Rotoroa

by Amy Head

On tiny, isolated Rotoroa Island in the Hauraki Gulf is a treatment facility for alcoholic men. It's here, at the Salvation Army-run home, that three characters at very different points in their lives will find themselves gathered, each for reasons of their own. There is Katherine, known to history as Elsie K. Morton, famous journalist and author; Jim, a sleepless alcoholic sent to the island by his family; and Lorna, a teenage mother who joins the Salvation Army looking for a fresh start. As the stories of their lives are revealed, so too are their hopes and vulnerabilities. Set in the 1950s, as rigid social codes in New Zealand are beginning to evolve and come unstuck, Rotoroa is a compassionate, beautifully unfolding examination of loss and the possibility of renewal. Told with subtlety and intelligence, this novel affirms Amy Head as a remarkable new voice.

Genres: Historical Fiction

248 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2018

Reviews

[Caroline Barron · Rating 4 out of 5]

A lovely book about a fascinating period of New Zealand history when Rotoroa Island was used as a holding jail / rehabilitation centre for alcoholics and drug addicts. Having been there, and enjoyed watching the Takahe, and wandered through the museum, I was keen to read this fictionalized account.
Often the research in historical fiction is too glaring; there because the research was done and not because it serves the story. However, in Rotoroa, Head's research is woven seamlessly through the story, adding depth to time and place.
Although I found the book a little quiet in the middle chapters, the ending picked up with more action and rose through to a satisfying ending.

Favorite quotes:
She envied them the fragrance they worked in hour after hour and day after day, and the way the sun, with the great doors open, slanted in and blessed their efforts, as they brought the forrest indoors. - p81.

Lately, thought, she'd grown fonder of her home comforts. Atmospheric the candle may have been, but the light it gave off was too dim to read by. She was accustomed to her double bed, a cache of bedrocks, her books, chocolate puffs, a spare blanket at hand. having everything in its right place allowed her to navigate without thinking. - p145.

[Anne Matheson · Rating 3 out of 5]

A gentle story about the residents on Rotoroa sometime in the late 1950s/early 60s. Rotoroa is an island in the Hauraki Gulf where the Salvation Army ran a detox centre for male alcoholics. The book fills in the back stories of some of the people who live there, ( both staff, residents and visitors) in a compassionate and interested way/

[Libby Brickell · Rating 2 out of 5]

Did not finish. I loved the first chapter about Lorna but although the writing is beautiful, I found the narrative split too disjointed. If I hadn't have read the blurb on the back I would have had no idea who the other two characters were.

[Gia Williams · Rating 1 out of 5]

Not a great read. Caught my attention towards the end but not a book i rushed to get back too unfortunately.

[Nicola Ekdahl · Rating 3 out of 5]

Enjoyed this