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Tim Winton
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Breath Kindle Edition

by Tim Winton (Author) Format: Kindle Edition
4.2 out of 5 stars 3,199 ratings

THE NUMBER ONE BESTSELLER - Winner of the Miles Franklin Literary Award 2009

When paramedic Bruce Pike is called out to deal with another teenage adventure gone wrong, he knows better than his partner - better than the parents - what happened and how. Thirty years before, that dead boy could have been him.

'It's unlikely Winton has ever written as well as he writes in Breath... Its seeming simplicity is deceptive, for beneath its pared-back surfaces lies all the steel of a major novelist operating at full throttle in a territory he has spent 25 years making his own.'
James Bradley, THE AGE

'A novelist who, to a peerless degree, has learnt how to do it...Breath seems to cut through everything, and to speak with unusual honesty.'
Philip Hensher, SPECTATOR

'An absorbing, powerful and deeply beautiful novel, a meditation on surfing which becomes a rumination about the very stuff of existence.'
Helen Gordon, THE OBSERVER

'This brilliant book may well turn out to be the finest thing that Winton has done.'
Andrew Riemer, SYDNEY MORNING HERALD

'Breath is about moving out of your depth, getting in over your head, having your soul damaged beyond repair ...But against all this pointless sorrow, there remains the evanescent beauty of the world, and Winton matches that with limitlessly beautiful prose.'
Carolyn See, WASHINGTON POST

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  1. Print length
    192 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    Penguin eBooks
  4. Accessibility
    Learn more
  5. Publication date
    14 September 2012
  6. File size
    1.6 MB
  7. Page Flip
    Enabled
  8. Word Wise
    Enabled
  9. Enhanced typesetting
    Enabled
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Product description

Review

"Darkly exhilarating." -- The New York Times Book Review

"This slender book packs an emotional wallop... Winton is well-known in Australia and should be here." -- Publishers Weekly

"Winton is pitch perfect in capturing (but not exploiting) adolescent angst, and he describes surfing and the sea so thrillingly that even non-swimmers will want to plunge right in." -- Library Journal

"The new novel from the twice "Booker" shortlisted author. Bruce Pike has always been forbidden to go down to the beach but when he meets Loonie, the local wild boy, he defies his parents and discovers the wild joys of surfing and an erotic current that he can't resist. An absorbing, powerful and deeply beautiful novel." -- The Observer

"Tender, incisive, sometimes brutal and always moving coming-of-age novel." -- The Seattle Times

"This aptly titled novel knocks the breath out of the listener as it recounts a youth's daredevil surfing exploits, evoking the fragile balance between life and death. Paramedic Bruce Pike looks back in this coming-of-age story of his thrill-seeking youth in 1970s Australia. He and his friend, Loonie, meet a charismatic surfing legend named Sando, who mentors them in the science and art of surfing, and drives them to more and more reckless behavior. Dan Wyllie delivers an easily understandable Australian accent and shifts subtly between tentative teen and jaded adult. Wyllie's delivery of Winton's vivid descriptions is mesmerizing, and he ably conveys the image of breath as a metaphor throughout the story. This compelling novel may entice the listener to seek out the well-known Australian author's many other works." -- AudioFile Magazine

"Tim Winton's newest novel offers an irresistible taste of oceanic communion." -- Los Angeles Times

"Winton's latest novel is both a hymn to the beauty of flying on water and a sober assessment of the costs of losing one's balance, in every sense of the word." -- The New Yorker

About the Author

Tim Winton has published twenty-six books for adults and children, and his work has been translated into twenty-eight languages. Since his first novel, An Open Swimmer, won the Australian Vogel Award in 1981, he has won the Miles Franklin Award four times (for Shallows,Cloudstreet, Dirt Music and Breath) and twice been shortlisted for the Booker Prize (for The Riders and Dirt Music). He lives in Western Australia.

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Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B009AO1Z10
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Penguin eBooks
  • Accessibility ‏ : ‎ Learn more
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ 14 September 2012
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 1.6 MB
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 192 pages
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1742536996
  • Page Flip ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.2 out of 5 stars 3,199 ratings

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Tim Winton

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Customer reviews

4.2 out of 5 stars
3,199 global ratings

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Customers say

Customers find the book beautiful and well-written, with one review highlighting its brilliant surfing descriptions. The story quality receives mixed reactions, with some customers enjoying it while others find it bizarre.

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ReadabilityWriting qualityStory quality
18 customers mention ‘Readability’18 positive0 negative

Customers find the book beautiful and an awesome read, with one customer noting its breathtaking familiarity.

"...Written by an accomplished surfer, this is an unforgettable read. The surfing descriptions are brilliant." Read more

"I’ve just read Breath after seeing the movie. I enjoyed both very much. Reading the book gave the movie more depth...." Read more

"...open this book up at any page, and there will be some of the best prose I’ve read...." Read more

"An enjoyable read, but quite disturbing in its portrayal of the human condition- somewhat pessimistic in how it plays out." Read more

12 customers mention ‘Writing quality’12 positive0 negative

Customers praise the writing quality of the book, with one customer highlighting its brilliant surfing descriptions and another noting its perceptive and laid-back prose style.

"...Written by an accomplished surfer, this is an unforgettable read. The surfing descriptions are brilliant." Read more

"...Short succinct sentences through which you find a character, either their physicality or their soul...." Read more

"...Tim has a style that is easy to read and the characters become real very quickly...." Read more

"Love Tim Winton's writing although I seldom love his characters. This book was no exception!..." Read more

9 customers mention ‘Story quality’6 positive3 negative

Customers have mixed opinions about the story quality of the book, with some finding it great while others note that it takes a weird turn near the end.

"...An interesting tale of life in WA and pitting oneself against nature. I will read further books to get a better handle on the writer's mindset." Read more

"...This is an epic coming of age saga which evokes everything about a small coastal town in Australia: the brisk sea air, the odd-balls wandering down..." Read more

"...Took a weird turn near the end which I found totally unnecessary. Fifty Shades weird. Give me Cloud Street anytime." Read more

"...too much about feelings, padding the story out, but a great story all about people I'm glad I read it." Read more

Thin story, great writing
3 out of 5 stars
Thin story, great writing
I enjoy reading Tim’s writing, his expression, his innovative lack of dialogue hyphenation marks, and most of his storylines. This one I didn’t find particularly interesting, both the story and the characters, but it may be just me. I might need to watch the movie instead!
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Top reviews from Australia

  • Frank Moore
    5.0 out of 5 stars Australia's 'coming of age' story!
    Reviewed in Australia on 31 August 2024
    Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase
    This is our version of 'Catcher in the Rye'. Sando and Eva initiate Loony and Pikelet into their adult world. Written by an accomplished surfer, this is an unforgettable read. The surfing descriptions are brilliant.
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  • Bryan Frew
    4.0 out of 5 stars Breathless!
    Reviewed in Australia on 17 June 2018
    Format: KindleVerified Purchase
    I’ve just read Breath after seeing the movie. I enjoyed both very much. Reading the book gave the movie more depth. Some of the scenes in both the book and movie are breathtaking - funny I often held my breath while reading.
    The last part of the book filled me with a deep sadness.
    One person found this helpful
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  • Denny
    5.0 out of 5 stars A writer who paints pictures with words
    Reviewed in Australia on 11 February 2023
    Format: KindleVerified Purchase
    You could open this book up at any page, and there will be some of the best prose I’ve read. Short succinct sentences through which you find a character, either their physicality or their soul.
    Sometimes when it seems a little long winded, I remind myself that these are the musings of a man looking back to how he was moulded, by his own thoughts and actions, or by the urging of others.
    The protagonist is a gentle lonely soul, searching for meaning or for himself. In many ways this is a coming of age story, something I’d an oxymoron, a painful, sad story but one full of wonder and awe.

    Extraordinary and excellent.
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  • Amazon Customer
    3.0 out of 5 stars I really enjoyed the first part of the story and then the ...
    Reviewed in Australia on 4 February 2016
    Format: KindleVerified Purchase
    I really enjoyed the first part of the story and then the life of the boys under their mentor. Towards the end (about 80% into the book) it became bizarre. I think Tim was thinking ahead to further books and dropping in hints as foreshadowing. The last 20% was not in the same class as the rest of the book.
    Tim has a style that is easy to read and the characters become real very quickly. The lack of conversation marks was a bit disarming at first, but after a while I did not notice their absence.An interesting tale of life in WA and pitting oneself against nature.
    I will read further books to get a better handle on the writer's mindset.
    2 people found this helpful
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  • Mark Joseph Dawson
    4.0 out of 5 stars Well written
    Reviewed in Australia on 14 May 2018
    Format: KindleVerified Purchase
    An enjoyable read, but quite disturbing in its portrayal of the human condition- somewhat pessimistic in how it plays out.
    One person found this helpful
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  • Susan Jane
    5.0 out of 5 stars A Beautiful, Moving Book
    Reviewed in Australia on 10 September 2015
    Format: KindleVerified Purchase
    Love Tim Winton's writing although I seldom love his characters. This book was no exception! Set in a small sleepy down in the Great Southern Region of Western Australia, Winton nails the atmosphere and characters so well. This is an epic coming of age saga which evokes everything about a small coastal town in Australia: the brisk sea air, the odd-balls wandering down the main street, aging hippies, the magpies calling in the early morning, the fishermen catching pink snapper on the riverside and landing salmon on Ocean Beach and of course, the surfers, always the surfers. A beautiful book. Looking forward to the movie.
    2 people found this helpful
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  • Pink diamond
    5.0 out of 5 stars awesome read
    Reviewed in Australia on 1 September 2022
    Format: KindleVerified Purchase
    I really enjoyed this book .. recommend to anyone fantastic read.. now to watch the movie … recommended by my brother
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  • Davo
    4.0 out of 5 stars A great story teller!
    Reviewed in Australia on 28 October 2020
    Format: KindleVerified Purchase
    I did feel it was a little long winded, a little too much about feelings, padding the story out, but a great story all about people I'm glad I read it.
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Top reviews from other countries

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  • Adriana
    5.0 out of 5 stars Muito bom
    Reviewed in Brazil on 22 August 2019
    Verified Purchase
    Li em menos de 1 semana. Uma história cativante e que te faz sentir a emoção do personagem. Recomendo a leitura pra quem gosta de surfe e pra quem não conhece também. É uma história sobre se auto conhecer.
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  • Client d'Amazon
    4.0 out of 5 stars Breath, un livre qui sort de l'ordinaire.
    Reviewed in France on 19 February 2016
    Verified Purchase
    Breath, de Tim Winton, vous emmène dans un voyage humain où le bouquet de situations et d'émotions sont d'un réalisme naturel. N'ayant jamais lu d'auteur australien, cela été une belle expérience, déroutante au début mais vraiment intéressante. J'attends de voir, avec impatience, ce que donneras son adaptation au cinéma. Karine S.
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  • Foster Corbin
    5.0 out of 5 stars Another Fine Tim Winton Novel
    Reviewed in the United States on 11 July 2008
    Format: HardcoverVerified Purchase
    Australian writer Tim Winton's latest short novel (217 pages), unlike some of his previous novels--CLOUDSTREET and DIRT MUSIC come to mind-- is one that you can devour in one sitting for it will pull you down into it like the undertow that this fantastic writer writes about with such breathtaking beauty. We see the events unfold through the eyes of Bruce, now a gnarly-- one of Winton's favorite words-- paramedic in his 50's who recalls events that transpired when he was a budding teenager in the small town of Sawyer, Australia.

    The novel begins with Bruce and a woman partner answering an emergency call from a distraught family whose teenaged son apparently has committed suicide by hanging. Then the narrator jumps back in time to his youth and talks for many pages about his friend Loonie and their strange relationship-- a sort of hero worship on the part of Bruce-- with an exotic former surfing champion Sando who pushes the boys to newer and more dangerous heights as they take on more and more difficult waves as they strive to rise from being just ordinary. Then there is Sando's American wife Eva.

    BREATH is a strange novel indeed. If you are wondering what a teenager's suicide has to do with all this surfing on the Australia coast, as I was, just be patient for Mr. Winton ties up all the loose ends with a powerful wallop. The novel is a coming-of-age novel about sexual awakening, the danger associated with the emotions if they are left to run rampant when you are thirteen or fourteen, the scars that remain in adulthood.

    I am always fascinated when writers from other parts of the world write about Americans. Eva tells Bruce what it was like growing up in Salt Lake City, Mormons and American ambition. "But the way Eva told it, her countrymen were restless, nomadic, clogging freeways and airports in their fevered search for action. She said they were driven by ambition in a way that no Australian could possibly understand. . . She made her own people sound vicious. Yet God was in everything - all the talk, all the music, even on their money. Ambition, she said. Aspiration and mortal anxiety." Mr. Winton has homed in admirably on the contemporary American psyche.

    Tim Winton's language is always appropriate and often completely beautiful--from creating new verbs (rag-dolling) to describing surfing when Bruce contrasts the practicality of Sawyer's farmers, loggers and millers who "did solid, practical things" with the beauty and grace of surfers. "How strange it was to see men do something beautiful. Something pointless and elegant, as though nobody saw or cared." And he expresses his own feelings about surfing: "but for me there was still the outlaw feeling of doing something graceful, as if dancing on water was the best and bravest thing a man could do."

    Tim Winton is one terrific writer.
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  • Marco Pastore
    5.0 out of 5 stars Buon libro
    Reviewed in Italy on 28 April 2021
    Verified Purchase
    Acquistato per un regalo. E' stato molto gradito
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  • Ava H.
    5.0 out of 5 stars Discovering Winton's Breath - an unsurpassable novel
    Reviewed in Canada on 12 July 2017
    Verified Purchase
    There are only a few novelists that compel you to read everything that they have written, and Mr. Winton is surely one of them. This disturbing but beautifully written novel is a coming of age story of a young Australian boy who is addicted to the adrenaline rush of surfing and who becomes enmeshed in a world of like minded risk junkies with disastrous and profound results. This novel in particular is tightly written, suspenseful, surprising and ultimately shocking but has a resolution that almost lets you breathe for its hero. Almost. The descriptions of ultimate surfing are unsurpassed (and I am a couch surfer). Superb in every respect.
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