The Divine Wind in Aussie Readers

Mar 23, 2015 Brenda rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: own-read, historical-fiction, aussie-authors, young-adult

Michael and Ita Penrose had lived in Broome, Western Australia a lot of years – their two children, Hartley and Alice were friends with Mitsy Sennosuke, the Japanese daughter of Zeke and Sadako. Michael was a pearling master, running six luggers which were crewed by a mixture of nationalities, but always with a Japanese diver aboard each lugger. Zeke worked for Michael as the diver on his leading lugger, the Ita Penrose - the love of Michael and Ita preserved by words – but Ita wasn’t happy in B Michael and Ita Penrose had lived in Broome, Western Australia a lot of years – their two children, Hartley and Alice were friends with Mitsy Sennosuke, the Japanese daughter of Zeke and Sadako. Michael was a pearling master, running six luggers which were crewed by a mixture of nationalities, but always with a Japanese diver aboard each lugger. Zeke worked for Michael as the diver on his leading lugger, the Ita Penrose - the love of Michael and Ita preserved by words – but Ita wasn’t happy in Broome; she missed her home in England and her elderly parents.

Mitsy was born in Broome, but the fact that she was of Japanese descent irritated Ita – the children played anywhere but each other’s homes, often spending time in the darkness of the movies together. Hart fell in love with Mitsy’s beauty and good humour during that time and the two of them became very close.

When Hart was seventeen, Ita returned to England to be with her dying father – it was 1939 and World War II followed shortly afterwards. And so began the prejudice and hatred toward the Japanese – many who had lived in Broome their whole lives; been born in Australia; hadn’t even been to Japan. But the internment started and friends of long standing were locked up and looked upon with suspicion.

In an Australia devastated by war, the lives of Mitsy, Hart and Alice were destined to change – they grew up fast; adapted to the changes quickly though not seamlessly. As they left their childhoods behind, their futures looked increasingly bleak – would they remain friends? And would they survive the horrors of war?

The Divine Wind by Aussie author Garry Disher was first published in 1998 and has been republished many times since. It’s a wonderful little book which looks at friendship and the changes that occur through no fault of our own. I thoroughly enjoyed looking at the Broome of WW2, the historical aspect of it and the coming of age of three young people. I have no hesitation in recommending this novel highly. ...more

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Jan 16, 2025 Karen rated it liked it · review of another edition

Against the backdrop of World War 2 Hartley and Alice Penrose live in Broome where their father runs a fleet of pearling loggers. Their friend Mitsy is the daughter of a Japanese diver, and Hart falls in love with her. As the war with Japans gains momentum, all the Japanese in Broome are interned in camps, but Hart’s father takes in Mitsy and her mother to their home. A beautifully written novel about friendship dealing with prejudice and racism in war devastated Australia.

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