Barometer Rising

Another entry from the Canadian New Library Series, another homerun for Canadian literature. That must necessarily be the ruling on this immensely engaging 1941 freshman effort from Hugh MacLennan, for "Barometer Rising" is a taut, intensely character driven novel from one of Canada's great essayists. MacLennan went on to write several other novels, more essays, and even some travelogues, history, and poetry. He is nothing if not versatile. If only more people knew about the wealth of literary gems from the Great White North awaiting their pleasure in the libraries and bookstores. For those interested in exploring the brilliance of Canadian literature, Hugh MacLennan is a great place to start. Hugh MacLennan died in 1990."Barometer Rising" takes place in Halifax, Nova Scotia during 1917. The war in Europe continues to grind away, chewing up young men from around the world in its trenches and no man's lands. Nearly every passing day sees troopships exiting Halifax harbor bound for the bloodbath, and nearly every day they pass supply and munitions ships entering the port on their way to and from Europe. The city is full of foreign sailors and soldiers from every point of the compass. The war is a big deal, and since Canada serves as Britain's whipping boy, Halifax provides a safe harbor beyond the reach of German U-boats. But disaster lurks in the waters off Halifax: a munitions ship loaded with 500,000 pounds of trinitrotoluol sails into the harbor and collides with another ship. The resulting explosion is nearly nuclear in its destructiveness. Thousands die as major sections of the city explode and burn. The author shrewdly sets up his novel in countdown form, beginning on the Sunday before the explosion and ending the tale the following Monday, a few days after the disaster. MacLennan makes this Nova Scotian city the major character in his book, showing the reader the wartime changes while allowing us to take an occasional glimpse behind the curtain to see the way the city was before the war.A cast of characters parades through the streets of Halifax for our perusal. The Wain family is central to the story. There is Penelope "Penny" Wain, a brilliant woman who designs boats for the war effort while withstanding the barbs from jealous male co-workers. Her father, Colonel Wain, is an old pro-English patriarch who cannot stand the fact that he remains in Halifax while the war rages in Europe. He wishes to return to battle and seek some glory, but his first tour of duty ended in disaster. For this disgrace, Wain blames his nephew Neil Macrae. Now Neil roams the streets of Halifax, seeking redemption for a tragedy on the fields of Europe. The reemergence of Neil places Major Angus Murray in a moral quandary; he realizes the return of Wain's nephew will upset his plans for the future. The reader must decide for themselves if the choices the characters make are the correct ones.An afterword (the Canadians are polite; they do not put spoilers at the beg

A very interesting and unusual novel, and MacLennan's first (--which seems astounding, given its stylistic sophistication). The plot is intricate and suspenseful, and three of the four main characters are portrayed as fully conscious, focused beings, who are either aware of their own motives and values, or keenly interested in identifying them; the fourth character, Geoffrey Wain, exhibits a distinctly opposite mentality, and proves--therefore--to be a villainous threat to each of the others. Nautical engineer Penny Wain, Geoffrey's daughter, is a true rarity in modern literature: an intelligent, introspective, rational heroine. MacLennan's descriptive passages are typically colorful and dramatic, and often warrant immediate (and subsequent) re-reading (even though some do seem a bit drawn-out, on first reading). The much-heralded explosion is not, for my money, quite as interesting or dramatic as other parts of the plot, so the reader shouldn't "wait for" that: the first three-quarters of the book is the main course; and the last quarter, a light dessert. Overall, MacLennan has given us a banquet to savor.

I had to read this book for english class... and I love it. Ithink that this is the the most amzaging book ever. I think thatColonel Wain kicked ( ). I thank my teacher for making me read it.

I thought it was a one of a kind book, and the Halafax boom was cool

Hugh MacLenan's Barometer Rising is a very descriptive account of the explosion in Halifax harbour, which killed and injured thousands of people, during the late years of WWI. There is far more to this story than just that of an explosion. In fact the majority of the novel is spent developing characters whose stories the reader follows during the aftermath of the explosion. MacLenan makes good use of suspense and irony to keep the readers attention. The actual collision of the ships in ther harbour is particularly descriptive and suspenseful! Having been to Halifax a few times, and been to the areas described in the story I feel that MacLenan quite accurately portrayed the war stricken city of Halifax during 1917. Anyone with any interest in 20th century war or the birth of Canada as a nation, should definitely read this book!