The story in one page
Harvey Cheyne is a fifteen-year-old menace aboard a luxury steamship, equipped with limitless pocket money and zero humility. When he falls overboard, a fishing schooner called the We're Here plucks him from the Atlantic. The captain, Disko Troop, refuses to treat him like a passenger, instead putting him to work cleaning fish and handling rigging. Over a rugged season, Harvey swaps his entitlement for calloused hands and a begrudging respect for the harsh life of the Grand Banks. He eventually returns home to his industrialist parents as a productive human, maintaining a lifelong connection to his former shipmates.
Who's who
- Harvey Cheyne
A pampered heir forced into manual labor to survive.
- Disko Troop
The schooner's captain who dictates the terms of life.
- Dan Troop
The captain's son who guides Harvey through the work.
- We're Here
A Gloucester fishing schooner operating on the Grand Banks.
- Penn
A fragile, sensitive crewman prone to losing anchors.
What it's really about
- Work ethic
- Manual labor cures an inflated sense of self.
- Class collision
- Wealthy upbringing meets brutal maritime necessity.
Why it's memorable
- A dory fouled in a messy nest of ropes.
- A mother spotting her son's ship by lightning flash.
The ending, explained
Spoilers — show the ending
Years later, Harvey and Dan reunite as adults; Harvey is entering his father's business, and the lessons of the fishing boat remain firmly in place.
For your book club
- Can a life of ease be unlearned at sea?
- Why does Disko ignore Harvey's status completely?