The novel starts with a middle aged man in his forties returning to his childhood home in England. There he is drawn by nostalgia to the house of his childhood friend Lettie Hempstock, and as he sits beside the pond she referred to as the ocean, the flood of his childhood memories comes rushing back to him. He revisits those days of his when, aged seven, he had those haunting yet memorable adventures with Lettie. We are then transported to his childhood days, where after an unfortunate suicide incident on his farm, a foul dark creature rose and invaded his life. Disguised as a human and a vicious manipulator of adults, the creature finds her way into our seven-year-old' s household and gradually starts taking control of his family. In order to fight her off, he requires the help of Lettie, her mother and her grandmother. It is in essence a story of the adventures of two children, in a setting of magic and fantasy and surrounded by adults and their idiosyncrasies.
There is no doubt that The Ocean at the End of the Lane is a well-written novel. It falls right in the wheelhouse of the genre of magic realism where Neil Gaiman really excels.The story feels like a commentary on childhood and explores the innocence of children and how they differ in their worldly perceptions from adults. Unencumbered by the complexity of life which one gradually perceives as they get older, children tend to live a life of purity where things are generally black or white. The writing style is simple, yet rich and eloquent. Based out of farms and countryside with young adults as protagonists, the novel sends one down the path of nostalgia and memories. It made me remember the golden days of my childhood and sowed within me a longing to be a part of it again.
Despite the book being labelled as an adult novel, it reads and feels more like a young adult one. As a child, I might have been terrified yet fascinated by this novel. But, I feel that to really enjoy it and feel the emotions evoked, adulthood is the right era to read this book in. Like fine wine, the older and experienced one gets, the better this book will taste.
My gripes about this story, though not many, are pertinent. Reading the story raised more questions than it gave answers and left me feeling a bit short. I couldn't figure out whether the experiences of the boy were even real, and the true personalities of the three women went unexplained. While that may have been the ultimate intention of the author, it didn't quite work for me as I am a reader who needs to get all the answers in order to put a book down with a satisfying thump.
Though entertaining, The Ocean at the End of the Lane didn't quite give me the thrills and vibes which I expected. So, 3 stars it is.
My rating: 3/5 stars
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