The Lonely Sea and Sky

by Dermot Bolger

Part historical fiction, part extraordinary coming-of-age tale, The Lonely Sea and Sky charts the maiden voyage of fourteen-year-old Jack Roche aboard a tiny Wexford ship, the Kerlogue, on a treacherous wartime journey to Portugal.

After his father’s ship is sunk on this same route, Jack must go to sea to support his family – swapping Wexford’s small streets for Lisbon’s vibrant boulevards: where every foreigner seems to be a refugee or a spy, and where he falls under the spell of Kateřina, a Czech girl surviving on her wits.

Bolger’s new novel is based on a real-life rescue in 1943, when the Kerlogue’s crew risked their lives to save 168 drowning German sailors – members of the navy that had killed Jack’s father. Forced to choose who to save and who to leave behind, the Kerlogue grows so dangerously overloaded that no one knows if they will survive amid the massive Biscay waves.

A brilliant portrayal of those unarmed Irish ships that sailed alone through hazardous waters; of young romance and a boy encountering a world where every experience is intense and dangerous, this is Bolger’s most spellbinding novel, and the work of a master storyteller who is one of Ireland’s best-known novelists, playwrights and poets.

Genres: Fiction, Historical Fiction, Irish Literature

384 pages, Paperback

Published February 7, 2017

About the author

Dermot Bolger is an Irish novelist, playwright and poet born in Finglas, a suburb of Dublin.

His work is often concerned with the articulation of the experiences of working-class characters who, for various reasons, feel alienated from society. Bolger questions the relevance of traditional nationalist concepts of Irishness, arguing for a more plural and inclusive society.

In the late 1970s Bolger set up Raven Arts Press, which he ran until 1992 when he co-founded New Island Press.

Reviews

[Eric Anderson · Rating 5 out of 5]

When reading novels about WWII you are usually shown the perspective of women and men from countries involved in fighting the conflict. However, I haven’t come across many representations of countries that maintained neutrality. So I’ve found it fascinating reading two recent novels which do this: Rose Tremain’s novel “The Gustav Sonata” which portrays the long term consequences for a Swiss officer and his family drawn into a serious moral conflict and Dermot Bolger’s new novel “The Lonely Sea and Sky” which is based on a historical incident where a small Irish ship chose to save 168 shipwrecked German sailors in 1943. The question of whether to save these men from drowning is more difficult than it first appears: some German forces sank Irish vessels (frequently as target practice) despite their nation's neutrality and there was also the risk that the Germans might take control of the Irish ship once they had boarded and outnumbered the seamen. Their country might have been neutral, but they lived in a world at war. The novel is narrated from the perspective of a 14 year old Irish boy named Jack who joins the crew of a shipping vessel called the Kerlogue. He needs to mature quickly for a hard life at sea and he's confronted with many moral dilemmas posed in this dramatic journey. Bolger creates a personal, heartrending and atmospheric tale of the lives of these Irish sailors during a period of great international conflict.

Read my full review of The Lonely Sea and Sky by Dermot Bolger on LonesomeReader

[Ted Farrell · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the story of the voyage of a small ship from Ireland to Portugal during World Ear II. Merchant vessels from neutral countries were easy prey for both sides in the conflict. They sailed under the constant threat of attack. It's a gripping tale, brilliantly told through the eyes of a young cabin boy on his maiden voyage.
It is an extraordinary story, based on real events, but unfortunately the author has chosen to overlay it with the somewhat improbable romantic adventures of the young cabin boy. To my mind, this detracts from this extraordinary story and from the grim reality of the life of the merchant sailor from a neutral country in the middle of a world war. It devalues this otherwise excellent story.

[Nicky Rossiter · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a treat from start to finish. Bolger paints realistic pictures of Wexford and Lisbon. His description of the rescue and how it affected all sides is fascinating and all the more so for being based on actual events.

[Stephen Flanagan · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Lonely Sea and Sky looks like a dour, hard read, if judging it by it's cover and title. It ended up being one of the best books I've ever read.
It follows a 14 year old Irish boy, who is forced through circumstance to get a job on an Irish cargo boat, during world war 2. The story not only beautifully illustrates the sorrowful journey the boys last year or so has been, but also the dangers a neutral country and it's people faces during a war. The are a couple of stages in the story, but the main plot line takes place during the second half of the book, in which the boat the boy is working on picked up hundreds of Nazi soldiers who have been stranded at sea. I'll not spoil the story line, but it is a great book and well worth the read.

[Brittany Watson · Rating 5 out of 5]

A truly terrific story. If anything I wish it was longer. Bolger's ability to bring characters to life was engulfing. I enjoyed every minute of being a part of the history, heart break, and adventure.

[Dara Golden · Rating 4 out of 5]

Amazing amazing book such a great insight into Ireland during the world war 2 and a coming of age story for the main character with interesting insight into the moral conundrum of war time as a neutral nation.

Would really recommend to anyone interested in Irish history paints a fascinating picture

[Deirdre Yates · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was unaware of this part of our history and enjoyed the story, including the Wexford connections, but didn’t think the dialogue was credible. A very simple book which reminded me of the Michael Morpurgo books aimed at young readers.

[Betsy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found this book engaging, descriptive, historic and informative. I like the author's writing style and will read more of his works. This was a time in Irish history that I know nothing about. I have never considered the implications of WWII on the Irish, and that they were neutral. The lives of those on small vessels and those they leave at home give me more insight into lives of the Irish in the 20th century. Well told story. Characters were very well developed.

[Helena Schrader · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a small masterpiece, more literary fiction than historical fiction or sea saga. It combines an engrossing environment and a subtly surprising plot with a cast of complex and nuanced characters. At one level it is a coming-of-age novel; the first-person protagonist, Jack, is a 14-year-old boy going to sea for the first time as a ship's boy. His father's ship was sunk by a Nazi U-Boat nine months earlier with all hands, and Jack feels he has to help support his widowed mother and younger siblings. His self-discovery and need to come to terms with his father's death are the core storyline. Yet several of his older crewmates are compelling characters in their own right. Complex, well-developed and realistic characters with strengths, weaknesses and foibles, they are compelling characters that contribute to the richness and depth of the novel. Last but not least, the setting, an Irish tramp steamer, is an excellent device to see the war at sea with a chilling objectivity that does not shallowly try to establish a moral equivalency between the Allies and the Axis, but recognizes the humanity of men on all sides.

[Iain Snelling · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good engaging read - the scenes in Lisbon are particularly engaging, despite their length. The central action - the rescuing of 168 sailors and the limping back to Ireland afterward - is well described. Why does grate especially in the second half is the dialogue (The narrator is Jack the cabin bit on his first voyage) which is often a combination of homily and Socratic dialogue with Jack as all the stooges. All this salt of the earth, we’re all sailors together at sea (even German ones if they need our help) , indoctrination of Jack gets pretty tiresome.

[Paul Beaty-Pownall · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very engaging story about a young boy who works on a ship in the war out of Waterford and sails over to Lisbon. With German navy taking over the boat on the way home. Heart wrenching with a little too much of a love story entwined in the middle of it.