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#FictionalTraveler pick for July

@julieclair

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Boyne is one of the few male authors who can properly write a female character. The depth of his writing in such a short book is just unmatchable. This, the first in his Elements Series, is melancholic, beautiful, compelling. Anxiously awaiting the other three books to arrive. They have not (yet) been published in the US, and slow shipping is killing me.

More basketball. More Water. Very much looking forward to the rest of Boyne‘s “Elements.”

Another practice, another book! My life right now. 😂 Basketball for my youngest, then soccer for my oldest tonight. I kinda love it, if I‘m being honest.

So excited for this one! My sweet friend Stephanie kindly sent me her copy.

John Boyne is one of my favorite authors of all time. He is a master. He brings so much emotion to his stories. This is less than 200 pages and it still hits hard. I have been ordering these from England, but I read that the Canadian and US editions are being released in September. I‘m glad I didn‘t wait though. I love the little ones.

After seeing a lot of reviews about these I decided to dive into the series. And… oof. These books are not for the faint hearted (and the first one is relatively mild, compared with the next two). An examination of abuse and what stays hidden, what do you know and what do you willfully not know and are therefore complicit. Dark but thought-provoking.

Oh, how I‘ve missed Boyne‘s writing!

A woman arrives on an island trying to escape from her past and lead a solitary life. She changes her name and cuts off her hair, but scandals have a way to seep back into life.

This was such great storytelling, as I‘ve always come to expect from Boyne. Can‘t wait to read the rest of the series!

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At my in-laws condo in FL. A perfect spot to enjoy this book, Water by the water. Not a breezy read but so good. I love Boyne and look forward to getting the other three in this series. Do not look forward to going back to snow in a few days - but I‘ve heard there‘s no place like home.

The story of Willow who turns up on a remote island in Ireland and cuts off her hair. She is renting a house with few amenities and is happy that she has no WiFi in the house. She‘s soon befriended by a cat before she gets inveigled in the life of the island and she reveals her secrets and motivation. It‘s a story of how we need to forgive ourselves at times, so that we can be a fully functioning member of society. Beautiful writing and narration.

An excellent short book about an Irish woman who goes to live on an island. Lots of secrets, lots of relationships, lots of personal growth and lots of love. A very satisfying read for so few pages. Very much looking forward to reading his other two: Fire and Earth.

Bookmail!! I guess Canada Post is still playing catchup-up, because my mail was delivered at 7:40pm. But it‘s the best mail! I couldn‘t find these anywhere, so I ordered them from Blackwells. What a great store. And I really like how they pack them with love.

So excited and thankful to @CBee for tipping me off to the suggestion of ordering John Boyne‘s “Elements” series directly from Blackwell‘s since I couldn‘t find them here in the U.S.! Free shipping right to my door —at a very reasonable price, too!

Wow I LOVED this novella so much so I ordered the set so far published, John Boyne is not only one my favourite authors on the planet but he is also one of the nicest men Iv ever met, so lovely to talk to treating everyone with interest kindness and respect, perhaps it‘s this which makes him such a wonderful writer. Can‘t recommend this highly enough & my 1st 5star read of 2025 !

#12booksof2024 NOVEMBER This was my first John Boyne. I really enjoyed it, I have the next three in the Element series on my shelf waiting. Earth is next, what a great idea.

Merry Christmas everyone! And thank you for this wonderful gift @CarolynM 💕 Look how gorgeous this bookish glasses case is! Brave New World and 1Q84 on there 😍 And i have been so keen to start the John Boyne series too. The soap smelt so good i have already started using it so it didnt make the photo 😂 Thank you so much and I hope you have had a lovely Christmas Day.

Oh, this was good! Actually, I think it's the best of his that I've read, partly because he has a defter touch with the foreshadowing here than in some others. I enjoyed the telling of this from the wife's point of view and her anguish re questioning her complicity/"stupidity".
I want to read "Earth" now!

5/5 🌟

Seeing this book everywhere, I finally decided to pick it up—and wow, I‘m so glad I did! A fantastic read from start to finish. A beautifully written tale of guilt, regrets, life choices, and coming to terms with the consequences of our actions. Highly recommend!

Currently enjoying 'Water' by John Boyne.

I appreciated the pacing of this short novel. Slowly but surely you learn the story behind the woman who arrives on an island off the west coast of Ireland, who cuts her hair and seeks to isolate herself from the residents. It‘s a moving story. The guilt of not fully seeing something going on around you and the blame associated with that. … I‘m trying to find out why booksellers in the US can‘t purchase this for their shelves but Amazon can.

Goodness, what a book. Very thankful to my local library for acquiring this and Earth so that I could read them! Not an easy read, but are any of Boyne‘s books light and fluffy? I loved this.

I really enjoyed this one. Set on an island off of Galway. Where the water is all around and healing. I loved the descriptions of island life. I have Earth ready to go now too.

‘Water has been the undoing of me. It has been the undoing of my family. We swim in it in the womb. We are composed of it. We drink it. We are drawn to it throughout our lives , more than mountains deserts or canyons. But it is terrible. Water kills. ‘

5 Stars • "Water" by John Boyne follows Vanessa Carvin, who renames herself Willow Hale, as she escapes to an Irish island to flee her past. Her husband, Brendan, was imprisoned for child abuse, and she seeks solitude to escape public judgment and confront her own complicity. The novel explores themes of identity, isolation, and redemption through Willow's interactions with islanders and her internal struggles. ⬇️

What a wonderful book. How I love John Boyne. And how I felt for Vanessa and her trauma, guilt, grief, and anger. The small Irish island community. All adds to a fabulous and sad experience, one I am glad to be a part of for an ample 160 pages. I can‘t wait for the other elements and have already purchased a copy of Earth!

Love Boyne's writing! I want to know what happens in the sequel but don't want to pay $25 for 176 page book. Womp womp. Off to see if my library can order it!

I wasn‘t sure how I was going to feel about this because I don‘t always get on with Boyne but I liked this very much and think it‘s an accomplished novella (novel?) Water does everything I like in a short, serious work of fiction. It‘s relentlessly bleak, direct, has many layers, characterises with complexity, resolves but doesn‘t solve, evokes emotion and place, and does it all with a brevity of expression.

John Boyne is a master at writing emotion. This book is short but says a lot. Looking at the roles of men and women, abuse, suicide, small town ideologies, and religion, this book crams a lot into its pages but is never preachy. It would make a fantastic book club pick. I love the idea of his Elements series and will definitely be getting the next one.

A wonderful book. @CBee You‘d like this one…main character is quite the damaged one. Thanks @TrishB as I think it was your post that made me read this.

A short book. Such a great story teller. Follows one character. I believe there are 2 more books to come . In the next one Earth we follow the life of one of the characters mentioned in this book. Clever. ⭐⭐⭐⭐

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A short book that packs a powerful little story. I‘ll look forward to the next one.

This author is an auto buy for me. So excited to dive in. Pun intended. 🤿🏊🏻‍♀️🏄🏻‍♀️

Always great to read the latest Boyne. Can‘t wait for the next three elements. Boyne tackles the issues in life that hurts us the most, but in a way that you really want to read about them. The short book is so much more than just story. Boyne truly is one of the greatest storytellers ever. ❤️

Bought myself an early birthday present!

My friend and I met the wonderful author John Boyne last night at his book 📖 launch 🚀 tour , what a lovely man he‘s my favourite living male author , really enjoyed his talk and chatting to him afterwards and so so nice to be in a room of like minded people ☺️happy Friday fellow book 📚 lovers 🥰

As ever, another enthralling read from John Boyne, tackling a very dark subject.

It‘s only a short read and, whilst this means it packs a heavy punch, I do wish there had been space to explore some areas a bit further.

Willow Hale arrives on a tiny Irish island from Dublin, having changed her name. What is she hiding from and can she really ever escape?

#netgalley #water

Published in the UK 2nd Nov.

For the lucky ones that can get this one on NG, go request it! 🥰🥰🥰