Seascraper
As seen:
By Benjamin Wood
avg rating
4 reviews
LONGLISTED FOR THE BOOKER PRIZE 2025
WINNER OF THE NERO BOOK AWARDS 2025
WINNER OF THE WINSTON GRAHAM HISTORICAL PRIZE 2026
SHORTLISTED FOR THE WALTER SCOTT PRIZE FOR HISTORICAL FICTION 2026
‘A huge talent’ HILARY MANTEL
‘A magnificent writer’ DOUGLAS STUART
‘One of the finest novelists of his generation’ THE TIMES
Thomas lives a slow, deliberate life with his mother in Longferry, working his grandpa’s trade as a shanker. He rises early to take his horse and cart to the grey, gloomy beach to scrape for shrimp; spending the rest of the day selling his wares, trying to wash away the salt and scum, pining for Joan Wyeth down the street and rehearsing songs on his guitar. At heart, he is a folk musician, but it remains a private dream.
When a striking visitor turns up, bringing the promise of Hollywood glamour, Thomas is shaken from the drudgery of his days and begins to see a different future. But how much of what the American claims is true, and how far can his inspiration carry Thomas?
Haunting and timeless, this is the story of a young man hemmed in by his circumstances, striving to achieve fulfilment far beyond the world he knows.
MORE PRAISE FOR SEASCRAPER:
‘A book about dreams, an exploration of class and family, a celebration of the power and the glory of music, a challenge to the limits of realism, and – stunningly – a love story’ BOOKER PRIZE 2025 JUDGES
’It’s a senuous treat, this novel . . . A language of the sea washes over every page’ ROSS RAISIN
‘A tale so richly atmospheric you can almost taste the tang of brine and inhale the sea fog . . . [Wood] transforms the quotidian into the poetic, making the exactitude of each task sing on the page’ GUARDIAN
‘Wood is up there with the very best. He packs more poetry into his opening paragraph than many a Booker-winner achieves in their entire oeuvre’ JOHANNA THOMAS-CORR, THE TIMES
‘Seascraper shimmers, salt-flecked and rippling’ SPECTATOR
TweetReviews
Seascraper took me a while to get into due to the fishing element not necessarily being in my interest, but a solid book in regards to writing structure tone of the book starts very low due to his trade, but the book should naturally pick up in the latter parts solid read so far in my opinion.
I took a while to get into the story. The author has done a wonderful job of setting the story about Tom the main character in this story and his life as a fisherman who has carried on his grandfather work of catching shrimp. Edgar was an interesting character who came to town to try and create a film. He pays Tom to take him out to sea and has ambitions to make a new film.
Tom likes to read and play guitar which he plays in secret. Sad that Edgar has to stop trying to create his film due to finanacial issues and his mother comes to collect him. Felt sorry for Edgar’s mother having to explain that Edgar has mental health issues and the fact that he spent his inheritance trying to make films which he has not finished.
Loved the way Tom and Edgar are quite friendly in the story and Edgar encourages Tom to pursue his dreams of meeting with Joan his and to play his guitar and sing. After what has happened to Edgar, Tom has to drive his car back to Edgar’s home and he needs Joan brothers help to drive the car. Tom and Joan get close when Tom plays her brothers guitar and sings. Edgar.s influence has helped Tom to become more confident. I thought the plot to this story was good and loved the way the characters were developed. It really brought the story to life
A deceptively simple book. Well written with beautifully drawn characters. What do you do when your whole life has been mapped out for you? This novel deals with this idea. A great plot twist at the end of the novel.
A beautiful, atmospheric and poignant story full of thoughtful details about the sea, the characters,the places - everything really, that bring the book to life in a quiet, gentle way. Enjoyable but also sad yet ultimately quite hopeful. A lovely, nuanced historical tale set over 2 days in a young shrimp fisher's life.
