A review by thebooklovingpanda
And the Ocean Was Our Sky by Patrick Ness

4.0

"Whales and their precious prophecies. 'We must do this. It has been prophesied.' You relieve yourself of choice. Relieve yourself of consequences. Torture me, harm me, kill me. Do all these things, but do not pretend there is a must. That is how evil is rationalized."

4.5 stars

Given that this is written by Patrick Ness, I expected a great read, and I was not disappointed. This book is a retelling of the 1851 novel Moby-Dick by Herman Melville, and I have the feeling that if I'd read Moby-Dick before reading this, I might have enjoyed And The Ocean even more.

A quick and visually stunning read, with both great depth and humour. I really enjoyed Bathsheba's musings on the cultural glorification of the eternal hunt, of war, by those who sit safely at a distance; on cyclical violence and the power of rumour; whether fate is truly pre-destined, or if we make our own fates merely through our insistence that we have one.

We are always saying things like this, us as a people. Prophecy of the purest sort. What does that even mean? If prophecy were pure, it would be fact, but it is not. And yet how it drives us, even when all I have ever seen is that the only prophecy that has any accuracy - any purity - is the one that self-fulfils.

There were also some truly heartbreaking moments that moved me to literal tears. How does Ness manage to fit all these emotions in such a short book?

Rovina Cai's illustrations deserves a star all for itself - her art style is the perfect choice for a maritime setting, full of waves, curves and the flowing lines that characterise her other work. The mostly greyish-blue colour scheme fit Bathsheba's underwater point of view very well, and made the occasional splash of reds and yellows all the more striking. I'd even recommend picking up the book just so you can see for yourself how beautiful the pages are!

The only critique I have is that the ending seemed to wrap up rather quickly after the key battle. I think I would have liked to see more of Bathsheba's reflections on how she herself was drawn to the devil. But really, this was just overall a splendid read, and another great graphic novel to add to my growing list.

[R]umors swirl and oceans stir and in that maelstrom, I fear, devils will rise. Are rising. Have risen. The great trick of the devil is to make you want to see him. But it is only when you see him that you fear him. And by then, it is too late.