Memory of Water: free sampler

by Emmi Itaranta

With the lyricism of Ishiguro’s Never Let Me Go, and the world building brilliance of Atwood, Emmi Itäranta’s effortless and poignant debut novel is a coming of age story full of emotional drama and wonderment.

Some secrets demand betrayal.

'You’re seventeen, and of age now, and therefore old enough to understand what I’m going to tell you,’ my father said. `This place doesn’t exist.’

`I’ll remember,’ I told him, but didn’t realise until later what kind of promise I had made.

When Noria Kaitio reaches her seventeenth birthday, she is entrusted with the secret of a freshwater spring hidden deep within the caves near her small rural village. Its preservation has been the responsibility of her family for generations.

Apprenticed to her father, one of the last true tea masters, when Noria takes possession of the knowledge, she become much more than the guardian of ancestral treasure; soon, she will hold the fate of everyone she loves in her hands.

• ISBN13: 9780007590704
• Publish Date: 17 April 2014
• Publish Status: Active
• Publish Country: GB
• Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers
• Imprint: HarperCollins Publishers Ltd
• Edition: Digital original
• Format: eBook (EPUB)
• Pages: 50
• Language: English
• URL: http://harpercollins.co.uk

Reviews

[kimbacaffeinate]

Caffeinated Aspects:

• The language is descriptive, and Itaranta paints the world with her words giving me a panoramic view bringing the sights, sounds and smells to life. It is a harsh, depressing landscape and yet she allows us to see the hidden beauty.

• The tradition of the tea master and ceremony was charming. I enjoyed the description of the ceremony, the teahouse and the connection to water that a tea master feels. Her writing is lyrical and key phrases commit themselves to your memory. She makes water a living, breathing thing.

• While aspects such as the ceremony are beautiful, we also see the darkness in this oppressed world from the desperation of the people to the power of the soldiers occupying the area.

• It is a coming of age story as Noria deals with loss, the harness of the landscape, its people and honoring the traditions and responsibility of her legacy.

• Friendship, mystery and thought-provoking questions are examined in Memory of Water. I enjoyed the friendship between Noria and Sanja.

Decaffeinated Aspects:

• Memory of Water while beautifully written unfolds in a slow pace. Moments are intense, but this book will not be for everyone. It is at times dark and bleak and does not offer the reader a happily ever after. It is meant to be a cautionary tale, to prompt the reader to question and reflect.

• The writing is beautiful, lyrical and full of meaning, but the author often repeats phrases as she strives to deliver her message. I fear this may turn some off.

• While I understood the conflict Noria had with the secret she carried, I do not feel the author made it believable enough. I would have liked a stronger history with why it was kept hidden for centuries.

• Noria’s relationship to her parents was odd, and while I felt, they loved each other the parents were not fleshed-out. I did not quite understand the mother and her actions.

• Itaranta does an excellent job of describing the present world, its conflict, politics and despair. However, we are offered very little, as to how this world came to be. A mysterious story emerges about travelers and a discovery. I found it fascinating, and I wanted to learn more leaving me disappointed.

• The ending is obscure, although the reader fully understands what will occur. While I appreciated the epilogue it presented me with more questions.

Memory of Water is not meant to be consumed, rather the reader should allow it to flow through them and ponder. It is both unusual and brilliant, complex and simple. While this book will not be for everyone, it is one will stay with you.

Copy received from publisher in exchange for unbiased review that originally published @ Caffeinated Book Reviewer