE OCEAN. ISBN
McKenzie, Michelle. OCEAN POP AND PULL. ISBN
Fowler, Allan. THE EARTH IS MOSTLY OCEAN. ISBN