"My mother was never easy in the world of houses. She was a tinker, a traveler girl who had married a wealthy man. Her name was Agatha Sheehy....There are silences all around my mother's story." So begins The Nature of Water and Air, set on a patch of Irish coast where, amid a flurry of whispers, we meet Agatha's only surviving daughter, Clodagh. Determined to secure her mother's elusive love and the truth about her, Clodagh is swept into a relationship with a handsome, isolated man. He brings her to the heart of her mother's story, where she must confront the questions "Does a truth change love?" and "What madness will come from chasing a secret?" Powerfully sensitive, this startling debut novel about forbidden love will place Regina McBride among our most celebrated novelists.
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"One of the more intriguing books I've ever read. Touchy subject matter, but what I rally liked about it was that I never could guess ahead of time where the author was going with something and something always surprised me. Definitely not predictable. " — Alyssa (4 out of 5 stars)
"One of the more intriguing books I've ever read. Touchy subject matter, but what I rally liked about it was that I never could guess ahead of time where the author was going with something and something always surprised me. Definitely not predictable. "
" So far it has my interest. "
" YUK...why do authors think incest is something fundamentally interesting? Especially a writer who has so much potential and a gift with language? Had I known the subject of the book, I'd have NEVER bought it, much less read it. DON'T BOTHER. "
" This was a somewhat disturbing but haunting story. The subject matter was dark ... the characters were dark ... but the writing style was beautiful and made you forget how troubling the plot was. The Nature of Water and Air is not for everyone but I found it fascinating since it was a part of Ireland I didn't know existed. "
" Not sure what to say about this book...it was extremely well written given the dark and disturbing story that was told. The story was sad and haunting woven with Irish myth, forbidden love, and family mystery. "
" Absolutely repulsive. The author has skills, it's just too bad she took such a dark road...she could have taken this story a million different ways...I really enjoyed her writing skills just not the story~ if that makes any sense. "
" Beautiful descriptions of the setting in Ireland. Kind of haunting. "
" An Irish tale of a dysfunctional family involving tinkers. Somewhat poetic. "
" Some mystic to this book. Ending unexpected . Would recommend this book. "
" Terribly sad, beautifully crafted story. Regina McBride will tear your heart out and make you thank her for it. "
" Beautiful writing. Intense story, McBride draws you into her world completely. "
" Wow. The language and symbolism are beautiful, and the story is intense. I don't want to ruin it, but there were two things that happened at the very end that made me like the book a little less. "
" Fascinating, obscure novel about Irish Travellers. "
" I'm really enjoying this one so far. I've heard good and bad things about this book - not a spoiler per se - but I have heard that there is something very "shocking" that happens. I'm intrigued. "
" I thought it was beautifully written, but certain aspects were...uncomfortable. Be prepared for a female rendition of Oedipus Rex. "
" Very well written. However, it was dark and foreboding from the beginning, and the end became so twisted and nauseating that I nearly couldn't stomach finishing it. "
" I found myself enjoying this book at times. However, its darkness overshadowed the story. The darkest revelations were saved for the last with little redemption. As a result, I would only rate this as a fair read. "
" I'm probably never gonna finish reading this book. Lost my copy yesterday. From where I stopped reading though, it looked like the story was headed to a dark ending. I'm moving on to the next book on my list. "
" McBride certainly has a way with words. I loved so many of the phrases in this one and thought the character development was terrific. "
" I wholeheartedly agree with everything Sidhe said in her review. I was hooked from the start - it especially helped that I was traveling through Ireland at the time - and then the ending was such a disappointment. "
" This book was full of pain and beauty. It made my heart ache. "
" What a waste of time. Seemed promising. Tinkers and selkies in Ireland. Begins sliding downhill with the mother's suicide and ends up with incest. The back of the book says "delightful, lyrical and beautifully sad." Pleeese! The author did not have to sink this low to write a meaningful story. "
" McBride mesmerizes one with her outside the box Oedipus-like story. The background of Ireland is told in fascinating prose. A good read. "
" I enjoyed the book at the time I read it, but I found it has come back to haunt me. "
" I loved it. But not for those with very conservative views or who might be easily offended. Looks like people either loved it or hated it. "
" I loved the visuals this book evoked - even though I kept thinking it was set in the 50s, even though it's the late 70s, there's little evidence for that. Plot didn't hold me, and left me turned off and annoyed. "
Regina McBride is the author of The Nature of Water and Air and The Land of Women and recipient of fellowships from the NEA and the New York Foundation for the Arts.
Katherine Borowitz completed her fist audiobook in 1999 when she narrated Maeve Binchy’s Tara Road. Since then she has gone on to narrate several books by mystery writer Kathy Reichs, including Death Du Jour and Deadly Decisions, which won an Earphones Award. She is also an accomplished actress who has appeared in films such as The Man Who Wasn’t There, Internal Affairs, and A Serious Man.
Terry Donnelly is a narrator and an actress who has appeared on television in Law & Order. She is the narrator of more than a dozen audiobooks, and her reading of Quentins by Maeve Binchy was a finalist in 2003 for the prestigious Audie Award in the category of Solo Narration – Female. She earned an AudioFile Earphones Award for her reading of The Gathering by Anne Enright in which she was praised for “capturing [the author’s] every subtlety.”
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