Wayne Johnston Boeken

In Het huis van Baltimore keert Johnston in gedachten terug naar zijn geboortegrond, naar het leven van zijn vader en grootvader en hun relatie met Newfoundland.

Het is geen wonder dat Devlin Stead op Newfoundland opgroeit als een eenzaam, in zichzelf gekeerd kind. Als hij vijf is gaat zijn vader mee met een expeditie naar Groenland en komt nooit meer terug. Zijn moeder sterft onder geheimzinnige omstandigheden. Later ontdekt Devlin dat dr. Frederick Cook, die indertijd met dezelfde expeditie naar Groenland reisde, zijn echte vader is. Devlin vertrekt naar het explosief groeiende New York om Cook te ontmoeten. Deze nodigt Devlin uit om hem te helpen bij zijn poging om zijn rivaal Robert Peary te verslaan in 'the greatest prize of all', de race naar de Noordpool. Op die tocht krijgt Devlin beetje bij beetje de antwoorden op de vragen die zijn leven hebben beheerst.

De wilde geschiedenis van het ondoorgrondelijke Newfoundland en een al even ondoorgrondelijke liefde. Joe Smallwood is de oudste uit een gezin van dertien kinderen. Met ijzeren wilskracht werkt hij zich boven de armoede uit. Hij jaagt op zeehonden, gaat in de journalistiek en brengt het tot politiek leider van Newfoundland. Een ontmoeting met Sheilagh Fielding, een oude schoolvriendin, brengt het verleden terug. Fielding heeft naam gemaakt als een scherp columniste en ze spaart ook Smallwood niet in haar venijnige commentaren. Maar de twee delen geheimen, onuitspreekbare ervaringen en een liefde die diep is, maar gedoemd is te mislukken.

De negenjarige Draper Doyle Ryan is ijshockeyfanaat en heeft drie maanden geleden zijn vader verloren. Hij woont sindsdien met zijn moeder en zus bij zijn tirannieke tante Phil. Vanuit zijn slaapkamerraam staart Draper regelmatig naar zijn voormalige ouderlijk huis. En daar ziet hij ’s avonds achter het verlichte keukenraam zijn vader verschijnen met een puck in zijn hand. Uiteraard wil niemand hem geloven. Behalve oom Reg, het zwarte schaap en de enige humorist van de familie, met wie Draper Doyle een hechte band ontwikkelt.

For Bill, the end has always been in view. His life has seen a series of unlikely extensions. When he was young, he hated his father and contemplated suicide. Later in his life he was diagnosed with leukemia and expected to die within months. Bill's childhood was spent on a communal evangelical mission, but eventually Bill began to question his parents' strict religious beliefs. His father reacted with violence and Bill felt trapped between the dishonesty of trying to conform to his parents' beliefs and the conviction that he was doomed to hell for questioning them. Eventually he provokes his father into a confrontation that leads to an outcome that redefines their relationship and alters the course of both of their lives. By midlife, Bill has been married for twenty years and has his own family. The challenges he has faced at sea as chief engineer on tugboats have helped him heal. His thoughts of suicide have faded. His father's recent descent into Alzheimer's Disease has created an avenue for the reconciliation the two have worked on for years. Then, unexpectedly, a story emerges about his father, involving his sister, and Bill is confronted once again with the dark side of his father's personality.

"Wayne Johnston's family -- his mother, father, and three brothers -- were always on the move. The year he turned eight, the most memorable year of an unusual childhood, they found themselves occupying a wreck of a house in the community his mother Jennie was from: Goulds, Newfoundland was not so much a place as a scattering of homes along an unpaved road. Everyone knew him as "Jennie's boy," and his tiny, ferocious mother felt judged for Wayne's sickly, skinny condition -- he had to spend much of his time in a bed on wheels that was moved from room to room. While his brothers went off to school, Wayne passed his days with his witty, eccentric maternal grandmother, Lucy, whose son Leonard had died at the age of seven and whose photo stood alongside a statue of the Blessed Virgin. Jennie's Boy recalls a boyhood full of pain, laughter, tenderness, and the kind of wit for which Newfoundlanders are known. By that wit, and by their love for each other -- so often expressed in the most unloving ways -- he, and they, survived" -- Provided by publisher

The book explores themes of resilience and personal growth through the journey of its protagonist, who faces significant challenges and transformations. Readers are drawn into a compelling narrative that combines emotional depth with relatable experiences. The characters are vividly portrayed, each contributing to the overarching message of hope and perseverance. With a gripping plot that keeps the audience engaged, the story resonates with anyone seeking inspiration and motivation in their own lives.

Set against the backdrop of World War II, the story follows Sheilagh Fielding, a tall and striking woman navigating life on a deserted Newfoundland island. With a crippled leg and a sharp wit, she has made enemies through her revealing newspaper columns about St. John's society. The mysterious figure known as her Provider has shadowed her for two decades, holding the key to her secrets. The narrative explores themes of power, vulnerability, and resilience in a historical context, making Fielding a compelling and complex character.

At the centre of THE NAVIGATOR OF NEW YORK is the rivalry between Robert Peary and Frederick Cook to be the first American to reach the North Pole. Its protagonist, however, is Devlin Stead, a young man from St John's, Newfoundland. Devlin's mother dies, in mysterious circumstances, when he is only five, and he endures a lonely childhood before discovering the truth about his parentage. That discovery transforms his life- he finds his true father and embarks on a journey of unbelievable risk. His adventure brings him celebrity, acclaim from New York 'society', real love, and finally the truth about the bitter feud between two strange, driven men.

In this beloved, bestselling novel which has been unavailable for some time, young Draper Doyle Ryan tries to come to terms with the mysterious death of his father as he struggles, in touching, comic fashion, with budding adolescence and the strange demands of his proudly eccentric family. When first published in 1990, The Divine Ryans received unanimous critical praise and won the Thomas Raddall Atlantic Fiction Award; Wayne Johnston himself was hailed as one of Canada's most distinctive comic talents.