Rate this book

Clear rating

1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

The Town That Forgot How to Breathe

2.93 of 5 stars 2.93 · rating details · 810 ratings · 155 reviews

Something strange is happening in the seaside town of Bareneed. Mythical creatures are being pulled from the sea, perfectly preserved corpses of long-lost villagers are washing up on the shore, and residents of the town are suddenly overcome by a mysterious illness that is making them forget how to breathe.

A page-turning gothic thriller reminiscent of H. P. Lovecraft, The...more

Paperback, 480 pages

Published August 22nd 2006 by Picador (first published 2003)

more details... edit details

Get a copy:

More…

Friend Reviews

To see what your friends thought of this book, please sign up.

Lists with This Book

The Jane Austen Book Club by Karen Joy Fowler

Confessions of a Guidette by Nicole "Snooki" Polizzi

Worst Rated Books on Goodreads

19th out of 123 books — 20 voters

Books I Regret Reading

456th out of 1,262 books — 2,776 voters

More lists with this book...

Community Reviews

(showing 1-30 of 1,617)

filter | sort: default (?) | rating details

Oct 14, 2007 Miss_otis rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: fantasy-or-fantastical, horror-suspense, wanted-to-like-more

In this book, Joseph and his daughter Robin go on vacation in a small Newfoundland village, and naturally, strange things start happening: there’s an epidemic that causes people to forget how to breathe, coupled with drastic changes in behaviours, centuries-old corpses are being spit up from the sea, looking as if they drowned only yesterday, mythical or long-gone sea creatures start appearing (though some can only been seen by a few) and of course, ghosts.

This is a nicely atmospheric book, but,...more

6 likes · like · see review

Dec 01, 2011 Jaime Boler rated it 4 of 5 stars

In the tradition of Michael Crummey's Galore and Carsten Jensen's We, the Drowned is the 2005 novel The Town That Forgot How to Breathe by Kenneth J. Harvey. Although it is lesser known than the novels by Crummey and Jensen, it is worthy of a read. Atmospheric and chilling, you'll wonder why The Town That Forgot How to Breathe ever escaped your notice.

Harvey lives in Newfoundland and is the author of Brud and Directions for an Opened Body. He has received the Raddall Atlantic Fiction Prize and...more In the tradition of Michael Crummey's Galore and Carsten Jensen's We, the Drowned is the 2005 novel The Town That Forgot How to Breathe by Kenneth J. Harvey. Although it is lesser known than the novels by Crummey and Jensen, it is worthy of a read. Atmospheric and chilling, you'll wonder why The Town That Forgot How to Breathe ever escaped your notice.

Harvey lives in Newfoundland and is the author of Brud and Directions for an Opened Body. He has received the Raddall Atlantic Fiction Prize and has been shortlisted for the Commonwealth Writers Prize and the Books in Canada First Novel Award.

Joseph Blackwood and his daughter Robin vacation in the seaside town of Bareneed, Newfoundland. He has recently divorced and become estranged from his daughter; he hopes to reconnect with her. Blackwood's father was originally from Bareneed, and he still has relatives there. The seaside idyll, however, turns out to be anything but.

Bareneed residents cannot seem to remember to breathe. It is as if they have simply forgotten how to take breaths. At the same time, bodies of those who have perished at sea are suddenly washing up on shore. Next door to the house the Blackwoods are renting is the ghost of a little girl who died at sea. She wants to make friends with Robin and sings a little ditty over and over again: "My father went to sea-sea-sea to see what he could see-see-see and all that he could see-see-see was the bottom of the deep blue sea-sea-sea." You can see how Harvey beautifully sets the tone. There is such a chilling quality to this novel that I could literally feel the cold water in my bones.

Interestingly, like its people, Bareneed is a dying town. It, too, suffers from illness. Many are out of work and fail to make ends meet. The government had shut down the cod fishing industry, which was the primary livelihood of Bareneed. This, of course, hurt fishermen, but it also hurt those who worked in a fish plant in Bareneed. Those suffering from breathing problems are those who once fished or worked in the abandoned plant. Their world has drastically changed, and they are having difficulties adapting to life. As Harvey writes, these people are "fishers of men no more." The people of Bareneed have had their lifestyle threatened; they have lost their place and their sense of self. They are not sure if they will ever get it back either. I think many Americans in this economic crisis can relate to these people. Harvey also shows us a people who believe modern technology makes us sick and cuts us off from our deceased ancestors. It all makes for a curious read.

The lure of the sea is paramount in Harvey's work. The sea churns, envelopes bodies for years, and then spits them back out. This book has been on my to-be-read shelf since 2005 when I first bought it. I do not know for what I was waiting. I think it works well with Crummey and Jensen. If you enjoy sea lore, pick up The Town That Forgot How to Breathe.
(less)

1 like · like · see review

Oct 18, 2011 Peter Boysen rated it 2 of 5 stars

It's a fascinating premise -- a town that slowly forgets to breathe, one person at a time. There's no real rhyme or reason to how the disease spreads, which makes things dicey for everyone involved. Dr. Thompson is a wonderfully whimsical, yet intrepid hero, clanking his wine bottles and brie along as he evacuates before the coming tsunami -- in Canada, of all places. However, the solution to the disease seems to work counterintuitively to the way that Joseph must escape the plague's clutches; i...more

like · see review

Jul 03, 2011 emma cassedy rated it 5 of 5 stars

My history with this book started off lackluster. I bought it, intrigued by the title, the cover, and the brief snippet of information provided. Then it got shoved around, moved onto various bookshelves during three moves, lost in a box in storage probably more than once, but it finally resurfaced and I was hooked.

It starts off small and somewhat slow, but sometimes the books that really pack the most impact, the biggest punch, sneak up on you and demand a bit more of your attention and time tha...more My history with this book started off lackluster. I bought it, intrigued by the title, the cover, and the brief snippet of information provided. Then it got shoved around, moved onto various bookshelves during three moves, lost in a box in storage probably more than once, but it finally resurfaced and I was hooked.

It starts off small and somewhat slow, but sometimes the books that really pack the most impact, the biggest punch, sneak up on you and demand a bit more of your attention and time than you might normally provide it. This was one of those books for me.

Amid a rather remote town, a bevy of very specific characters with their very individualized views of the world and the town of Bareneed (we're in Newfoundland, so for most readers it might seem like a visit to some little known remote town along the sea that no one's ever heard of), and flying fish, mermaids, other mythical creatures only imagined, and a layer of unease, despair, and blinding humanity that you're unable to shake, this book throws the reader into what is at the same time a mystery, a discovery, a search, a dream, and ultimately a memorial of life, of death, of memories, of loss, gain, and humanity.

Kenneth Harvey's writing has enough fantasy woven throughout each of its pages to lift the reader away from the chair, or room, or the patch of grass they happen to be reading this book in, and throws you into another world still close enough to ours to latch onto the reality he presents. It's lyrical quality can pull you in and sweep you along, with enough time and enough effort to pull you past the slightly slow beginning.

You hear, in this story, in the individual stories of the local historian and storyteller who weaves herself through the lives of all the other characters, the visitors who would probably be considered the main characters--father and daughter reconnecting, losing touch, gathering the pieces back together again--the moody, distraught, haunted neighbor who can't let go of what (who) she's lost, the endearing but physically changed seer with his sketchbook, and the town of Bareneed itself, and the sea. Together, they create a story that is about life, death, nature, loss, hope, and what may or may not be fate, but seems unerringly human, and real.(less)

1 like · like · see review

Dec 21, 2011 Roberta rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2007

Joseph, recentemente divorziato, decide di passare l’estate con la figlia Robin a Bareneed, un piccolo paese di mare sull’Isola di Terranova di cui era originario suo padre. Padre e figlia cominciano presto a percepire strane entità, mentre nel paese si diffonde un’inspiegabile malattia respiratoria…

La città che dimenticò di respirare doveva essere un grande romanzo alla Stephen King ma più profondo (recensione che sfortunatamente non ho visto prima di acquistarlo) e riesce solo ad essere un gra...more

like · see review

Jun 14, 2011 Kipahni marked it as never-will-finish · review of another edition

Goodreads saves me from myself.
Allow me to explain.
You wander around a library/bookstore and there comes a book that just jumps out at you perhaps it's the title or the cover art, you take the book read the insdie flap for the details, turn it over on the back to read the praise then if you are like me you read the first page and the last sentence of the book to see if you like the style of it.

But then comes goodreads. You see I took "the town that forgot to breath" home with me, and on a whim w...more

like · see review

Mar 02, 2011 Sonia rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: have

It took me a long time to really get into this book. This was due to a series of factors, mostly personal, but also because I felt the book started off slow.

Although it can be argued that Joseph Blackwood is the "main" character, I felt that Harvey presented the work as more of an ensemble cast. Unfortunately the ensemble aspect wasn't perhaps as successful as I've seen from other authors (most notably Stephen King). It took me a while before I felt that I understood the characters enough to wa...more

1 like · like · see review

Sep 30, 2011 Lisa Grabenstetter rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: owned

Kenneth J. Harvey dislikes modern things, like electricity and baseball caps and the enlightenment and women leaving loveless marriages they're unhappy in. He wrote a book that is basically a screed against these things. So impassioned is he that he barely pauses in his preaching to develop character personalities or explain why the army has brought enormous machinery to a tiny fishing village or what exactly they're doing with it. What budget funded that project? Disaster relief?

The book has it...more

2 likes · like · see review

Nov 03, 2011 Heidi Ward rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: weird-fiction, apocalypses-and-dystopias, creepy, ghosts-and-hauntings, magical-realism, plague-or-disease, time-travel-or-alternate-realities, horror, 21st-century, canada, small-town-life, family-dynamics, own, uncanny, blogged

The Town that Forgot How to Breathe was a book I impulsively chose by its cover (and I've seen several reviews that started the same way). Though I had never heard of it, I'm very glad I did, because this strangely charming and incredibly eerie book -- part horror story, part eco-parable, all magically weird -- got under my skin with its vivid imagery and unusual setting.

Formerly a rich fishing ground, the tiny Newfoundland village of Bareneed's maritime industry has collapsed from overfishing...more The Town that Forgot How to Breathe was a book I impulsively chose by its cover (and I've seen several reviews that started the same way). Though I had never heard of it, I'm very glad I did, because this strangely charming and incredibly eerie book -- part horror story, part eco-parable, all magically weird -- got under my skin with its vivid imagery and unusual setting.

Formerly a rich fishing ground, the tiny Newfoundland village of Bareneed's maritime industry has collapsed from overfishing, and the town and its inhabitants are slipping into a depression both economic and existential. But something strange is afoot in Bareneed: when several locals fall ill with an unrecognizable breathing disorder (viral? hysterical? fatal?), and perfectly-preserved dead bodies start washing up on the rocky shore, that's only the tip of the iceberg that eventually draws ghosts, sea monsters and military intervention into one -- mostly quite effective -- tall tale.

Harvey constructs TTTFHTB around a rotating set of POV characters, among them a local doctor and a police officer, both capable but out of their depth; a beatific little old lady who knows more than she's letting on; a man-child whose painted apocalyptic visions are coming to pass; and a "townie" fisheries officer with roots in Bareneed, who takes a summer-rental with his eight-year-old daughter. It's a large cast of characters for a small town, but Harvey gives them each a unique voice and perspective on the mysteries unfolding around them.

Only one of the many narrative threads falls short of its initial promise, which left me wondering if it might have been better left out -- but that same thread also offers up some of the most chilling and atmospheric scenes in the novel, so I'll let that shortcoming slide. I see the reviews here on Goodreads are very mixed -- I expect you either like this sort of fiction, or you don't. I'm giving TTTFHTB four enthusiastic stars, and would probably go 4.5 if GR would let me. If Stephen King's creepy, insular Maine towns appeal, if you loved the myth and magic of "The X-Files," if you enjoy a dank whiff of Lovecraftian horror, or if you've ever dreamed of seeing a mermaid, this book should be right in your wheelhouse. (less)

like · see review

Jan 22, 2013 Ashley rated it 2 of 5 stars

This book was very disappointing. I could not find any interest in the story line, and I had to force myself to finish reading the book. The story was a jumble of confusion. Half the time I was unsure what was going on. The way the book swaps back and forth between the characters was also poorly executed. I believe there was too much mystery and not enough story. The questions I had throughout the book never revealed themselves. It mainly made no sense to me.

Joseph and Robin, his seven year old...more This book was very disappointing. I could not find any interest in the story line, and I had to force myself to finish reading the book. The story was a jumble of confusion. Half the time I was unsure what was going on. The way the book swaps back and forth between the characters was also poorly executed. I believe there was too much mystery and not enough story. The questions I had throughout the book never revealed themselves. It mainly made no sense to me.

Joseph and Robin, his seven year old daughter, are on a summer vacation to a town called Bareneed to visit his Uncle Doug. In this town, the dead are reappearing and strange things are happening. People are experiencing unexplainable illnesses and becoming aggressive. They have forgotten how to breathe. Their new neighbor, Claudia, believes that they are the answer to her woes. She lost her family eighteen months ago and has hopes that they are the solution to her emptiness. The people in this town dislike the townies. They fear that this illness is a sign that they have brought something wrenched with them. When the illness starts to get out of hand, the army steps in and begins to barricade the community. Joseph and Robin are beginning to see things that cannot possibly be real. Robin is even believed to have the “sight” and can see what will come in the near future. Kim, Joseph’s wife, has had a weird feeling since they left, but since the separation she knows she has to be fair about sharing time with their daughter, Robin. Yet, when she receives a call about Robin becoming quite ill she jumps at the first excuse to come to town. They have found an albino shark, and since she is a marine biologist she should be there for this miraculous event. This is not all that is turning up. Throughout the next couple of days, seventy bodies are recovered from the sea. They are in spectacular condition to be as old as some are. What is going on?! Joseph has a feeling he is loosing his mind. He has these urges to hurt others around him. Not to mention that Kim and his Uncle Doug have been acting strange around him. Kim barely recognizes the man that is her husband. He seems changed somehow; more cruel and less compassionate. Has he contracted this deadly illness? Tommy Quilty and Miss Laracy, these two also have the “sight”, claim that the illness only follows the relatives of the dead pulled from the sea. The spirits have become angered due to the electromagnetic frequencies keeping them from their loved ones and their homes. Is this the reason the strange creatures are appearing? What will they do to set things right? Why have the patients with the illness forgotten who and what they are? Although vaguely the book finally begins to make its points around the end. By this time though, I was already quite withdrawn from the story and just ready for it to end.(less)

like · see review

Jun 26, 2012 Victoria rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: beach-y, contemporary, creepy, disturbia, ghost-story, magical, mysterious, sci-fi-fantasy, trip-lit

In a small Newfoundland fishing village Joseph Blackwood, recently divorced, takes his daughter, Robin, to Bareneed to spend some time with her and to get some rest. The vacation isn't as restful as it should be and as soon as father and daughter arrive in town strange things start happening: centuries old corpses rise from the water appearing as if they had drowned just yesterday, ghosts come out to play, sea monsters appear, an epidemic plagues the town causing the residents to not be able to...more In a small Newfoundland fishing village Joseph Blackwood, recently divorced, takes his daughter, Robin, to Bareneed to spend some time with her and to get some rest. The vacation isn't as restful as it should be and as soon as father and daughter arrive in town strange things start happening: centuries old corpses rise from the water appearing as if they had drowned just yesterday, ghosts come out to play, sea monsters appear, an epidemic plagues the town causing the residents to not be able to automatically breathe on their own any more and peoples behaviors take a turn towards violent.
This book was reminiscent of Chris Bojilain's The Night Strangers in that waterlogged little girls try to steal away a human daughter from an affected father, ghosts only reveal themselves to certain characters, the fathers personality takes a dive, eccentric old ladies run about the town and water is a main theme of both novels. The plot was obviously more character-driven than action driven. It was also a very Stephen King-esq book where it was an atmospheric spooky story without the cheap, scary overkill.
Since the book was so character-driven I really liked how there was no actual one "main character" and instead we got a group of characters from a seven year old girl to a ninty-plus year old woman. The story was told in third person narration and I think that was best as I was more likley to believe a third person narrator, especially when dealing with topics like dementia and sea creatures.
I didn't care for the fact that none of the characters were particularly likeable save for the Tommy character and the Miss Laracy character. The book is a hefty one coming in at 468 pages which gave Harvey ample time to flesh out each character, which he did very well- he just forgot to make them likeable and as a result, I didn't much care what happened to them. Let them eat cake (and drown).
The book could move very slowly at times and I found myself wondering if Harvey wrote in some of the descriptions and some of the scenes just to add page numbers. This book is definitely not the theatrical version I would have prefered, instead it had ALL of the deleted scenes intact. Towards then end I found myself skipping parts. The one good thing about the ending was the epilogue which is told from one of the main characters first person POV many years later. If you find yourself skipping parts towards the end, you're really not going to miss anything, but do make sure to read the epilogue!(less)

like · see review

Jul 27, 2011 Lucy rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Maybe the book would have made more sense if I grew up with the seafarer's legends (mentioned but never explained or told), but either they didn't make it down the coast as far south as Southport or they didn't make it down to my generation. I was trying to make sense of the magic/supernatural system on my own as the book progressed, and it never quite happened. I STILL don't know what was up with Claudia, Jessica, and the Black Shuck, or what exactly was wrong with Joseph, or how some of the Po...more

like · see review

Sep 11, 2007 Allison rated it 5 of 5 stars

I could barely put this book down, it has everything I love: ghosts, moodiness, mystery, great characters and setting. And monsters! The writing was fantastic and gripping and was not at all cheesy. Often in stories involving ghosts, monsters, etc there is a lame cop-out ending but not here. Highly, highly recommended!

4 likes · like · see review

Dec 04, 2008 William Thomas rated it 1 of 5 stars

The problem with that i had with this book is the same problem i find in all of hp lovecraft's writings in that i do not care about the characters, i do not care about the storyline and i do not care about the mathematical and rote style of writing. it reads like an aldous huxley novel, not human at all, but instead as if it were written by Data from star trek or mr. spock. it is in complete contrast of better horror writers such as christopher golden, whose stories and characters you care for b...more

2 likes · like · see review

Jun 14, 2013 Hannah rated it 2 of 5 stars

My favorite thing about this book: there are some genuinely creepy things that happen, and the way Harvey describes said creepy things can be very poetic and interesting.
However, by the end I was struggling to finish this book. Too many loose ends never tied up, at points Harvey is way too preachy (okay, we get it, you don't think some of the modern advancements in technology and medicine are doing humanity any good) and I found some parts/ideas to be slightly misogynistic.
I am left with a lot o...more

like · see review

Jun 03, 2009 Kevin Fanning rated it 4 of 5 stars

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. I'm really surprised by how divergent the reviews on this are, and what the criticisms are from the people who didn't like it. I thought it was great, through and through, high 4, really enjoyed it.

A lot of people seem to think the characters weren't believable. I didn't have any problems with any of the characters. And Miss Laracy is one of my favorite characters in any book ever. At first I wasn't so sure, with the accent and everything, but by the end I basically wanted to turn every sentenc...more

1 like · like · see review

Aug 09, 2012 Jenn rated it 4 of 5 stars

The seaside town of Bareneed had unusual occurrences. Mythical creatures jumping out of the water, perfectly preserved corpses washing up on shore and a mysterious illness in which people actually forgot how to breathe. They assume everything thats happening has to do with energy. They say that when microwaves, tv's and cell phones caused disturbances with the spirits thats why this is happening. After the tsunami the residents waited for months to have their power restored only to demand the to...more

like · see review

Sep 06, 2011 Theresa rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: books-i-own, reviewed

Everyone has heard the phrase, ‘Don’t judge a book by its cover’. Yet, that is precisely what I do... a lot of the time. Okay, so I don’t judge exactly, but I have to admit I can be greatly influenced by a book’s cover art as well as the title; that is what possessed me to purchase Kenneth J. Harvey’s novel The Town That Forgot How To Breathe.

I purchased my paperback copy live and in person from the now defunct Border’s. The background color of the book’s cover is black with the only additional...more

like · see review

Mar 16, 2013 Karen rated it 4 of 5 stars

I really liked this book, although I would have a hard time describing exactly what it was about. From the book jacket "Something strange is happening in the seaside town of Bareneed. Mythical creatures that formerly existed only in mariners' dreams are being pulled from the sea. Perfectly preserved corpses of villagers long ago lost at sea are being washed up on the shore. And residents of the town are suddenly suffering from a mysterious illness that is making them forget how to breathe."

And s...more

like · see review

Aug 07, 2010 Myles rated it 1 of 5 stars

Shelves: egregious-use-of-letters, horror

This book...I tried to like it but the whole thing stank of trying to hard. Much of the book was written as if Harvey was trying for stream-of-consciousness, but all it felt like was heavy. Never have I counted so often and so despairingly the number of pages.

There were parts where the book stopped heaving itself forward so hard, taking time to breathe, pun not so much intended as inevitable. The progression of reading the novel was much like the mysterious illness that plagued the residents of...more

1 like · like · see review

Nov 22, 2009 Fee rated it 3 of 5 stars

This book was interesting but a little predictable. It had a lot of characters and a lot of things going on, as I get to read my books at work. I have paper airplanes distracting and guys wishing they were 13 by turning lights off in the bathroom while our boss is dropping a deuce. Anyhow, the one character I was interested in was the little girl and her safety. The author seemed to hold this character hostage, and when the end came, I felt a fool to know that of course she was going to be okay....more

like · see review

Jul 26, 2011 Jamie rated it 1 of 5 stars

Ugh, I deserve a medal for slogging through this mess of a novel. The author took a great premise and then destroyed it. Most characters are one-note and the two who aren't are completely unreadable due to their dialect which is supposed to be deep Newfoundland but reads as if Tia Dalma and the assistant coach from "The Waterboy" were thrown into a blender. The plot was unnecessarily convoluted and jumped around so much that by the last third of the book I was honestly just flipping pages and sk...more

like · see review

Mar 19, 2012 Dayna Ingram rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: couldn-t-get-through-it, horror, reviewed

Once again, the trifecta of a great cover design, intriguing premise, and praise-filled review blurbs sucker me into buying a severely mediocre novel. The San Francisco Chronicle calls this "literary horror". This distinction got my hopes up for some stellar writing, but I guess my definition of "literary" is different than theirs, because this reads like any old lazily written Plotty McPlotplot horror novel. There is virtually no character development, far too much summary vs. actual scenes, an...more

2 likes · like · see review

Sep 11, 2012 Jennifer rated it 2 of 5 stars

Recommended to Jennifer by: Pat Gonder

Shelves: read-2012

Whew! It took me ever to finish this book. I'm not sure what the disconnect was but this book never fully grabbed me. It's a sort of Stephen King story set in Newfoundland. Strange things are happening in the seaside town of Bareneed. Strange fish are appearing, bodies of people lost at sea over the last 100 years are washing up on shore, and several residents suddenly lose the ability to breathe on their own. Into this swirl of supernatural weirdness, comes a fish and wildlife officer, Joseph B...more

like · see review

Jan 30, 2013 Ryan G rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: no-longer-own

This was one of those books I picked up when our second Borders location was closing, something I still can't believe ever happened. I was perusing the fiction aisles and since I couldn't see the cover, it was the title that jumped out at me. Once I pulled it off the shelf, I no longer cared what the book would even be about, I was in love with the cover. I really wish this picture could do it justice, but it doesn't even come close. There are so many details done in a glossy black that just shi...more This was one of those books I picked up when our second Borders location was closing, something I still can't believe ever happened. I was perusing the fiction aisles and since I couldn't see the cover, it was the title that jumped out at me. Once I pulled it off the shelf, I no longer cared what the book would even be about, I was in love with the cover. I really wish this picture could do it justice, but it doesn't even come close. There are so many details done in a glossy black that just shimmers and captures the eye. The best part is something you couldn't even begin to experience through the picture, the images and title all have this wonderful texture to them. I love to run my hands over the cover, spine, and back. This is why I can't do ebooks, I would be missing out on this wonderful tactile joy. You can feel each splash of water, you can see the light play over the splashes, highlighting some, then others as the light changes. You can't get that from a electronic screen, so you can keep your ebooks, I'll stick the real deal.

Maybe you have guessed by know that my focus on the cover is my subtle way to avoid what's inside the cover. It's actually something I've been avoiding for a while now, I actually started this post a week and a half ago. It's not the I hated the book, that would be better than what I'm feeling. In reality, I'm pretty damn neutral on it. I'm so neutral, I have nothing to say, zip, zero, zilch. At this point in time, I would be hard pressed to name even one character, without cheating.

I can remember enjoying the story for the most part, especially in the beginning. People stop breathing, not because they can't, but because they don't remember how. Mermaids, krakens, fairies, and ghosts are starting to appear all over town, and bodies that have been in the sea for decades (or longer) are washing up on shore as if they just fell in. It's once the author tried to tie in a message that I sort of lost track of where I was or what was going on. I get human advancements, especially electricity or radio waves have probably interfered with our environment in ways I can't even begin to imagine, I'm just not sure this was quite the right avenue to explore those concepts. Now I know the book was supposed to deal with life and death, our ties to the past and the world we live in, and I think there was even a hint or two about how we should treat each other. That all got lost for me in this strange hodgepodge of genres, themes, and realities.

I know for a fact, and I could even name of few of them, that some of my fellow bloggers would love this book. They would be able to get lost in the story, be terrified by some of the happenings, and maybe even learn a lesson or two. I'm just not one of them. So for now, I'll be happy running my fingers over the cover, getting lost in the texture and beauty that resides on the surface.
(less)

like · see review

Apr 13, 2011 Werd Unheard rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This is one of my favourite types of stories; the totally believable, supernatural, historical fiction. It’s a rare talent when an author can add the element of “crazy” into a story in such a subtle way that it becomes part of the characters, surrounding, history and story itself, but not the main focus.

The Town That Forgot How to Breathe is similar to a couple other books I’ve read; Galore, by Michael Crummey and The Terror, by Dan Simmons in a way that even though there is an impossible phenom...more This is one of my favourite types of stories; the totally believable, supernatural, historical fiction. It’s a rare talent when an author can add the element of “crazy” into a story in such a subtle way that it becomes part of the characters, surrounding, history and story itself, but not the main focus.

The Town That Forgot How to Breathe is similar to a couple other books I’ve read; Galore, by Michael Crummey and The Terror, by Dan Simmons in a way that even though there is an impossible phenomena happening, the history-based story always remains prominent. There is never really a point where you’re reading along thinking, “this is such crap, this could never happen, it’s so unrealistic,” instead I found myself thinking how awful and scary it would have been to be in any of the characters places, and relating to their fears and actions. I mean can you truly and honestly say that you’ve never thought you saw something that wasn’t there? Or that for no reason, all of a sudden you realize you’ve been holding your breath and now it’s difficult to breath? Little things like that happen to everyone, and when they’re happening our minds go to the craziest places. What Harvey has done is expand on those crazy places, and somehow created a story where crazy seems real.

If someone had told me, “read this book! It’s about a silly small town on the coast of Canada where this guy moves into a haunted house with his daughter and people in the town all of a sudden stop being able to breath, weird creatures are seen in the ocean and bodies that have been missing for decades start washing up on shore. But don’t worry, it’s a totally believable story”, I would have laughed at that person and put this book on the NEVER going-to-read shelf. But even though all those things do happen, they are woven into the lives of dozens of characters and a history that spans families and generations. The ability of Kenneth J. Harvey to write a totally unbelievable, yet believable story is a rare talent.

This book made me proud to be Canadian and to live in a seemingly boring little town. Harvey captured the essence of East-Coast Canadian life, language and culture. He started the story off realistically, got you hooked on the characters and then before you knew it a haunting feeling was taking over and pages were turning themselves.

I read this book in the fall of 2008, and therefore had to do some skimming to refresh myself before writing this review. But rather than skimming, I just about got hooked into reading the entire thing again. I started reading and before I knew it I was on page 43 and once again totally engulfed in the story. There are very few books I would ever consider reading twice, but this is definitely one of them.
(less)

like · see review

Feb 08, 2011 Arkadia rated it 1 of 5 stars

Picked this up on a whim while perusing the book store, and had to buy it because of the beautifully done cover and the concept.

Worst decision ever. Quite possibly one of the worst books I've ever bought, and the only one I've ever felt so insulted spending money on that I made the effort to return it so I could have my money back. I only got about 40 pages in but the prose was so contrived I knew to plod on any further would be both a waste of time and result in an unhealthy rise in my blood pr...more

1 like · like · see review

Feb 08, 2009 Janelle rated it 1 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2009

This book has the makings to be great: a mysterious breath-thieving affliction, preserved corpses washing ashore, ghosts and lost love. Unfortunately, these elements never seemed to come together to contain my interest. I started this book with high hopes and forced myself to finish it.

Although there were gripping parts that left my hair standing on end, there were not enough moments like that to compel me further into the tale. The momentum is suddenly lost again and again, leaving the reader f...more

like · see review

Nov 22, 2009 Ryan rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: long-after-review

I read this book several years ago, but I'm on a campaign to write reviews for all the books I have listed here, whether I remember them well or not. Perhaps this is a true test of what sticks with me, long after I've put it back on my shelf. Thus:

I recall hearing about this book outside of my usual book-hearing channels, though I can't quite remember how I came across it. I have some recollection that I heard about it from a couple of sources independently, and that I heard it was creepy. I was...more I read this book several years ago, but I'm on a campaign to write reviews for all the books I have listed here, whether I remember them well or not. Perhaps this is a true test of what sticks with me, long after I've put it back on my shelf. Thus:

I recall hearing about this book outside of my usual book-hearing channels, though I can't quite remember how I came across it. I have some recollection that I heard about it from a couple of sources independently, and that I heard it was creepy. I was in the mood for a good ghost story at the time, and, to me, ocean-based ghost stories are always the creepiest--like "The Upper Berth" by F. Marion Crawford, which terrified me as a child reading Alfred Hitchcock horror collections and still occasionally haunts me today.

I ordered the book, settled in one night, and prepared for goosebumps. Ultimately, there was a ghostly chill or two, but my fear-seeking wasn't as satisfied as I'd hoped it would be. The plot is made up of more supernatural elements than ghosts--which isn't necessarily a bad thing--but I remember not being entirely satisfied by the denouement or conclusion.

I like my ghost stories unresolved. The unknown is scary. This book wrapped up the weird goings-on with some degree of explanation, and, though I had half a "huh?" in my head at the end, it was still enough of a contained story for me. I turned the light off when I finished. I leave the light on for stories I'm not sure about, the ones that hint they may not strictly stick to the book.

I do remember, however, a scene of a recently caught fish coughing up a doll's head on a dock. It spits out the head, and then the fish's color drains away. I think I'm remembering it right. That part did give me goosebumps. Little odd details like color draining away for no apparent reason--that's what gets me.

But I hadn't thought of that detail since I read the book until I began writing this review, years later. By contrast, I can still feel the heart-pounding, frigid wave that swept my body when I imagined something cold and dead emerging from the sea and Crawford's imagination.(less)

like · see review

Jun 11, 2009 Lee rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: fiction

The book started off strong; the author did everything right to make it a mysterious and suspenseful. But the middle of the book is just confusing to me. The chapters are actually broken up by day (Friday, Friday Night, Saturday, Saturday Night, …), and at the end of one chapter (I can't remember) Joseph Blackwood is a sane man worried about his daughter and curious about his neighbor. But the next time we return to him, he has gone insane. While Harvey did a wonderful job depicting the thoughts...more

1 like · like · see review

« previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 … 53 54 next »

new topic
Discuss This Book

There are no discussion topics on this book yet. Be the first to start one »

Recommend it | Stats | Recent status updates

combine
Other Editions (9)

More editions...

Genres

Horror

40 users

Fantasy

21 users

Mystery

5 users

Fantasy > Weird Fiction

4 users

Fantasy > Supernatural

4 users

Magical Realism

3 users

Thriller > Mystery Thriller

3 users

Gothic

2 users

Adult Fiction

2 users

Science Fiction Fantasy

2 users

See top shelves...

Readers also enjoyed similar books

About Kenneth J. Harvey

International bestselling author Kenneth J. Harvey's books are published in Canada, the US, the UK, Russia, Germany, China, Japan, Australia, South Africa, New Zealand, Italy, Sweden, the Netherlands, Denmark and France. He has won the Rogers Writers' Trust Fiction Prize, the Thomas Raddall Atlantic Fiction Award, the Winterset Award, Italy's Libro Del Mare, and has been nominated for the Books in...more

More about Kenneth J. Harvey...

Books by Kenneth J. Harvey

More…

Share This Book

Facebook Twitter Your website

Trivia About The Town That For...

No trivia or quizzes yet. Add some now »

Quotes from The Town That Forgot H...

“A new lover. Fresh knowledge and a virgin body to paw. Shopping together for wicker furniture in the mall. Visiting the lingerie store. Picking out matching shotguns.” — 4 people liked it

More quotes…

title link	preview: The Town That Forgot How to Breathe
avg rating	preview: The Town That Forgot How to Breathe Goodreads rating: 2.93 (810 ratings)
small image	preview: click here [close]
med image	preview: click here [close]
BBCode	[url=http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/218409.The_Town_That_Forgot_How_to_Breathe?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book][img]http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1316727742l/218409.jpg[/img][/url] [url=http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/218409.The_Town_That_Forgot_How_to_Breathe?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book]The Town That Forgot How to Breathe by Kenneth J. Harvey[/url]

The Town That Forgot How to Breathe

Friend Reviews

Community Reviews

Share This Book

Share This Book on Your Website