The Break (Deb Fitzpatrick, Fremantle Press)

The Break is the first adult novel from West Australian author Deb Fitzpatrick, whose young-adult titles include 90 Packets of Instant Noodles and Have you Seen Ally Queen? It centres around two families—Rosie and Cray, the young sea-change couple from Fremantle, and Liza and Ferg, the Blue Gum farmers. The families’ lives intermingle in the picturesque setting of Margaret River: first, through their opposition to an encroaching development, and then due to another, more tragic circumstance, based on a real-life event. The story is set in the 1990s, a refreshing touch as technology does not take a front seat, and Fitzpatrick’s love and knowledge of her home state is evident. Her prose is fluid and evocative and the use of excerpts from Robert Drewe’s The Drowner works well. The chapters are short and their choppiness is much like the sea, which is almost another character in the novel. The Break will resonate with fans of Tim Winton, as Fitzpatrick writes about the natural environment with similar texture and intensity. 

Katie Haydon is a former assistant editor of Books+Publishing and a freelance reviewer

Books+Publishing pre-publication reviews are supported by the Copyright Agency Cultural Fund.

Category: Reviews