Book review: Limberlost by Robbie Arnott

The author of Limberlost, Robbie Arnott, has won various awards for his previous works, and so this one came with some sense of anticipation.

Limberlost is set in Tasmania and tells the story of Ned, from his childhood until his marriage and adulthood.

It is of the Australian tradition of quiet, calm and meditative books that centre on a quiet child, then man, and embrace the environment around him.

Ned’s story is told slowly, starting from a time when he industriously kills rabbits and sells their skin, with the aim of buying a boat.

The boat, when it arrives, also demands his work and again he uncomplainingly sets about achieving his goal.

The descriptions of the land and the wood of the boat were lovely and there is a sense that the environment is a character itself … or more of a character than many of those in Ned’s life.

His wife remains a opaque and his father exists only in reference to how he makes Ned feel. The surrounding cast are like ghosts emerging from the mist in the countryside where the story is set.

I enjoyed watching by Ned as he worked, and strongly felt his disappointments when his work did not provide the rewards he might have hoped for. Loss looms large in his life, no matter how hard Ned strives. There is a realism to the pace of the book, and to the sense of memory; the rabbits that were front of mind as he tried to save the money for his boat remain in focus while other aspects of his younger life have fallen away.

Time speeds up when he is a young adult, unlike his childhood of strong impressions, which stretches out to become far more impactful than many of the great milestones of life.

While I find slow-moving books like this one quite beautiful and readable, I don’t feel particularly moved and think I might struggle to remember the story before too long.

Perhaps they are best read as a change from a more intensely moving or action-packed books, or just for times when a reader is looking for a quietly intense book rather than a more dynamic one.