Sea Wife

A Novel

By: Amity Gaige

Narrated by: Cassandra Campbell, Will Damron, Emily Eiden

Length: 9 hrs and 45 mins

Publisher's summary

New York Times Notable Book

"Sea Wife is a gripping tale of survival at sea - but that's just the beginning. Amity Gaige also manages, before she's done, to probe the underpinnings of romantic love, marriage, literary ambition, political inclinations in the Trump age, parenthood, and finally, the nature of survival itself in our broken world. Gaige is thrillingly talented, and her novel enchants." (Jennifer Egan)

"Sea Wife brilliantly breathes life not only into the perils of living at sea, but also into the fraught and hidden dangers of domesticity, motherhood, and marriage. What a smart, swift, and thrilling novel." (Lauren Groff)

From the highly acclaimed author of Schroder, a smart, sophisticated page literary pause resister about a young family who escape suburbia for a yearlong sailing trip that upends all of their lives.

Juliet is failing to juggle motherhood and her stalled-out dissertation on confessional poetry when her husband, Michael, informs her that he wants to leave his job and buy a sailboat. With their two kids - Sybil, age seven, and George, age two - Juliet and Michael set off for Panama, where their 44 foot sailboat awaits them. The initial result is transformative; the marriage is given a gust of energy, Juliet emerges from her depression, and the children quickly embrace the joys of being feral children at sea. Despite the stresses of being novice sailors, the family learns to crew the boat together on the ever-changing sea. The vast horizons and isolated islands offer Juliet and Michael reprieve - until they are tested by the unforeseen.

Sea Wife is told in gripping dual perspectives: Juliet's first person narration, after the journey, as she struggles to come to terms with the life-changing events that unfolded at sea, and Michael's captain's log, which provides a riveting, slow-motion account of these same inexorable events, a dialogue that reveals the fault lines created by personal history and political divisions.

Sea Wife is a transporting novel about marriage, family, and love in a time of unprecedented turmoil. It is unforgettable in its power and astonishingly perceptive in its portrayal of optimism, disillusionment, and survival.

©2020 Amity Gaige (P)2020 Random House Audio

Critic reviews

"Gripping.... A powerful take on a marriage on the rocks." (Kirkus Reviews)

"[A] splendid, wrenching novel.... Every element of this impressive novel clicks into a dazzling, heartbreaking whole." (Publishers Weekly, starred review)

"Sea Wife is a gripping tale of survival at sea - but that's just the beginning. Amity Gaige also manages, before she's done, to probe the underpinnings of romantic love, marriage, literary ambition, political inclinations in the Trump age, parenthood, and finally, the nature of survival itself in our broken world. Gaige is thrillingly talented, and her novel enchants." (Jennifer Egan)

Great listen!

There is a great tension in her writing. I like how the book went back and forth not only between the wife's voice and the husband's journal but between past and present. She clearly understands a real marriage as well as trauma and depression and I couldn't stop listening.

many layers

loved it. identified with it. kept it's mystery. almost made me want to sail.

amazing!

a truly marvelous book - the cast of narrators clears up confusions I had when reading the text, absolutely worth a listen for anyone interested in life, love, and humanity (and the wonderful, beautiful, ever changing ocean!)

Disappointing ending

The story started quite well, and I was really invested in the story while the Bartlow family was at sea. Then the author started to go off-track, and the narrative lost its flow and dynamics. It ended in a hot mess. Too bad, it could have been better.

Spellbinding

Loved the readers, they brought the story to life. Sea Wife is a unique and mesmerizing story.

Lots of narrator shifting.

The book benefits from audio in that the change in readers is an easy signal of change in narrators. Unfortunately, there's an obnoxious voice whenever the children are speaking- but that's rare. I found that rather distracting at times. But the story was interesting and the author did a good job of building two separate and full characters.

Good story ruined by narrators

As much as I enjoyed this story, listening to it was torture. Adults doing baby-talk voices for the kids’ voices? Ugh. Better to read the book, I think.

The writing here is just fair, generally, but there are moments of real skill. Every so often the author tosses off a memorable sentence, or catches perfectly the small but deadly resentments of a marriage. There’s a fair amount of foreshadowing, which can be annoying. All considered, though, this is a worthwhile book...to read.

Treat performance but lacking story

I linked the narration and the idea of the story. However basically not much happens in the book and i saw no transformation of the character.

Great read

I really enjoyed this! The narration was great. The story was interesting and the author is a great writer.

Great book

I enjoyed this book a lot I only have one question? When recording this book who’s dumb idea was it to use a tiny infant cry for a 3 year old ? Just sayin !