Frank Fernandez, narrator of this fishing yarn, is only 22 when he returns to South Africa from an American university where he has had a swimming scholarship. He comes of a long line of Portuguese fishermen: “Coastal people, generations born next to the sea, practising devoutness and learning the trick of stoicism.”
Deeply troubled by the death of his girlfriend and his brother, he still clings to the ideal of swimming in the next Olympics, but in the meantime he takes job with a small Greek fishing company in Kalk Bay. His companion and boss, Nikos, or Nick, is the son of the company owner; this rambunctious character, violent and affectionate, is at the centre of this tale of corruption and greed in the South African fishing industry.
The story is set in Kalk Bay and along the coast, where Frank and Nick plus crew first fish from a dinghy and then from an ancient trawler of dubious origins, full of bad luck.
Frank has had a Catholic upbringing and in his reflections on his new life and the fishing community around him, from the black handlangers to the local coloured fishermen and the Greek owners, he questions the accepted wisdom and superstitions of all the varieties of faith among the crews. He claims to trust in Poseidon for whom he pours libations of Cape reds over the side. He also delights in getting to know the Greek community and language, drawing parallels between those ancient seafarers and the local fisher folk.
This highly unusual novel, narrated with the cynical pessimism of an old-style murder detective who has seen it all and knows what’s coming next, is written with considerable elegance. The Greek community is rendered with affectionate humour, a certain dry machismo, notwithstanding that a couple of the Greek characters are conniving bastards who couldn’t care less who drowns so long as they get their money.
Despite the often serious subject matter, this is a light and entertaining read and it is easy to forgive the odd inconsistency such as attributing to Nick both ignorance and erudition. For example, he is said not to able to understand the terms “analysis” and “paralysis”, but then elucidates the four different forms of the Greek language.
Morrison’s Jetty is Theron’s first novel, and he is a welcome addition to the South African literary scene.