Book Review: The Fern Tattoo
2008 Miles Franklin Literary Award Nominee by David Brooks
The Fern Tattoo journeys through 100 years of a complex and intricate family history, leading readers to examine the meaning of family, secrets, love and truth.
The Fern Tattoo (UQP, 2007) is one of nine books longlisted for the 2008 Miles Franklin Literary Award, Australia’s premier literary prize.
The Fern Tattoo Overview
At its most basic level, The Fern Tattoo is the gradual revelation of the family history of Benedict Waters, a man who at one point in his life believed that he already knew and understood his heritage. The action of the novel occurs mainly on the east coast of Australia between the Central Coast and South Coast of New South Wales, encompassing Sydney and some rural areas inland.
Accepting the invitation of a friend of his mother’s many years after it was first offered, Benedict discovers Mrs Darling, an old woman keen to share with him stories from the past. He finds her stories beguiling and returns to her, almost despite himself, to hear more.
It takes some time before he understands the personal relevance of her stories. The significance of various characters unfolds for the reader, much as it does for Benedict, with a complex network of connections and interweaving personal histories. Unexpected family secrets are revealed with a bigamist bishop, a tragic childhood shooting accident, affairs, and the fern tattoo of the title covering the body of a librarian from neck to knee.
The narration journeys forward and backward from 1887 to 2000, patching together the stories of several characters, connecting them in unexpected ways and at times revealing unforeseen details to explain their previously confusing behaviour or decisions.
Themes and Preoccupations in The Fern Tattoo
On a deeper level, the novel is an exploration of the beguiling nature of stories as they relate to an individual's personal journey and the seduction of questions half answered.
Throughout The Fern Tattoo, many stories seem to be incomplete or patched-together. There is often a level of ambiguity or uncertainty about the deeper, more significant message hidden beneath the surface. This applies not only the rambling tales shared by Mrs Darling, but also to the secrets and half-truths woven into the lives of many of the central characters.
Brooks beguiles the reader, much as Mrs Darling does with Benedict, with stories half completed, always with the intriguing promise of a resolution.
The Fern Tattoo is also an exploratio of the nature of love in its many forms - friendship, desire, marriage, affairs, family, patriotism, passion, spiritual zeal - and also its distortions with victims of rape and incest.
Communication and its vagaries and beauty are also a major focus of the novel. Aboriginal cave paintings and Katherine McKenzie's bush landscapes, diaries and personal letters provide a counterpoint to Mrs Darling's interconnected stories and the many isntances of ephemeral spiritual awareness that occur throughout. The insidious nature of rumour and the ever present threat of secrets revealed add further complexity to this theme.
Enjoyable Australian Fiction
Brooks, like the storytelling Mrs Darling, seduces the reader with his meandering tale, tempting them to continue reading to pursue the promised resolution. For readers who prefer a more straight-forward and sequential approach, the need to continually refocus and the deliberate ambiguity regarding characters may prove to be an irritation. Those attracted to the novel by the back cover blurb may also find themselves impatient for the story they have been promised to begin, as some time is spent on background events before the modern day action of the novel begins.
The Fern Tattoo is a novel that will provide greater insight and enjoyment on subsequent readings. The prose is beautifully constructed and the imagery and descriptions of the Australian landscape are very enjoyable.
The Author
David Brooks was born in Australia and after travelling during his childhood, was educated in Australia, the United States and Canada. He currently teaches Australian Literature at the University of Sydney. He has published several works of poetry and short fiction and is the author of The House of Balthus (Allen & Unwin, 1995).
