Customer Reviews

The Disobedience of Water: Stories and Novellas

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

The stories contained in _The Disobedience of Water_ are about emotions, how they control us and shape our lives. The characters Naslund creates are rich with conflicting feelings about faith, love, and friendship. They're at once kind and cruel, moral and amoral, as these waves of emotion build and break. Naslund's courageous honesty will change the way you think about love, life, and art, while her beautiful, Southern style will leave you waiting for more.

While almost the entire book left me wondering why, as I sifted through stories of dysfunction and melancholy, I kept reading and at times marveled at the range of experiences Sena Jeter Naslund's characters encountered. The final story, Disobedience of Water, made me feel so much better about the book. A strong ending for what seemed a troublesome ensemble of stories. I recommend this book, with caution, as some may find some content questionable or uncomfortable. But it will broaden your horizons!

Each of these short stories leave you with a sense of the physical, whether good or ill (and even the disturbing moments are memorable). You cannot be lifted by these offerings and set down anything other than full. Sometimes I felt as though I was peeping through a keyhole at something so personal that I could almost hear my (dead) mother warn me to "mind my own business"... and other times I could swear that I felt the touch of soft, mountain breezes and knew I was safe in my place as reader. If you loved Ahab's Wife and Naslund's way of stringing words together, read this book... or better yet, read it twice to make sure nothing was lost. Beautiful.

I bought this book because I loved "Ahab's Wife" and, while the writing is just as lovely and lyrical, I can't say I found these stories as spell-binding as I did the novel. Some of the stories are far more engaging than others. Sena Jeter Naslund writes with a depth and maturity that is rare in contemporary literature. "The Shape You're In" is a mysterious, engaging story about a young woman who flees her Southern home, and her disturbed boyfriend, for the harsh climate of Montana where she discovers, as the Irish saying goes, "wherever you go, there you are". "I Am Born" is a fascinating little story about a girl who sneaks into her doctor-father's car and winds up participating in the birthing of a baby born to a young black girl. She also learns a lesson that may well discourage her from pulling such a stunt in the future! I think my favorite story was "The Death of Julius Geissler" a brilliant violinist who effected people both with his music and his unique and mercurial personality.

Lovely collection.

So, it may just be me, but I did not enjoy the stories in this book. The back cover said they were about people finding love and such in odd places, but it was just a little disturbed as far as I'm concerned.