Slow Water

by Annamarie Jagose

The year is 1836. English clergyman William Yates sets sail from London, bound for the mission fields of northern New Zealand. Caught up in a mesmerising love affair that will test the imagination of everyone on board, he is utterly transformed. Against the riveting backdrop of a four-month sea voyage and the vividly imagined society of the ship, the story of Yates unfolds, drawing together the inarticulate hopes of the cabin passengers, the immigrant families of steerage and the raw men and boys of the crew. On landfall at Sydney, camaraderie gives way to treachery and the tight world of the ship breaks apart. Everyone is implicated in the scandal that grips the colonial town, yet it is Yates alone who stands to lose not only his reputation but also his life. Based on a true story, Slow Water is a poised and elegant novel of the highest order with its commitment to historical accuracy exquisitely balanced by its modern attention to eroticism and narrative suspense. Winner of the Deutz Medal for Fiction, Montana Book Awards 2004.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Queer, Novels, Historical, Fiction

2 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2003

About the author

Annamarie Jagose is a writer of academic and fictional works.

She gained her PhD (Victoria University of Wellington) in 1992, and worked in the Department of English with Cultural Studies at the University of Melbourne before returning to New Zealand in 2003, where she was a Professor in the Department of Film, Television and Media Studies at the University of Auckland and Head of the department from 2008 to 2010.

Since 2011, she has been the Head of the School of Letters, Art and Media at the University of Sydney.

In 1994 she won the NZSA Best First Book Award for In Translation. In 2004 Slow Water won the Deutz Medal for Fiction in the Montana New Zealand Book Awards, as well as the Vance Palmer Prize for Fiction. It was also shortlisted for the Australian Miles Franklin Literary Award.

Reviews

[Anthony O’Brien · Rating 4 out of 5]

An intriguing book. An historical novel based on a true story. Annamarie Jagose creates a detailed backdrop to an early 19th century scandal involving a gay missionary (Yate) who, in the course of a three month voyage from Gravesend to Sydney, falls in love with a sailor and becomes sexually involved. When the affair becomes known the consequences are dire, but the two men’s love is undiminished. The threat of capital punishment, foreshadowed early in the book, hangs over Yate. Most of the action of the novel occurs on the voyage, and is only in the last 40 or so pages that the book’s themes fully play out. Jagose takes the opportunity to lavish her writing with archaic terms and nautical details which although interesting at times seem to be the main point of the story. But she also uses many fresh and original metaphorical phrases that give the book life and colour. The description of the voyage and the social interactions between passengers and sailors is compelling, as is Jagose’s rendering of the drama and danger of sailing in the early 19th C. Ultimately the history seems to weigh a little heavily on the fiction, something that is an important balance in historical fiction. But the book rewards with its attention to language, and for bringing to light, in an entertaining form, a little known episode of New Zealand history, and an enlightening account of sexual politics.

[Paulibrarian · Rating 2 out of 5]

Fictionalised account of a journey of a clergyman setting sail from England in the 1830s, bound for New Zealand. Yate, 33, really existed and Jagose has created the circumstances of his fall from grace from extensive research. Her use of the obtuse language of the day and exhaustive descriptions of the ship itself - complete with the nautical terminology - has created a rather difficult experience for today's readership. Relationships between men were also not widely written about in the 1800s, but therein might be the issue with the authenticity of Yate and Denison, his lover, creating a somewhat hollow experience. An impression it does give is that the journey was atrociously long (four months) and endangered lives with disease, pestilence and desperation - slow water indeed. Historical notes and references in the acknowledgments attest to the effort Jagose went to - perhaps this being the more appropriate legacy of the work, rather than the narrative.

[Heather Browning · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wasn't sure I would like this at first, as the cast of characters felt too large in the beginning to really connect with. But they are written lightly, with insight and humour and I found myself drawn in to the small world of this ship, transporting passengers from England to Australia and NZ. I would only have liked for the female characters to have been given a little more time - they were really just background to the lives and events of the men, and often their motivations were a little unclear. The last part of the book also felt almost completely separate from the main part - the events after they land move away quickly, and many of the important characters from earlier play no role at all, which is disappointing, as their various storylines feel a little unresolved. Still, I was glad of the happy ending, and this was overall an entertaining and pleasant read.

[Camille · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed this beautifully written historically accurate tale of a passage from England to NZ in 1836. This is beautifully written and provides an amazing insight into the mix of characters and the hardship, tedium, beauty and unexpected relationships that emerge on a long show passage to NZ. For me the plot didn't quite develop in the way that I hope and I felt it was a unbalanced with too much time given to the passage and developing gay relationship and too little time given to the consequence.

[Christopher Dempsey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brilliantly researched novel about a gay clergyman travelling to Aotearoa NZ, and his time there, and subsequent return to NZ. Drawing on sources in NZ and Sydney, Anamarie crafts a very time specific place of action. Recommended

[George Fenwick · Rating 4 out of 5]

bit of a slog but great story!

[Lisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

It’s a fictionalised account of the true story of William Yate, a clergyman who in 1836 travelled to New Zealand to take up his ministry, but aboard the Prince Regent fell in love and caused a scandal. They were discreet, but once the ship landed in Sydney, petty jealousy led to revelations about what happened aboard and it ruined Yate’s career [1].

The book has an intriguing plot – which I am being cagey about so as not to spoil anything! It engaged me from beginning to end, but it was the prose that captivated me. The story of the ship’s community is superb. The times when the ship is becalmed, buffeted by gales and in real peril are all marvellously evoked, and I felt the cold winds and frequent soakings through the power of Jagose’s words.

To read the rest of my review, please visit http://anzlitlovers.wordpress.com/201...

[Lucy Gray · Rating 3 out of 5]

I felt a bit disappointed by this book - after all a NZ writer (from Ashburton no less) and it won a literary prize. The blurb on the back did not give anything away and I waited and waited for the romance to appear and maybe I missed some of the hints but it seemed to be almost 2/3 of the way through the book when I had a light bulb moment. Maybe too subtle for me. And yet the living conditions on the boat are described in all their gory detail - except, thankfully for the bodily functions of the seasick passengers. Various boils and cuts, and filthy children, and drunk sailors and false pretenses and social niceties were all mixed together and overall just not that compelling for me.

[Phil Gardner · Rating 4 out of 5]

Winner of the New Zealand Book Award; was slow to develop but beautifully written -- problem is the ending was clear from the very beginning even though you plodded forward. Starts on a ship bound for NZ and the interesting mix of characters with a very prescribed society. Turns into a homosexual persectuion story -- everyone turns on the minister aboard simiply our of jealousy.

[Joseph Harriott · Rating 5 out of 5]

poetry from start to end
one of the most beautiful stories I've ever read

[Louise Oskam · Rating 4 out of 5]

loved it