Customer Reviews

Three Views of Crystal Water

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Three Views of Crystal Water by Katherine Govier tells the story of Vera, a young Japanese-Canadian at a crucial crossroads in her life told against the backdrop of the days leading up to World War II.

Vera's young life has been full of familial loss - first her father left their family to follow his pearl lust, then her mother commits suicide and finally her grandfather dies. Left alone, Vera travels with her grandfather's widow to Japan to live among the ama divers, women who live with unprecedented freedom. Used to loss, Vera exhibits a skittishness in joining the life of her new village, is slow to trust and slowly begins to develop her own luster as she takes control of her destiny. Vera slowly learns the skills of the ama divers while gaining a sense of her own identity, defined by who she is rather than by those who have left her.

Alternating between Vera's story and that of her family, we slowly gain an understanding of what has driven them in their passion for pearls. The shadowy world of Japan fighting a battle for Asian domination is the perfect foil for Vera's tale.

This is a quiet, intimate novel with a shifting surface, as changeable as the pearl at the heart of the tale. The language is enthralling and Katherine Govier evokes a time and location that to many is shrouded with mystery.

Three Views of Crystal Water is a window into a story overlooked by many when studying World War II. While painting a large canvas showing a nation creating history, Govier never falters in creating an intimate and profound story of one woman finding her place in the world.

This author is terrific! This particular book describes the "amas": traditional Japanese shellfish divers and their unique lives as independent women in a male-dominated culture.

I submitted this book title for our local bookclub because I enjoyed it so much. When it was selected, I was dismayed to find out that only a few copies were available in our library system. I said I was willing to see if I could get a few more copies with the idea that I would donate them to the library afterwards. I ordered 8 copies from all over the UK and USA for delivery by regular mail to our small town in Alberta, Canada. I ordered them through Amazons New and Used and got 8 copies for a total of about $90.00 including postage. The book retails for $19.99 so I was thrilled. All 8 copies arrived in time and in perfect condition. Most copies were brand new and all were in excellent condition. I'm thrilled with the price, procedure and speed of this series of transactions and will happily place further orders using this service.

It seems a simple story : Vera, the protagonist, is a teenager in Canada when America entered WWII - and her stepmother is Japanese. Together they go back to her stepmother's fishing village in Japan to escape the war.

Katherine Govier has written a brilliant novel, the depth of this tale is unbearable at times. I just loved her descriptions of the three views of the title: Japanese woodblock prints with running water in them. Each time Vera views them, as a girl, a teenager and an adult, she interprets them differently and this is the thread of the story: how Vera has changed because of (or in spite of) the war going on around her.

The story shows the war in a different perspective - non military and not even "historical fiction" - very much a story of how a single multinational family was affected. Well worth reading, and I found it unputdownable.

It reminded me of Snow Falling On Cedars by David Guterson although I found this more enjoyable.