Book Review: The Boat Runner

During a recent visit to the Good Neighbor Bookstore, I picked up The Boat Runner by Devin Murphy. This was based on the recommendation of the owner, Bob. I found the book to be a thought-provoking and enjoyable read. The setting is Germany occupied Holland during World War II. It focuses on the decisions the inhabitants must make in order to survive physically and morally.

The Boat Runner focuses on the Koopman family and specifically one son, Jacob. The beginning of the book places the Koopman family in 1939 Delfzijl, Holland. Delfzijl is a fishing village on the northern coast of Holland. The father owns a lightbulb factory in the town and his largest customer happens to be the Germans.

As Nazi aggression ramps up, the different family members and town inhabitants must make decisions to aid in their survival. For some, this means aligning with the Nazis and for others, it means resisting. All decisions have consequences.

Because of events early in the book, Jacob waffles between allegiances. He struggles to find his way. However, the horrors of war help to crystallize his path forward. But this is not before he makes some grave mistakes, at least in my opinion.

All in all, I found the story interesting. It has been interesting to examine my values along the way. I could not help but place myself in the same situation and wonder what I would have done.

The Boat Runner as you can imagine emphasized sea and river travel as well as naval warfare. I gravitated to this because my grandfather was a canal boat captain during WWII. As I have come to understand my family history, he moved supplies for the Germans. The Allies bombed his boat about four or five times during the war.

Choosing an alliance can be a slippery slope. At the time, one believes they are doing the right thing.

One part I believe was unnecessary for the storyline was a couple of gratuitous sex references. It did not help the story and sullied the story.

Otherwise, I found The Boat Runner worth reading.

File:U-boat Warfare 1939-1945 A28677.jpg. (2017, October 24). Wikimedia Commons, the free media repository. Retrieved 21:40, May 26, 2019 from https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?title=File:U-boat_Warfare_1939-1945_A28677.jpg&oldid=264275345.

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