Whale Fall is the story of a teenage girl, Manod, whose longing to see the rest of the world conflicts with her loyalty to her homeland and family. The book is set on a remote island off the coast of Wales and is centered around two main events, a dead whale washing ashore and a team of English researchers who have come to write a book about the island’s folklore and traditions.

From the first page I immediately felt like I was transported to the island. The language is simple but not a word goes to waste in building this gloomy yet homely atmosphere. O’Connor uses elements of nature - the rotting whale, migrating birds, mounting storms - to build tension and give you the sense that the land is bracing itself as the world closes in.

And what a profound protagonist - through Manod, I could feel the restlessness of being a young woman unsure of what the world holds but sure that she is ready for it. She noticeably matures throughout the book as she grapples with crossing the boundary to the mainland and into adulthood.

Manod attempts to create her own narrative as the ethnographers construct a literal narrative of her home, which is tinged with the exoticism typical of the documentation of ‘untouched’ foreign lands. O’Connor asks, how much of our understanding of the world is stained with this bias? And who ultimately gets to tell the story?

Overall a stunning read full of dignity, sorrow, and defiant hope. I would recommend this to anyone, but especially to those who enjoyed watching the Banshees of Inisherin last year! There were many similarities in terms of setting, mounting conflict both on and off the island and a strong, restless female character.

A good read, Id recommend this to anyone looking for a casual read that is good at keeping your attention.

poignant debut historical fiction novel which worked extremely well. the entire vibes of it were just?? great. and the sense of isolation. thanks for the arc.

Man vs. Ocean.. but it's really a Man vs. Man story. It's beautifully written and the story is great! It's not a typical read for me and took me longer than usual to finish it. Overall 4 stars!

Good book that is overall well written. Did not grab my attention, perhaps because it does not seem to be plot driven as much as immersive into person and circumstance—this particular book is just not quite a good fit for this reader., although Inwill be looking for future work.

Thank you to Netgalley and Knopf for an advanced reader copy of this novel.

This was my first Elizabeth O'Connor novel and I have a wonderful time reading it.

This is a short, poetic book about a young woman and her desire for a life outside of her remote Welsh Island.

Only about 50 individuals are hearty enough to rough the conditions and the population declines yearly. Islanders are secluded from news of the world (the time frame is just before WWII) and clothing is decades out of style.

A whale washes up on shore one day and the island folk gather to observe and deal with it in their unique way. Not long after, two ethnographers show up to study the lives of the islanders. Manod, who speaks English, works with the scientists translating the islanders’ Welsh. She is fascinated by the glimpse of life offered her through these two individuals and works out a plan to leave the island for the larger world outside.

The book unfolds through a collection of snapshots, blending Manod's journal entries with the ethnographers' perspectives and transcripts of islanders' folktales and songs.

Despite its subdued nature, the novel possesses a compelling force. It immerses readers in the characters' lives, their challenges, unrealized aspirations, the looming war, and the desolation of their limited choices. Devoting time to this book will undoubtedly be a rewarding experience for many readers.

A quiet but moving story about a girl living on an island rooted in tradition and folklore, and her dreams of moving to the mainland after meeting two writers.

I love quiet little stories like this where there isn’t a heavy amount of plot. This was more of a character study, and the author does a fantastic job at making it feel so real. For a debut novel, this is highly impressive and I found it so engaging despite the lack of action. The main character feels so relatable and the island is beautifully descriptive. Definitely recommend if you’re into slower stories about different ways of life.

Thank you to NetGalley and Knopf, Pantheon, Vintage, and Anchor for the ARC.

This was a beautiful book, unlike anything I had read before. Besides the gorgeous prose and the vignette-esque glimpses of these island characters, Whale Fall took me to a place I had never been nor knew existed.

The scenes were harsh yet cozy. The glimpses into the island inhabitants left me wanted more. I loved Manod, and her sharp knowledge—a sense of intellect that obviously outweighed her more "wordly" visitors.

This is one of the most atmospheric books I’ve ever read. I’m personally usually bored by setting/nature descriptions in books, but they were so vivid and purposeful here since the whole story depended on and centered around this remote island setting. Whale Fall offered interesting commentary on the practice of privileged outsiders from “modern society” traveling into a space that they deem “backwards” and “too traditional” and exploiting it, exoticizing it, overly romanticizing it in a way that’s baffling and offensive to the locals. Joan and Edward are two English people who travel to the island to write a book on its people, but they often fabricate details of these people’s lives to make them seem more appealing and exotic to the English audience of their book, using and manipulating the main character Manod along the way. At first she is dazzled by their opulence, the tales they tell her of life on the Mainland and the freedoms women have there, but she begins to feel protective and guarded of her people once Joan and Edward start romanticizing their way of life to the point that it’s more fiction than fact, taking advantage of Monad and the other locals physically, sexually, etc., while also exposing them to and recruiting them for “the Great War.” I found it very interesting to know that this story is based on real events with people fabricating the way of life of people in the British Isles, but I’m also not surprised. It was very frustrating to read Joan and Edward taking advantage of these people, but it did a good job pointing to the power and privilege that they held and their colonizing, imperialist attitudes; just leave these people alone!! I loved the scenery descriptions in this book, especially with the whale slowly rotting on the beach for the entirety of the story, which felt so reminiscent of Joan and Edward’s presence tainting the island. The interactions between Manod and her sister were also so caring and lovely, and I appreciate that Manod wasn’t hard on her for being a bone collecting, superstitious kid that does weird things sometimes. I was also a fan of the folktales interspersed throughout the story, and I almost would have liked more of them. I think that the explorations of Manod’s budding sexuality are intriguing, especially with her masturbating to the thought of Joan in one scene, but I almost would have liked a little more, especially if this is meant to suggest repressed queerness. It doesn’t seem that Manod particularly enjoyed having sex with men so much as she enjoyed having their attention, which she says herself at one point, suggesting comphet, but I think the story didn’t quite get that far, not that it has to. I also would have liked to understand Manod’s relationship with her father a little better because he didn’t have much of a character other than his occupation defining him. Overall, this was a very quick and enjoyable read that has such beautifully vivid descriptions that drip from the pages.

I enjoyed this book so much that I can’t believe it’s a debut! It is a short read that I took a while to finish, but the details are vivid enough to remember. I appreciated the author’s take on British colonialism and the ending she gave the main character, Manod, who was naive to start but hopeful and determined at the end.

WHALE FALL by Elizabeth O’Connor (a debut novel) is set in an unnamed Welsh island in 1938. Not long after a dead whale washes up on the shores (an ominous premonition?) two English ethnographers arrive with the purpose of studying the island culture and the people who populate it . Manod, an eighteen year old girl who lives in the island with her father and a younger sister, will act as interpreter since many of the islanders can only speak welsh. She will become a key figure in the ethnographers endeavor and this new role will make her feel empowered and useful, beyond what is expected of her and her daily tasks as a member of the community. But even more important, it will awaken in her the possibility of leaving the island.But reality and the human condition will prevail over her dreams.
The narration is fantastic and it is structured in fragments such as the ethnographers notes, with songs and folktales collected from the islanders, and the first person narration from Manod’s perspective. The prose is beautifully crafted and deeply lyrical with powerful imagery. You can feel the cold, the wind, the dampness in the air, the smells of a fishing island. And the carcass of the whale slowly rotting on the shore.
This book is brief and lovely and I highly recommend it.

Whale Fall by Elizabeth O'Connor was such a gem of a book and a joy to read. The prose is lovely and O'Connor really transports the reader to a remote Welsh island in the late 1930s.
We meet Manod who only knows life on the island, living with her father and taking care of her younger sister. Manod knows there is more to life than the island, and dreams of exploring it. Two things happen at the same time that threaten to disrupt life on the island, one is a dead whale washing up on shore, and the second is two English ethnographers arriving to study the people of the island.
They bring to light ideas of the mainland for Manod and also the thought of escape. This is a story of an awakening in Manod, of a young woman with a life ahead of her full of promise, balancing on trusting a fragile relationship with strangers that also threatens the entire island.
I really enjoyed that O'Connor managed to somehow make at once a detailed story, but at the same time, sparse like the island. I felt the cold ocean air, I felt being on the beach and watching the fisherman, I saw the inside of the house. Quite a stunning debut!

To say I absolutely adored this book feels like an understatement! It’s poetic, and beautifully written. Descriptive in a way that touched all my senses. I was able to ‘feel’ the wind, as well as taste and smell the salt, the sea and the decomposition of the whale and other sea life. This novel was part coming of age and sexual awakening, part mystery and of course touched on community on a small isolated island. I have to say though, my favorite aspect of this book was the Welsh and island folklore, with its touch of magical realism. Reminiscent of Alice Hoffman, one of my favorite authors; I would read the next Elizabeth O’Connor in a heart beat!
Thanks for the early read on this.

This is a stunning debut from an award-winning writer, about loss, isolation, folklore, and the joy and dissonance of finding oneself by exploring life outside one’s community. I loved Elizabeth's writing style, her focus on loneliness and community exploitation, and the beauty of our world and nature. It was such a unique topic, beautifully presented by the author. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

Whale Fall took me a minute to get into, but ended up being a poignant, thoughtful, and genuinely emotional look at what read to me as some sort of twisted colonialism. Elizabeth O'Connor writes heartbreak and loneliness with such subtle beauty and all of the vividness of the mind of a teenage girl. It's a very character-driven novel, and we've already admitted that I have a little bit of a soft spot for that compared to plot-driven novels, so keep that in mind.

It's short, soft, quiet, and will work your way into your heart. What a stunning debut novel! I've only docked a star because it was a little slow for me, and certain things just didn't gel 100%, but this is better considered a 4.5 rounded down.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for a review!

I loved the atmosphere of this novel. The prose was beautiful,as were the descriptions of the surroundings. The book was written in a style I don't usually like, but I wanted to find out more about what happens to the main character,so I read on, and so glad I did. A very beautiful book.

I read and absolutely adored "Whale Fall." Elizabeth's debut is spectacular: beautifully written, compelling, mysterious, seductive, etc. It's understandable why so many publishers were eager to acquire her debut. Readers who enjoyed "The Light Between Oceans" will ADORE this book.

"The island that's in your head. I don't think it exists."

When you first meet Manod, you understand that you're in the head of a young adult who is so very bored with her own life, slightly out of sync with the world around her. She is intelligent and living in a fog of monotony.

As the story progresses, you feel the fog slip away. First through interest, then through slow building anger and indignation. And you get angry and indignant with her.

This novel is superb. Very little actually happens, but I was engaged throughout. It is largely written as Manod's stream of conscious, with semi-chronological vignettes, and occasional flashbacks. Time is nebulous.

At times, particularly earlier on, it has the cadence of a horror story. At no point would it feel especially out of place for a Lovecraftian horror to emerge from the sea. It creates a very interesting sort of tension. The sea looms, the whale looms, the researchers loom.

This one might require a reread or two to fully absorb. Fantastic debut.

ARC provided by NetGalley.

What a haunting little novel. I felt for this protagonist so much. Conveyed the desolation and harm of isolated living and cultures colliding.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the digital ARC.

Whale Fall is the stunning debut novel from Elizabeth O'Connor. Its not a long book at just 224 pages, but it sure does pack a punch. I really enjoyed this one, its thoughtful and heartfelt.