Book Review: THe Memory of Water by Karen White

The Memory of Water by Karen White
New American Library (A Penguin Group)
315 Pages
Copyright 2008

The Memory of Water is the story of two sisters, Diana and Marnie, who grew up in the South Carolina Lowcountry. Their parents are free spirits, not marrying in order for Diana and Marnie to carry their mother’s name – Maitland. Their mother is a neglectful woman, leaving the girls to fend for themselves, looked after by the more stable people in their small town... until the night their mother takes them out in a sailboat during a raging storm. The mother drowns but the girls are saved, at great cost to themselves.

Ten years later, Marnie finds herself back in Lowcountry in response to a call from Diana’s ex-husband, Quinn. It seems history is repeating itself – Diana has taken her son, Gil, out on a sailboat into a storm. Both survived but with scars that promise to damage the rest of their lives beyond repair. Diana is keeping secrets; secrets from everyone around her. Gil has stopped talking. No one knows what happened on the boat to render him mute, but Quinn hopes Marnie can help.

Marnie returns and finds it necessary to confront herself, her sister, and their past. What happened to make the two girls, once as close as any two people can be, not speak to each other for ten years? What happened the night their mother died, memories that are locked away in Marnie’s memory? What happened on the boat to steal Gil’s voice and his love of art away from him? And, the biggest question of all – can Marnie, Quinn, and Diana work together to save Gil?

The Memory of Water is told in alternating viewpoints – Marnie, Diana, Quinn, and even Gil each takes a turn to talk about events, both past and present. Marnie is a strong woman but has been dramatically changed by her mother’s death and the loss of her relationship with her sister. Diana is angry. She’s angry with Marnie, Quinn, and herself. Quinn is struggling to do what’s best for his son, his tragic ex-wife, and the tragedies of his own past. Gil struggles with a secret so large it has left him mute because he has been raised not to tell lies so he falls silent.

Their words, thanks to Karen White, flow beautifully and are heart-wrenching at times. The people are complex and so are their relationships. I loved the way Marnie related to Gil. Quinn is a good man in an almost impossible situation, and Diana, in spite of being so tragic, clearly loves her son and wants what’s best for him.

I love the way Karen White uses words. Here are some random examples of the writing that I found so beautiful:

Almost reluctantly, I fell in love with this place. I’m not sure if it was only because anywhere other than where I’d come from seemed a likely refuge, and this was the first place I’d stopped. I remember driving down Highway 10 and pulling off to the side of the marsh. The tall sawgrass undulated in the wind, like a heavy sigh from a tired earth and I knew then that I had found a place to lick my wounds and build a life.

And:

I felt my heart tremble like a butterfly in my chest, but it wasn’t because I was scared. It was because when Aunt Marnie said the word “sailing,” it came dressed with sunshine and the smell of salt water in your face and all the happy memories of being on a boat beneath sails with only ocean around you. It made me remember everything I had forgotten about sailing—all that I used to love doing. And in that one word, Aunt Marnie told me that she had loved it once, too. I nodded and she touched my head, lifting the hair off my forehead.

And one more beautiful, dark passage:

But sometimes, in the darkest part of the night, even m painting failed me, and I felt compelled to sneak down the stairs and out of the house in search of something–of what, I wasn’t sure. I always found myself at the water’s edge on the dock or the beach, or sometimes I’d drive into town and wander the wharves where the fishing boats were kept at night, their long, net-holding arms stretched out in silent sleep against the darkened sky. I stared into the black waters for a long time, imagining the cold, wet feel of it against my skin and wondered what it would be like to step forward until the water covered me like a cool blanket, rocking me to sleep until no more air filled my lungs. There would be no more pain, no more medicine, no more hate. And no more fear. I longed for refuge, but could only stay on the solid wood of the dock, staring at the water as if it were behind a locked door and I couldn’t find the key.

It’s been awhile since I’ve had a story enmesh me so thoroughly in a place I’ve never been before. I found myself wanting to visit the Lowcountry, which is my ultimate compliment to an author. Karen White made it so real I want to experience it myself.

One final comment. I don't normal use bookcovers for my reviews but I had to add this one. It's what drew me to the book and there's something... compelling about it and I felt the need to share it.

Recommendation: This is a story about relationships, about human nature, about family, and about the pain those things cause in a person’s life. It’s about mothers and their children. And it’s about secrets and coping with tragedy and it’s all beautiful written. It’s well worth the read.