THE
OCEAN AT THE END OF THE LANE: It feels more like a long short-story
The
Ocean at the End of the Lane is a 2013 novel written by Neil Gaiman. It tells
the story of an unnamed man who returns to his hometown for a funeral. Before
he knows it, he finds himself in the old lane where he has spent most of his
childhood. There, he remembers his adventures and misadventures with Lettie
Hempstock, a girl who has claimed that the pond beyond the lane is actually an
ocean.
What
I really like about this book is that it doesn’t feel like a novel to me. It
feels more like a long short-story, if that makes sense. Gauging from the
number of pages, this book has about 40,000 words, but the plot has no
intricate elements that could overcomplicate things. This is a good thing by
the way. It’s a breath of fresh air. The story is very simple, and it drives to
a specific direction in a specific pace.
However,
this simplicity doesn’t mean that the story has no deeper level. There are
underlying messages in the book. It tackles familial issues and philosophical
insights on nature, time, and other fancy concepts.
Another
thing that I like about the story is that it doesn’t spoil everything to the
readers. There are some plot elements that have remained to be mysteries, even
by the end of the book. There are instances where this could be problematic,
because this trait could give room for plot holes. But this is not the case for
The Ocean at the End of the Lane. If anything, the unexplained plot elements
have only given room for the readers’ imagination to wander about. The best
example of this is either the Ocean itself and its peculiar nature or the real
identity of the Hempstocks themselves.
Now
that I’ve mentioned the Hempstocks. Let’s talk about the characters of the
book. I admit that the book has an interesting pool of characters. The unnamed
boy and her sister have contrasting personalities, which is interesting to
read. The Hempstocks are also very distinct that even the way they talk is
different. Their dialogue adds to their overall characterization. What I really
like about the Hempstocks is their mysterious origins, and their domestic
backgrounds just match the mystery. Ursula Monkton is also a fun character. She
reminds me of the main antagonist of Coraline. Having an antagonist that is
closer than you think has created suspense.
This
book reminds me of Coraline by the way, even though I haven’t read that book
and have only seen the movie. The two have very similar themes and approaches. I
don’t know if this is also the case for Coraline, but The Ocean at the End of
the Lane has a very simplistic writing style, simple enough to consider the
writing as appropriate for all ages. Its underlying messages of childhood and
adulthood have amplified that impression.
Overall,
The Ocean at the End of the Lane is a fun read. As I said earlier, it feels
more like a long short-story, and that is primarily because of the simplistic
plot elements and the way they have been executed. The lessons contained in the
fun story also add emotional, even cathartic, value -- and they just make the
fun more worth it.
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