Nation

By Terry Pratchett

1. Bibliography

Pratchett, Terry. 2008. Nation. New York: HarperCollins. ISBN 9780061433030.

2. Plot Summary

Nation is a coming of age story about a boy, Mau, and a girl, Daphne that are brought together through an unfortunate situation.  Mau was on a nearby island completing a rite of passage in order to become a man when he notices a change in the surrounding waters.  Mau travels home through rough seas only to find that the entire population of his island, called Nation, has been wiped out by a gigantic wave.  Daphne is a young lady from England, who was traveling on a ship through the Great Southern Pelagic Ocean in order to go live with her father.  Daphne’s father was sent to Rogation Sunday Island to act as its governor for England.  Daphne’s ship is shipwrecked in the same storm and by the same wave that wiped out Mau’s people.  She soon learns she is the only survivor of her ship and discovers that she is not alone on the island. 

Daphne and Mau form a bond of friendship and learn to communicate through hand motions and pictures until survivors from other islands come seeking refuge.  A few of the survivors can speak some English and help Daphne communicate.  Throughout the story Mau struggles with the fact that he is a boy because he never completed his rite of passage and is still trying to make sense of the death of his people and why the God that his people worshipped did not protect them.  Daphne is struggling to survive and to let go of the rules and propriety that her grandmother drilled into her and the fact that she may never make it back home.  Together Mau and Daphne face many problems from birthing a baby to fighting off cannibals and pirates. Through a series of life changing events Mau becomes a chief to the survivors of the wave and Daphne becomes a healer. They come to the realization that the traditions and rules of their people do not define them and become stronger, smarter, and braver then they ever thought they could be. 

3. Critical Analysis

Nation is a coming of age tale about two people that come together through tragedy in order to survive and rebuild a civilization.  The story takes place in a parallel world that resembles our own in a time period that is similar to our 19^th Century.  The author Terry Pratchett uses the main characters Mau and Daphne to relay themes of loss, growing up, and rebellion against the norms of society and religion.  Mau is a boy that is in the process of completing the rituals of his people in order to become a man, when tragedy strikes.  Mau is on a neighboring island when he realizes something isn’t right and returns home to his island only to find that a giant wave wiped out all of his people.  The other main character, Daphne is a proper English girl who is traveling on a ship in order to go and live with her father when the wave hits.  Daphne soon finds out she is the only survivor and is shipwrecked on the island called Nation.  Mau and Daphne form a bond born out of the need to survive and a need for company. 

Throughout the book Mau and Daphne face many challenges together and break free of the norms of their societies.  Mau’s people have many religious traditions and rituals and Mau is constantly plagued by a need to uphold them.   Daphne comes from a wealthy English family where women are raised to be prim and proper and their sole purpose is to marry and have children.   In the aftermath of the wave, refugees from neighboring islands arrive on the island of Nation seeking shelter.  Mau and Daphne begin to find themselves and take on new roles as a leader and healer in order to do what it takes to help the people and rebuild the civilization.  Daphne delivers a baby, amputates a leg, and even poisons a man for the good of the Nation.  Mau nurses a wild hog in order to find milk for a baby, saves a man from a shark, and acts as both a protector fighting off pirates and a guide for his people.  All of these experiences slowly heal Mau’s broken heart and lesson Daphne’s fear of never returning home.  The two of them not only rebuild a civilization they rebuild themselves.

Terry Pratchett uses stylistic elements such as humor and thought provoking dialogue to make the reader question what is really important to a civilization.  Throughout the book you learn that in addition to basic needs, freedom to be ones self and knowledge and learning are necessary elements for a civilization to thrive.  This book has the right balance of humor, adventure, and self discovery to make it a favorite among teens.  It is a great read and because of its complex themes and vocabulary I recommend it for students ages 13 and up. 

4. Review Excerpts

Michael L. Printz Honor Book 2009

ALA Notable Children’s Book 2009

ALA Top 10 Best Book for Young Adults 2009

ALA Booklist Editors’ Choice Book 2008

Kirkus Reviews Best Young Adult Book

Chivago Public Library Best of the Best

School Library Journal Best Book

Kirkus Review Best Children’s book

Bulletin Blue Ribbon

Publishers Weekly Best Book

Booklist Starred Review- “Somewhere in the South Pelagic Ocean,” a tidal wave wipes out the population of a small island—except for Mau, who was paddling his dugout canoe home after a month spent alone, preparing to become a man. The wave also sweeps a sailing ship carrying Daphne, an English girl, up onto the island and deposits it in the rain forest, where Mau finds her. Over the months that follow, they learn to communicate while welcoming more people to their shores and building a community of survivors. Mau searches for the meaning behind his people’s gods, while Daphne applies her nineteenth-century knowledge of science and history to the many puzzles she discovers in this unfamiliar place. Broad in its scope and concrete in its details, this unusual novel strips away the trappings of two very different nations to consider what it is people value and why. Certain scenes are indelible: Mau’s nonverbal communication to Daphne that a pregnant woman has landed, and she must help with the birth; or the terrifying yet awesome descent into a cave. Quirky wit and broad vision make this a fascinating survival story on many levels. Grades 7-10. --Carolyn Phelan

Kirkus Starred Review-“A searching exploration of good and evil, fate and free will, both as broad and as deep as anything this brilliant author has produced so far. ”

Publishers Weekly Starred Review-“Neatly balancing the somber and the wildly humorous in a riveting tale of discovery, Pratchett shows himself at the height of his powers.”

New York Times Review-“A wonderful story, by turns harrowing and triumphant.”

Horn Book Starred Review-“It is hard to imagine a reader who won’t feel welcomed into this nation.”

Booklist Starred Review-“Quirky wit and broad vision make this a fascinating survival story on many levels.”

School Library Journal Starred Review-“A rich and thought-provoking read.”

5. Connections  

What would you do if you found that you were shipwrecked on an island with a native from the island who didn’t speak English?  How might you communicate?  What survival skills would you use to survive in the wild?  Share and example of what you, as the teacher or  librarian, might do in this situation.  Then have the students write a one page paper about the prompt and share there thoughts with a partner. 

Read other books by Terry Pratchett and discuss common themes.  Many of these books are from Terry Pratchett’s Discworld series.

A Hat Full of Sky: The Continuing Adventures of Tiffany Aching and the Wee Free Men by Terry Pratchett ISBN: 9780060586621

Night Watch by Terry Pratchett ISBN: 9780613673426

I Shall Wear Midnight by Terry Pratchett ISBN: 9780061433047

Truckers by Terry Pratchett ISBN: 9780552551007

The Wee Free Men by Terry Pratchett ISBN: 9780060012380

Wintersmith by Terry Pratchett ISBN: 9780060890339

In the book Nation, Terry Pratchett bases his fantasy world off of our world.  Though there is no island called Nation, The Great Southern Pelagic Ocean Islands in the book are based off of the islands in the South Pacific Ocean.  Research and learn more about the islands in our South Pacific near Australia and New Zealand.  Have the students each pick and island and make a poster showing facts about it.

Here are a few websites that tell more information about the history of the islands in the South Pacific.

http://www.historyworld.net/wrldhis/PlainTextHistories.asp?historyid=ac05

http://www.ck/

http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0107975.html

http://gohawaii.about.com/od/south-pacific/a/south-pacific-101.htm

http://www.suite101.com/southpacifichistory