Hurricane

by Charles Bernard Nordhoff, James Norman Hall

The acclaimed novel of love and courage in a world threatened by devastation. A novel of brave and beautiful people...of a young outlaw and his sensuous bride...of survival, of love and courage. A story of elemental terror, of strong men against the sea. By the authors of Mutiny on the Bounty

Genres: Fiction, Historical Fiction, Adventure, Classics

216 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published February 1, 1936

About the author

This describes the 20th century novelist, most famous for Mutiny on the Bounty. For the 19th century journalist and author, see Charles Nordhoff.

Charles Bernard Nordhoff was an English-born American novelist and traveler.

Reviews

[Paul Cornelius · Rating 4 out of 5]

Frankly, it was difficult to get the images of John Ford's 1937 film version of The Hurricane out of my head as I read this. I only recently tracked down a copy of the book. And, as with most other Nordhoff and Hall works, The Hurricane proved a deceptively intricate reading. Both Ford's film and the book are anti-colonialist in their intent. But Ford is much more harsh towards the French, as represented by the governor, DeLaage, than is Nordhoff and Hall. Still, both works take aim at a system of "white man's justice" that is, in fact, unjust.

Told from the perspective of Dr. Kersaint, the book and film tell their story as a flashback. Kersaint himself is intriguing. Isolated from his own kind, he has become jaded with European attitudes towards Polynesians. His is a lethargy of soul and spirit, because of what he has seen. Especially soul rending is the fate of Terangi, the Polynesian sailor, who is put through the remorseless grind of the French legal system. Terangi's life with his family and his ultimate test of courage and moral certitude comes with the climax of the book, the awaited hurricane that strikes his island. Only a lucky core of islanders survive. And at book's end, all characters, French and Polynesian alike, seek redemption from the harshness of nature, both in man and in the sea.

[David Allen Hines · Rating 4 out of 5]

Of course the classic summer hurricane novel is Jospeh Conrad's novella Typhoon, but I was glad to come across this old 1930s hurricane novel at a used book sale. The book is engagingly written and a great summer read. On a very isolated far Pacific island during British and French colonial times a strong young native man runs afoul of colonial administration and is sentenced to jail. Instead of just serving his time, he repeatedly escapes and is recaptured. During his most recent escape a guard was accidentally killed and this time he will be sent to a far away secure prison when recaptured. He tries to visit his wife and child whom he has never seen. This is all weaved into the story of the colonial administrator and his wife, a local priest torn between his love of island and responsibility to the administrator and his home central church, the local chief, and the periodic supply boat. Everything about the story is interesting, well-written and believable. Then comes disaster.

This is a very low-laying island just a few feet above sea level. Hurricanes are rare but not impossible and with little warning a huge one rears up. The oldest villagers recall such storms but most of the others believe this one will pass by. It doesn't. Some take refuge on a farther island. Others hole up in the island church made of cinderblocks. As the storm builds it becomes obvious the church is doomed. Some then tie themselves to the tops of palm trees. A few take shelter in a few boats in a cove. In the end, only a few villagers survive. The prisoner escapes with his family to live on a nearby isolated island. The ending is not exactly happy but is very realistic.

Now if you are a 2020s uber liberal you make take offense at the depiction of colonial island rule in this books. But that the book does not promote such rule it simply accurately describes life as it was at the time and in fact the administrator is presented as a largely pathetic figure. The locals understand their ways and the islands better. Liberals may try to cancel history but it happened nonetheless.

Is this book better than Typhoon? Not quite but Hurricane is very good and I wish it was more known and read today. This is a great summer read.

[Michael · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read a German version translated by Rudolf Brettschneider named " Hurrikan" published in 1948 by Verlag: Kurt Desch Munich. Hard cover in fair condition, 305 pages.
Fascinating story of local Polynesian setting. Wasn't so much about a love story, but an account of a local, who broke the law and his escapes from imprisonment set during the onslaught of a very large hurricane in ca. 1920. Subsequent ordeal of various characters. Could not put the book down! Interesting, informative and and spell-binding. Much local color and language. Very worthwhile reading. Well written. If the translation was good, the English version should also be great. Enjoyed it greatly.

[Eden Thompson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Visit JetBlackDragonfly (The Man Who Read Too Much) at www.edenthompson.ca/blog

The Hurricane is a classic tale of survival in the South Seas. It was written in 1935 by Charles Nordhoff and James Norman Hall (authors of Mutiny On The Bounty).

The setting is Manukura, one of the many atolls and islets of the Tuamotu archipelago in French Polynesia, which the natives call the Islands of the Distant Sea. Remote and sparsely populated by about 150 people, they are self sufficient by fishing and harvesting Copra to trade with visiting ships from westward Tahiti. The tale is recalled to us by Kersaint, the island Doctor, as he visits the islet years later. There are three other Europeans on the island - Father Paul, a Roman Catholic priest, de Laage the administrator and his wife Madame de Laage.

Terangi is young and well respected, married to Marama, the daughter of chief Fakahau. Working on the trading ships, he is in a bar in Tahiti when a white man insults him. He strikes the man and is sent to jail for a few months. He attempts escape and is recaptured several times, each incident bringing a longer penalty until his sentence is 16 years. Still, he does manage to escape one last time and heads home to his family. On the island there have been exhaustive searches for him, although the population as a whole feel he was wrongly punished. Plans are put into motion to hide and protect Terangi and his family on a nearby islet, but it is not to be - the weather becoming dangerous. As the title proclaims, a massive hurricane is upon the island and attempts to take cover in the three solid structures available is failing, they must rope themselves to the tops of the palms and ride it out.

It's an exciting tale told around the central event and it's aftermath, as the few survivors find each other again. Reprinted many times, it was twice turned into a film - successfully in 1937 directed by John Ford with Mary Astor as Madame de Laage; and again in 1979 with Mia Farrow, although they took only the title and the hurricane from the novel, creating a different story around it.
I enjoyed learning about the Polynesian culture and the make-up of the archipelago. I did not know the tiny, desolate islets have large lagoons in the centres, making them rings of land only a few miles wide.

I was lucky to find a 1938 hardcover in great shape, inscribed on the flyleaf in beautiful script to Bishop Burd "This story of the South Sea islands will take you a long long way. And that is its purpose. Hope you enjoy it as much as I did. Connie February 2/38."
Thanks Connie, it was great.

[Sonja · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fantastic book uncovered in grandmother's library... the story is of colonists and natives on a small atoll in the South Pacific, set in the late 1800s. The island is set upon by a fierce hurricane that destroys nearly everyone and everything. The story is beautifully crafted, with a detail and richness that vividly paints each scene for the reader's imagination. I recommend it to anyone and everyone.

[L. · Rating 3 out of 5]

A short (very short) adventure story set in French Polynesia. Local lad Terangi has been done wrong by the white man. Now his sole purpose in life is to escape prison and reunite with his fledgling family. Then, said hurricane of the title is added for gravitas and everything is all to hell. This was a best seller when it was published in the the 1930's and I'm trying to figure out what the 'it' factor was that made the book blow up like it did. Either the average reader was unfamiliar with the Pacific (oh, but you will be) and/or they were unfamiliar with hurricanes.

[Kellyt · Rating 5 out of 5]

Suffice it to say that this book is worth the time. I’ll leave it to the other more lengthy reviews to tell a bit about the story. I found it well written and an intriguing tale of the South seas following World War I. It was easy to discern that the authors both lived in and loved the area where the story took place. Not quite sure of why the cover picture on this book was used since it has no relationship to the story.

[Ronald]

read some time in 1980

[NK · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a great story about a remote Pacific island caught in a hurricane. There are side stories about the inhabitants and how their lives were before and after the devastation.

[Carol · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a very exciting story! The setting is in Polynesia, the descriptions help make it interesting. This is a romance, the groom being sent to jail shortly after the marriage, the short sentence keeps getting longer because of his propensity to break out of jail!