THE NIGHT SWIMMER [Scribner] - Book Review

Perusing the ideas of the sea and what awaits in the leviathan is something that brings about a certain amount of dread and perception to anyone that pertains within the life. The key is interpreting the thoughts of what it shows is point of view. The perspective that is prevalent in “The Night Swimmer” [Matt Bondurant/Scribner/288pgs] revoves in the interesting ability of a middle aged man to transform the ideas of a woman in her early 30s dessimating her life force in the world after moving to coastal Ireland. The key element involved here that the narrative deals with is localism and the idea of secrets being kept close to an ideal not just because of a mode of tradition but because the history of a place demands. Visiting the islands of the reverse coast of Ireland some years ago, the balance between modernism and the life as originally stated is a big lure especially for the menfolk who cannot fathom retreating from this life much to the discern of their wives. This directly enough results in violence, not specific because of its intent but simply because of its action.The title of the novel refers to the lead Elly being an avid swimmer who because of her body composition can swim long distances without caving to hypothermia. Some of the best passages in the book especially with her approaching FastNet initially during the day is the sense of space underwater with her and her thoughts generally through them which is only something that can be captured in a book. That intention as well as discovering a certain body and the longing essence of regret knowing that you will never see a certain person again portrays a sense of loss that distinctly buoys the book. Many of the elements of supposed supernatural texture are left to open perception though some idea of Elly's belief could have been structured in. All the characters have their place to be sure. The idea of what romance is remains bottled around as a metaphor of time which is adequate which is reflected in the structure of Elly remembering what drew her to her husband Fred in the first place. The ghostly vision of Miranda contains certain Celtic references in terms to superstition as well as the intents of sorcery within Highgate and especially O'Boyle relay within. Their elements of importance are of course left to chance to some degree. Th relative resolution based in the storm necessitates an acceptance of cleansing of a land despite the fact that evil always looms but Elly's acceptance of this simple truth almost bleeds romantic instead of nostalgic. “The Night Swimmer” understands that the best love is one lost that never recovers simply because it always becomes the way one remembers itB