Plumb

Plumb #1

by Maurice Gee

Long regarded as one of the finest novels ever written by a New Zealander, Maurice Gee's Plumb introduces us to the intolerant, irascible clergyman George Plumb, one of the most memorable characters in New Zealand literature &- half saint, half monster, superhuman in his spiritual strength and destructive in his utter self-absorption. What personal price is this man prepared to pay in the pursuit of his conscience, no matter what the consequences are for those he loves?

Genres: Fiction, Book Club, Literature, Classics, Novels, 20th Century

272 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1978

About the author

Maurice Gough Gee was a New Zealand novelist. He was one of New Zealand's most distinguished and prolific authors, having written over thirty novels for adults and children, and having won numerous awards both in New Zealand and overseas, including multiple top prizes at the New Zealand Book Awards, the James Tait Black Memorial Prize in the UK, the Katherine Mansfield Menton Fellowship, the Robert Burns Fellowship and a Prime Minister's Award for Literary Achievement. In 2003 he was recognised as one of New Zealand's greatest living artists across all disciplines by the Arts Foundation of New Zealand, which presented him with an Icon Award.
Gee's novel Plumb (1978) was described by the Oxford Companion to New Zealand Literature to be one of the best novels ever written in New Zealand. He was also well-known for children's and young adult fiction such as Under the Mountain (1979). He won multiple top prizes at the New Zealand Book Awards for Children and Young Adults and in 2002 he was presented with the prestigious Margaret Mahy Award by the Children's Literature Foundation in recognition of his contributions to children's literature.

Reviews

[Lewis Woolston · Rating 5 out of 5]

Have you ever come across a book that hardly anyone has ever heard of and it turns out to be a brilliant masterpiece and you feel it is your solemn duty to convince everyone else that they should read it?
That's how i feel about this book.
Apparently this is considered one of the all time greats of New Zealand literature but i've never heard of it before which is a shame because it's wonderful.
Arthur Plumb is a man committed to moral principles, committed to learning and teaching and trying to better his fellow man and serve God. He starts out as a young man with these ideals and almost nothing goes to plan.
He rushes headlong into places where angels fear to tread. He puts principles ahead of his family's welfare and suffers for it. He makes blunders and fails to achieve much of anything as far as bettering the world goes.
Yet somehow I felt for him. Poor man who had such high hopes of life and humanity, living to see such bitter disappointment with the world and with himself in his old age.
This is a very human tale full of human failings and loves. Highly recommended.

[Kelly · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you asked the narrator of Plumb what the book is about, he would tell you it's the story of his struggle to devote his life to his ideals, and the sacrifices he made to live by his principles, supported by the deep love and understanding between himself and his late wife, and their unstinting pursuit of their shared goals. But the genius of this book is that through his voice the reader discerns a different tale--that of a selfish hypocrite and the irreparable damage he does to his family. A man who spends all his time contemplating the nature of God and Love (in capital letters) while neglecting and withholding from his wife and children, forcing them all to live lives of poverty and hardship while he takes the best of everything. A man who is extremely harsh in his judgment of others, but entirely forgiving of himself (though he wouldn’t believe it); who spends his whole life in an academic exploration of the human soul, and somehow fails to have even a basic grasp of human nature. He is so believable—we have all met people like this. They are infuriating.

This review is an excerpt from a review on my blog, Around the World in 2000 Books.

[Mike · Rating 5 out of 5]

Many New Zealand (serious) novels are so gloomy I no longer bother to read them as they arrive in the bookshops. Mr Pip was a (relatively) recent exception; although it was serious in tone, it somehow managed to have both a positive attitude to life and bring humour to the story. I think the book that finally 'done me in' regarding NZ novels, was The Hard Light, by Stuart Hoar, better known as a playwright. I was supposed to review it, so read it from cover to cover - it was an endurance test.

Anyway, all that by way of introduction to the fact that I've finally got round to reading Plumb, by Maurice Gee, a book which had stayed in the back burner of possible books to read because of what I felt about NZ novels. Plumb turns out to be immensely readable, even though the narrator (Plumb himself) is a character whose opinions are often at odds with the facts (as far as the reader can glean them) and whose shortsightedness in regard to the lives of other people is destructive for some, and a joke to others. Plumb is based on a real person - Gee's grandfather - and you can only hope that the real man was more perceptive and insightful than the fictional character.

Plumb becomes a Presbyterian minister early in the story (early in the chronology - the story runs in two separate time-frames as well as wandering off into other periods in Plumb's history) and is surprised to find that the Church doesn't find his radical views fit well with their institutional approach to Christianity. The problem is that Plumb is always at odds with some group or other: so convinced of his own rightness, he never has time for anyone else's point of view, and makes strong enemies. But his views change from period to period: one year Christian, the next liberal, the next freethinker, the next....well, Plumb goes through pretty much every possible viewpoint that existed in the early 20th century, and still manages to scoff at his long-time neighbours who go through every (what we'd now call New Age) philosophy that arises.

He and his long-suffering wife produce twelve children, yet he spends little time with any of them. One of the saddest moments is after the death by drowning of one of his younger children; he has to admit that he barely knew her. He continually claims to love his wife, but at the end of the story, it seems he loved his own thinking far more. Thinking is what Plumb does; the irony is that he so often thinks wrongly. He sees himself as a kind of prophet, yet if that's truly the case, his prophetic work is not just out of kilter with his society (nothing unusual in that, as regards prophetic voices) but, more importantly, is actually out of kilter with reality. Towards the end of the story he mentions that his last 'book' (little more than a pamphlet) barely sold at all, and some hundreds of copies sit in his basement. The problem seems to be that he is almost entirely intellect, and very little heart. He warms to only a few of his children, rejects one entirely, and is at odds with his grandchildren - except one. Even this child he beats at checkers, so that the child doesn't get above himself.

This all makes him sound like an entirely objectionable character, and in a sense, he is. Yet somehow Gee makes him extraordinarily interesting and readable. Plumb makes a vivid narrator, and we see the world and the people he meets through his eyes in considerable detail. The book is a great achievement, and deserves the praises it's received. There are two sequels, Meg, and Sole Survivor. I'm not sure yet if I'll read them, but time will tell...

[matthew w · Rating 4 out of 5]

i can't decide whether i am surprised i liked this so much (it's the life story of a rural presbyterian-minister-cum-socialist who neglects his kids for brain gains) or not surprised at all (it has been consistently praised for the last almost half century as the Great New Zealand Novel TM and i was supposed to read it like four years ago).

[LauraW · Rating 2 out of 5]

Why am I finding this so dull?

[Oliver Mack · Rating 5 out of 5]

bloody good words

[Rita Shasha · Rating 5 out of 5]

I will not be the same

[Linda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Having finished Gee's Access Road recently I wanted to compare the level of skill evident in that novel with the brilliant story of George Plumb, based on Gee's ancestor. I will carry on with the rest of the trilogy because I am intrigued by the way that Gee blends in dollops of New Zealand's religious and political history while he is telling the story of the life of the main character. His inability to accept his son's homosexuality is totally believable, as is his crisis at the end, when he attempts a rapprochement, but it is too late.

[Ben Tutty · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a bit of a slog to get through but I'm glad I did because in the end it was a great read.

The narrator - George Plumb - is a high minded Christian scholar with a large family.
He spends all his time reading and studying the nature of love and god. He's very righteous and judgemental of other people's shortcomings - especially his children's - but he's always forgiving of himself. This made him hard to empathise with, which made getting into the book a challenge.

In the end I realised the book was more about exposing Plumb as a hypocrite and showing the damage his judgement and obsessive dedication to his ideals caused those he loved.

The book also shows what life was like in Nz 70-80 years ago which was interesting. Plumb is supposed to be one of NZs greatest novels so I'd reccomend reading it - just don't expect a page turner.

[Piper · Rating 5 out of 5]

No one does grumpy old men like Maurice

[Neale Robinson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Reading this was hard work

[Barnaby Haszard · Rating 5 out of 5]

A panel of experts recently voted 'Plumb' the best New Zealand book of the last fifty years, and to be honest, I can't think of a better New Zealand book I've read. As a subjective portrait, it completely inhabits its central character; you see everyone and everything through his eyes. That ought to turn all the others into sketches but even the most fleetingly mentioned character feels totally real, while the mostly small-town/semi-rural NZ setting is rendered in detail down to the last tree branch. Gee's powers of pithy description are remarkable. How have I not read him before?

All that's well and good but you need a decent yarn, too, so it's a good thing Plumb's internal conflict between traditional, upright faith and modern, radical socialism is so compelling. I was reminded of 'Oil!' by Upton Sinclair, another story of one person's gradual but ultimately wholehearted turn away from God or money and towards the collective; both books even feature a rigged auction at which union heavies ensure no piece of confiscated property is sold for more than the tiniest sum. Plumb's observations are rich in knowing irony, occasionally hateful, almost always delivered in total confidence -- but he does bend a little here and there, and he is forcibly bent by the system, leaving a portrait of a man whose success in life is questionable, by his or anyone else's measure. Ultimately, he is surrounded and supported by women throughout his life, and he is grateful for that, but his own thoughts are always the truth to which he returns.

The other book I was reminded of was 'The Inheritance of Loss' by Kiran Desai, which I also read slowly and deeply, not wanting it to end. 'Plumb' is something to return to again and again.

[Bob · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's always a joy when a novel pleasantly surprises you. Though Maurice Gee is one of the biggest names in New Zealand literature, I've only just gotten around to reading him (though I have repeatedly enjoyed the 1980s TV miniseries adaption of his young adult novel Under the Mountain). After reading Plumb, I doubt the recorded memories and deep-seated regrets of an elderly ex-Presbyterian clergyman turned socialist from Kumara could've been rendered into a novel so enjoyable by anyone other than Maurice Gee. Through and through, Plumb is a ferocious and comprehensive character study of a deeply flawed though consistently admirable man, one who stands up for his adverse beliefs, unphased by complete ruination for himself or his family. Not only does Gee exercise a unique wit and moral sobriety through this unique character, he also puts on full display his vast bookish knowledge: George Plumb freely references Emerson, Goethe, Wordsworth, Horace, Shelley, Burns - the list goes on. Intelligent, mature and distinct, Plumb is a classic of New Zealand literature, and deserves far more international recognition for its abnormal brilliance than it has yet been awarded.

[Kawffee · Rating 5 out of 5]

RIP, Maurice Gee.💜 ‘Plumb’ had been on my TBR for years. I didn’t have a copy, but then came across this in a little library on the day he died. I confess, despite his vast oeuvre, this is the first Maurice Gee I’ve read, and it deserves its reputation as a masterpiece.

The story, based in the first half of the 20th century but very relatable today, follows the life of George Plumb, a passionate, brave yet foolhardy clergyman. Gee’s mastery is in creating a character that is so well wrought and so very human. I’ve known George. I don’t want to give spoilers, but as George naively places intellect above all else, life delivers a different message. Approaching his outro, he gains humility and insight into true wisdom from those who stand below the soapbox.

Whilst contemporary NZ fiction has produced some of my favourite reads in recent years, this book has made me aware that I’ve been neglectful of the NZ literary canon. I didn’t realise this was the first in a family trilogy and I look forward to tracking down ‘Meg’ and ‘Sole Survivor’.

Highly recommended for those who enjoy literary fiction.

[McNatty · Rating 4 out of 5]

A remarkable book.

George is a very difficult selfish man who publicly wrestles with his religious and socialist views lecturing as a minister in his church and to his friends and family. Set at the start of the 20th century spanning two wars and a depression Maurice Gee describes a society searching for religious and political freedom. Reverend Plumb is a reformer and free thinker who is jailed for sedition, his society was not willing to grow with him and he was punished for it. A deeply sad story of a father to 10 children and a husband to a loyal wife who all suffer for his cause. Plumb eventually realises he is self obsessed and learns of his suffering family but cannot accept his failings, only excuses himself as an old man with superior morality and greater intelligence. His children disappoint him and his political lecturing falls on deaf ears. Plumb is resigned to live out his days unable to influence those around him and accepts that death will be his final act.

[Samuel Moncur · Rating 5 out of 5]

I began reading the book as per recommendation by my History Professor, who said it was a good fictional example of someone who was against the First World War. I didn't know anything else about it when I began it, but I quickly discovered that the book is about so much more than a religious person against the war. Plumb by Maurice Gee tells the story of George Plumb, a clergyman, his wife Edie, and their family. Plumb, who is drawing toward the end of his life, recounts in the book his life and all its successes and failures. Though it is Plumb who tells of his experiences, it is his wife Edie who may even be more important to the story than George himself. It is Edie who quietly held the family together through the successes and failures that Plumb recounts, and it is his love for Edie which is a major influence on his thoughts of the present. It is not the type of book I would usually read, but it is massively rewarding and deserving of its recognition.
5/5 stars.

[Martin Genet]

A very enjoyable book about a minister who seriously questions his theology and belief. Its a must book for anyone interested in religious philosophy and the nature of belief. Beautifully written too. I would regard this book as one of New Zealand's greatest novels

[Donna · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought to myself what have I started?’ But as I read more I found I couldn’t put it down. It helps being kiwi, I could see many parallels to the stories of my own grandparents.

Not a light read but a good one.

[Dan Vine · Rating 5 out of 5]

I first read this novel about 30 years ago and thought it a masterpiece. I see no reason to change my mind!

[Justin · Rating 5 out of 5]

I feel an obligation to rate this novel at 5/5 stars, for not only is this the best (and most quintessential) piece of New Zealand Literature I’ve ever read, but I would go as far as to say that it is the best novel I have read, period.

The genre of “family saga” has always had a surprising appeal to me, for I’ve never considered myself particularly interested in the "drama" of family life per se. However, seeing how historical and ideological upheavals punctuate the lives of ordinary (and extraordinary) individuals brings with it a connection to an entire generation, a life experience, so to speak.

I’ve only recently graduated from Maurice Gee’s alma mater, and I can almost feel the reverberations of his experience at school and coming of age in the tone of his writing, and the familiarity of the setting used, even seven decades later. This is the strength

At its heart, the novel is about how intellectual pursuits and family life often conflict, and how in times past, one was often sacrificed for the other. In this case, George Plumb, in his pursuit of ideological purity, and a “New Jerusalem”, abandons his duty to care for his family, and finds himself both a stranger to his identity and himself by the end of his life. Gee’s novels for adults often centre on the dynamics of dysfunctional families, and none moreso than “Plumb”. It is an immensely tragic novel, filled with sacrifice, both of self and others, and examines the elementally grotesque nature of the human soul.

George Plumb’s pursuit of an “enlightened” morality underpins the innate human struggle to accept others unconditionally. Paradoxically, the individuality of human beings is intertwined with our inability to accept those differences. Religion, and by extension morality, is an attempt to reconcile this conflict, but consequently shows, through the character of George Plumb that adherence to ideology makes one yet more self-righteous, at the expense of introspection. Plumb’s character is a sardonic commentary on the dogma that religion and even “enlightenment” encourage.

Edie, a bastion of health and spirit for George, is perhaps the only one who is truly moral. Plumb believes that he loves her truly, and to some degree I think he is sincere, but it is difficult to find his love for her manifested in his actions. The dinners alone in his study are a wider metaphor for his devotion to ideology at the expense of his family, and the harsh discipline he dispenses to his children in that room symbolizes the intolerance that has led to him casting away all connection to those who provide warmth in his frigid life, until he finds them only strangers who share his blood.

-George Plumb, a man who climbs intellectual mountains, and stands against the tides of society with an indignant, but ultimately tired resistance to a world so wholly out of his control. He represents an extreme pursuit of ideological purity, as ironically, it is his rationality that causes him to detach himself from others. He speaks of love emerging from the cleansing of dogma, yet his own rationalism has morphed precisely into a dogma no different to the theologians of the Presbyterian Church, and thus he can never understand love in a truly human sense, for he is an amalgam of both historical prejudice and modern intolerance.

For all he speaks of liberation leading to love, he nonetheless casts away Alfred, a son for whom he has great affection, when he stumbles into Alfred’s homosexuality, a shame that he, and even society in the contemporary era of the novel, cannot stand. This failure, in some sense, is a metaphor for his entire crusade. Although I am more sympathetic to his plight than most, as I appreciate the devotion that he has to his pursuits, I cannot deny that they have not borne fruit. Irrespective of the thoughts of others, he himself finds that at the end of his life, all the purpose he has left is to die. The last lines of the novel put it best: “I’m ready to die, or live, or understand, or love, or whatever it is. I’m glad of the good I've done, and sorry about the bad.” His ideological certainty is damaged by events that shake even his indomitable spirit – the death of Edie, the metaphorical death of Alfred, the feeling of foreignness even with his own family. "Plumb" unequivocally demonstrates the futility of pursuing ideological purity. Uncertainty in the world means that we should grasp onto what we have, seek what we wish to possess, and never let it go.

For Plumb himself, I guess I would only ask, “If you could live your life again, would you change things?”

[Farah Christopher · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love novels that take you through the evolution (or dissolution in this case) of a life .
Mr Plumb like many who don’t believe or interpret the message of the Bible through the guidance of the holy spirit ,is more peculiar because he insists that he is suitable to serve as a minister .
He questions and dismisses the story of creation in the Bible but is happy to accept the ambiguity also present in science of evolution at his time .
He rejects the presence of judgment as represented as hell in the Bible and dismisses it as superstition .He believes in a system where one can do whatever under the sun , but God is kind and loving so their won’t be any consequences or judgement.
He is so contradictory he seems to discipline his children through physical pain when they displease him , but rejects a God who had also mentioned very clearly ,that there will be consequence for a life lived not in accordance to his moral requirements.
Mr Plumb has the classical disease of not being able to judge his limitations in understanding a God who is beyond all human comprehension.He doesn’t seem to understand that we can only know of God what he reveals of himself to us .
Perhaps he needed to spend more time on the beatitudes .
He also seems to lock himself and study books written by mortals endlessly ,but never on his knees praying to God , which is what Jesus himself has clearly instructed us to do .The Lord’s Prayer .
Mr Plumb more suited to be a politician or a parliamentarian , decided to be a rebel priest . He seems like a extreme idealist.
I do like his activism , and causes he is passionate about , and absolutely agree about the hoarders and hypocrites , liars in the church , that’s the problem with the people not the word of God ,Jesus himself said according to the parable of the seed and the sower , some ground won’t grow a crop , a ministers job is just to sow the seed .
I did enjoy the bit about the romance and how they built their family life , that was beautiful , reminded me about my parents and my childhood .
I wish his wife Edie played more of a role in providing some direction to this man who was so blinded by his own ideals .

[Jonny · Rating 5 out of 5]

Plumb is one of the best character studies you will read. I will admit, the book aligned with several of my interests. It grapples with theological and political ethics in an early 20th century New Zealand setting, while also fitting into one of my favourite subgenres: 'person with no perspective on their own life.'

The narrator, George Plumb, is a Presbyterian minister who in the early sections of the book struggles to align his socialist and pacifist views with the teachings of the church at that time. He has a high-minded mission to do moral good during his life, while treating others, especially his family, with judgement and coldness. His insistence on living by his principles harms everyone around him, but he his blinded to this. Plumb narrates the story, but there is a well crafted ironic distance that means the reader learns about his hypocrisy through the man's own words.

The character is complex and Gee hits on a deep part of human nature. At university in my 20s, I met multiple people who were passionate campaigners for worthy causes, but lacked basic kindness and compassion for most people around them. I think we have all met someone like George Plumb.

This book certainly won't be for everyone, but for me, the writing was subtle and the ideas stayed with me for months.

[One Flew · Rating 1 out of 5]

I recently read a great book (The Luminaries), by a New Zealand author, which prompted the realization that I there is a lot of literature from my own country that I've never really explored. I felt compelled to remedy this and looked up a list of the top rated NZ books.

Plumb was voted as the top NZ book and know I've heard of the author Maurice Gee many times, so was keen to read it. The story is of an older man recounting his past, first as a member of the clergy, then as ardent socialist reformer. I was enjoying the narrative and its subtle humour at first, but the further I got into the book the less it was holding my interest. I understand why the book is clearly liked by so many people, it has a charm and whimsy to it while also having a message.

Being neither spiritual nor a leftie socialist type myself, I never managed to truly warm to the book. A one star rating does feel a little harsh considering I didn't actively dislike the book, but I was really only skim reading the last half of the book as I was disinterested.

[Darius · Rating 4 out of 5]

Said to be one of NZ's best-ever novels. I love a generational story, and this one was pretty good. A few thoughts:

- Maybe it's me - having a hard time separating my feelings on the protagonist from overall view of the book. All Plumb's high-falutin wankery makes me think the book was average, but then I think - hold on, that was a bit of a page-turner wasn't it?
- Was the book more impactful back in the day, when readers were closer to the time period it described? History's interesting, but all the waffle about socialism etc loses me a bit. Reading it you want to yell at Plumb maybe you should stop all ya preaching and get a job lad. Respectfully.

In sum, conflicted. A genuinely great read that I had a hard time putting down. But I always use the test would I recommend this to a friend? And tbh, I probably would not.

[Shirley Freeman]

When in New Zealand, read a New Zealand author. Maurice Gee was listed as possibly the greatest NZ author of all time so figured I'd give 'Plumb' a try. "They're" right - it felt like a well-written, timeless classic. I was reminded of 'Gilead' by Marilynne Robinson and 'Elmer Gantry' by Sinclair Lewis. George Plumb's life as a Presbyterian minister (both frocked and defrocked), a socialist (sort of) speaker and writer and a man forever trying to live out his ideals (at great cost to his wife and 12 children) covers much of the religious and cultural territory of the first 70-80 years of 20th century New Zealand. Good read!

[Martin Wilkie · Rating 4 out of 5]

It’s a powerful and tragic book - of regret at the end of a long life. The Calvinistic view of New Zealand reminded me of my grandfather- at a time when the world was in turmoil and so much was changing with 2 futile works wars. The arrogance of religious obsession. Let’s hope for better ourselves. I learned much from reading it. Unresolved regret - the product of moralistic bigotry- a reminder of the power of human love and importance of valuing individuality in a polarised world .

[Maggie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Difficult read to follow.historical content enlightening.gender inequality so evident in his writing - women were certainly treated as the lesser species

[Mark Barrett · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not for me.

[Toni Wharehoka · Rating 5 out of 5]

Move over Tony Soprano, George Plumb is the original antihero

[Ben · Rating 3 out of 5]

Finished in Waipu. An interesting if strange character study.