A Bridge to Wiseman's Cove
![]() | |
Author | James Moloney |
---|---|
Language | English |
Genre | Young adult novel |
Published | 1996 (UQP) |
Publication place | Australia |
A Bridge to Wiseman's Cove (1996) is a novel by Australian author James Moloney. The novel features the life of a 15-year-old boy, Carl Matt, and his dysfunctional family, who begin to suffer from physical and emotional problems after his mother's disappearance.
Plot summary
When Carl Matt's mother, Kerry Matt, disappears, his sister Sarah sends him and his brother Harley to Wattle Beach to live with their Aunt Beryl. Aunt Beryl doesn't want them to stay with her and after numerous encounters with the police she says Carl has to get a job to pay his Aunt. He later is rejected. He learns this is because his grandfather had an accident that crippled Skip for life, and accidentally killed his son. After some consideration, Skip reluctantly lets Carl work on a barge.
After numerous events that boost the popularity of Skip's barge, it is eventually revealed that a bridge will be built and therefore put all barges out of business.
In the end, it is discovered that Kerry Matt died in a bus accident when she was trying to get home to her children, Sarah, Harley and Carl. Once this is unearthed, Carl returns home to find that Aunt Beryl has run off in true Matt spirit to join her boyfriend, Bruce. Because Carl has nowhere else to stay, Joy Duncan invites him to come and live with them at Wiseman's Cove with his brother, Harley, who has already claimed the Duncans as his surrogate family.
Characters
Carl Matt - Carl Matt is the protagonist of "A Bridge to Wiseman's Cove". Carl is 15 years of age and is described as a low self-esteemed child. He is the second eldest of the three Matt siblings (Sarah, Carl and Harley). Carl's mother, Kerry, abandons him and his two other siblings. This makes Carl feel neglected and at the same time worried for his mother's well-being as she is nowhere to be found. Throughout the story, Carl struggles through many obstacles; however, with the help of his new friends soon to meet, he is able to grow and become more confident about himself and towards others. He struggles to find friends in this vast ocean of bodies. He is also described as having a large, cumbersome body, largely due to his addiction to eating buckets of fudge hand over fist. In the novel he is described as constantly eating fudge and waffles, to the point that a new barge has to be built to carry the food he is consuming.
Kerry Matt - Kerry Matt is the mother of the main protagonist, Carl. She is also the mother of Sarah, (Carl's older Sister) and Harley, (Carl's younger brother). Throughout the novel, it is said that Kerry is known for going on what her children call 'holidays'. In her last 'holiday', she does not come back. It is revealed that she had three different male partners in her lifetime, and struggled meeting ends as a single mother.
Sarah Matt - Carl and Harley's older sister is Sarah, who had become accustomed to taking care of them during Kerry's 'holidays'. After some time of caring for Carl and Harley, she too left to go her own holiday in which she doesn't return.
Harley Matt - Little brother of Carl and Sarah, who spends most his time outside on his bike, unless he is called to eat.
Skip Duncan - Owner of the barge Carl works on and husband to Joy. Skip initially is reluctant to hire Carl as he is a Matt, but begins to trust and eventually rely on him. Skip is bossy and stubborn and earns little income from his business of ferrying cars across the cove.[1]
Joy Duncan - Joy is Skip's wife. In the novel, she is portrayed to be a kind, loving motherly figure. Although her son had died because of Carl's grandfather, she had showed little contempt towards him, and eventually adopted Carl and Harley into the Duncan household.
Beryl Matt - Beryl Matt is Carl Matt's aunt, who is an alcoholic, smoking gambler with a rough personality who is forced to care for Carl and Harley. She only took them under her wing due to the welfare payment which had been redirected to her address, and forced Carl out of school to be employed in order for them to remain in the household.
Bruce Trelfo - Bruce is the Boyfriend of Beryl Matt, runs a towing service on Wattle Beach, and is revealed near the end of the story to be holding shares in the Wattle Lady. He is shown to be a dodgy character, willing to take advantage of customers whenever necessary.
Justine Ivanov - The best friend of Maddie Duncan, and later the girlfriend of Carl Matt, is a queen at making pizza [2]
Maddie Duncan - The daughter of Skip and Joy Duncan. When Carl first arrives on Wattle Beach, he immediately falls in love with her, and later becomes a family friend.
Nathan Trelfo - Maddie Duncan's boyfriend (whom she starts to hate after the arrival of Carl in the Wattle Beach), brother of Bruce Trelfo, does not like Carl Matt.
Nugent- Shopkeeper in Wattle Beach, does not like Harley for stealing sweets from his shop
References
External links
- A Bridge to Wiseman's Cove questions
- A Bridge to Wiseman's Cove book preview
- v
- t
- e
- The Story of Karrawingi the Emu by Leslie Rees (1946)
- Shackleton's Argonauts: A Saga of the Antarctic Icepacks by Frank Hurley (1948)
- Whalers of the Midnight Sun by Alan Villiers (1950)
- Verity of Sydney Town by Ruth C. Williams (1951)
- The Australia Book by Eve Pownall (1952)
- Aircraft of Today and Tomorrow by James H. Martin & W. D. Martin (1953)
- Good Luck to the Rider by Joan Phipson (1953)
- Australian Legendary Tales by K. Langloh Parker (1954)
- The First Walkabout by Norman B. Tindale and Harold Arthur Lindsay (1955)
- The Crooked Snake by Patricia Wrightson (1956)
- The Boomerang Book of Legendary Tales edited by Enid Moodie Heddle (1957)
- Tiger in the Bush by Nan Chauncy (1958)
- Devil's Hill by Nan Chauncy (1959)
- Sea Menace by John Gunn (1959)
- All the Proud Tribesmen by Kylie Tennant (1960)
- Tangara by Nan Chauncy (1961)
- The Racketty Street Gang by L. H. Evers (1962)
- Rafferty Rides a Winner by Joan Woodberry (1962)
- The Family Conspiracy by Joan Phipson (1963)
- The Green Laurel by Eleanor Spence (1964)
- Pastures of the Blue Crane by H. F. Brinsmead (1965)
- Ash Road by Ivan Southall (1966)
- The Min-Min by Mavis Thorpe Clark (1967)
- To the Wild Sky by Ivan Southall (1968)
- When Jays Fly to Barbmo by Margaret Balderson (1969)
- Uhu by Annette Macarthur-Onslow (1970)
- Bread and Honey by Ivan Southall (1971)
- Longtime Passing by H. F. Brinsmead (1972)
- Family at the Lookout by Noreen Shelley (1973)
- The Nargun and the Stars by Patricia Wrightson (1974)
- Fly West by Ivan Southall (1976)
- The October Child by Eleanor Spence (1977)
- The Ice is Coming by Patricia Wrightson (1978)
- The Plum-Rain Scroll by Ruth Manly (1979)
- Displaced Person by Lee Harding (1980)
- Playing Beatie Bow by Ruth Park (1981)
- The Valley Between by Colin Thiele (1982)
- Master of the Grove by Victor Kelleher (1983)
- A Little Fear by Patricia Wrightson (1984)
- The True Story of Lilli Stubeck by James Aldridge (1985)
- The Green Wind by Thurley Fowler (1986)
- All We Know by Simon French (1987)
- So Much to Tell You by John Marsden (1988)
- Beyond the Labyrinth by Gillian Rubinstein (1989)
- Came Back to Show You I Could Fly by Robin Klein (1990)
- Strange Objects by Gary Crew (1991)
- The House Guest by Eleanor Nilsson (1992)
- Looking for Alibrandi by Melina Marchetta (1993)
- The Gathering by Isobelle Carmody (1994)
- Angel's Gate by Gary Crew (1995)
- Foxspell by Gillian Rubinstein (1995)
- Pagan's Vows by Catherine Jinks (1996)
- A Bridge to Wiseman's Cove by James Moloney (1997)
- Eye to Eye by Catherine Jinks (1998)
- Deadly, Unna? by Phillip Gwynne (1999)
- 48 Shades of Brown by Nick Earls (2000)
- Wolf on the Fold by Judith Clarke (2001)
- Forest by Sonya Hartnett (2002)
- The Messenger by Markus Zusak (2003)
- Saving Francesca by Melina Marchetta (2004)
- The Running Man by Michael Gerard Bauer (2005)
- The Story of Tom Brennan by J. C. Burke (2006)
- Red Spikes by Margo Lanagan (2007)
- The Ghost's Child by Sonya Hartnett (2008)
- Tales from Outer Suburbia by Shaun Tan (2009)
- Jarvis 24 by David Metzenthen (2010)
- The Midnight Zoo by Sonya Hartnett (2011)
- The Dead I Know by Scot Gardner (2012)
- Sea Hearts by Margo Lanagan (2013)
- Wildlife by Fiona Wood (2014)
- The Protected by Claire Zorn (2015)
- Cloudwish by Fiona Wood (2016)
- One Would Think The Deep by Claire Zorn (2017)
- Take Three Girls by Cath Crowley, Fiona Wood And Simmone Howell (2018)
- Between Us by Clare Atkins (2019)
- This is How We Change the Ending by Vikki Wakefield (2020)
- The End of the World Is Bigger than Love by Davina Bell (2021)
- Tiger Daughter by Rebecca Lim (2022)
- Neverlanders by Tom Taylor (2023)
- Grace Notes by Karen Comer (2024)
- Picture Book (1955–present)
- Early Childhood (2001–present)
- Younger Readers (1982–present)
- Eve Pownall Award for Information Books (1988–present)