The Light Between Oceans

After six months, Tom’s temporary post becomes permanent. Trimble Docherty’s mental instability has led him to jump off a cliff. Trimble believed that he was jumping into a ship skippered by his beloved wife, but he falls to his death.

The harbormaster points out that a woman who can live on the island is a unique kind of person, and Trimble’s wife, Moira Docherty, was such a woman. Reflecting on the grief and despair that destroyed Trimble, Tom realizes that war is not a prerequisite for suffering.

During his two weeks’ leave in Partageuse, Tom spends every day with Isabel. She notices that he is reluctant to share much at all about himself or his past. She does learn that Tom’s mother left his family when he was eight, and he grieved deeply for her. He is estranged from his father and older brother. 

In contrast, Isabel shares many stories about herself and her wishes for the future, which include marriage and a family. Among her stories is a tale of the heartbreak she feels for the children sent to an orphanage in Perth. To Isabel, an orphanage is the worst place for a child, no matter the circumstances.

Isabel is nineteen and much younger than Tom, who is nearly twenty-eight years old. He is wary of her youth and innocence. Isabel, however, understands that life can be difficult; she too has suffered losses. Isabel communicates that she wants Tom to take her to Janus with him as his wife. They kiss. 

Back on Janus, Tom often thinks about Isabel’s kiss, but these fond recollections are followed by gruesome memories of war. He struggles with the fact that he has witnessed death but that he has survived. He fails to understand why he lived through the war and return home un-maimed while the men around him died. He weeps for them and for the men he killed.

As time passes, Tom begins to allow himself to think of a future for himself. At the end of December, Tom takes shore leave so that he and Isabel can marry. 

Tom shows Isabel around Janus, and she adjusts to life on the island. She is enthralled with the freedom of the island, wanting to make love in the lighthouse and experimenting with nudity. Tom tempers her with gentle reminders of his responsibilities. He tells her that, in order to survive, one must continue with some semblance of normal life—eating at proper times, turning the pages of the calendar, and getting dressed.

Isabel asks for a map of Janus, which she labels with made-up names for all the spots around the island, such as Paradise Pool and Izzy’s Cliff. While Isabel believes that each individual spot should be labeled and named, Tom is uneasy with the idea and prefers to think of the island as a whole.