Review: Sea Change, by Jenny Pattrick

This review is from our series of reviews by LIANZA members.

Unlike award-winning author Pattrick’s previous historical novels, Sea Change is contemporary fiction. As you would expect from an author awarded an OBE for services to the arts, the book’s also a testament to her ability to weave a great story, regardless of the era. 

Set on the Kapiti Coast, we meet a cast of characters who, in the wake of a devastating earthquake, face a horrifying tsunami that rushes through the thriving seaside village. One by one, the author introduces us to the community, who are bent on overcoming the challenges of everyday life when the environment around them has been destroyed and the outside world has abandoned them.

It’s a brilliant and colourful cast, including pensioners Lorna and her blind neighbour, Toddy. Lorna left the corporate world behind to retire to the beach settlement and has always kept very much to herself. Toddy lost his wife two years ago and has learnt to fend for himself, but now all bets are off. Young Eru, who lived with his father, finds out he has been killed in the tsunami, attaches himself to Toddy and becomes his eyes. There are Dot and Flo, the local plumbers who prove to be local heroes, Gus, the fire chief, the Vietnamese couple who owned the local store. Bobby-M along with the reclusive Dylan and his doctor friend Maryam. 

The community has no power, no water, no cell reception and no way out. Each character plays a vital part in the group’s survival, and to my delight, they resort to the ‘number-eight-wire’ mentality of years gone by in order to live off-grid and solve any technical problems. But the government wants to enforce a managed retreat, and powerful manipulative businessman Adrian Stokes has plans to purchase the land and build a resort that will wipe out the community. The residents will not allow this to happen. 

The strength of the book is in the capture of the warmth, conflict and humour of the Kiwi spirit. Relationships that wouldn’t have worked before are formed; the community builds resilience and fights back. With witty, natural dialogue, Pattrick builds a riveting, easy to read story. I forgot to breathe when Lorna and Toddy stood on Lorna’s roof after the earthquake:  

‘“Maybe it won’t come. It looks perfectly flat way out.” “No, wait,” she says, “the water’s racing — really racing — away from the shore.” “It’s coming, then.”’

It brought back memories of my father and grandfather and the skills and ingenuity they used to solve problems. They had workshops chock full of boxes of the most interesting things. Nails, screws and light bulbs of varying sizes; small screw-top jars with an assortment of nuts and bolts. Mounted on walls were hammers, screwdrivers, wrenches and saws – all in order from small to large. More boxes held hanks of rope, duck decoys and fishing nets. Old tin buckets held homemade lead fishing sinkers and old tobacco tins were recycled to hide treasures like fuses. Offcuts of wood were kept in case they might come in handy, a selection of tarps were folded neatly and stacked under a bench embellished with vices. 

I’m sure Toddy and Gus had these exact workshops containing years of collecting valuable bits and pieces. Dad’s shed was a paradise for kids and smelled of oils and rust and timber. The book evoked these memories as the residents of the community come together and scrabble to make do. 

Sea Change may well prove inspirational to some readers, while older readers will be transported back to the days when there was a way around everything. No problem was ever too big. But it’s not just nostalgia; there’s a fabulous story here and I highly recommend it. Reviewed by Carole Brungar