I had a failry good time listening to this book! There were some spots where I felt confused and would have to go back and relisten but otherwise enjoyed the story!

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for this advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you Netgalley, Macmillan Audio, and Eiren Caffall for the ALC of this thought provoking book. The storyline, world building and conflict were solid, and the voice actor did a good job narrating.

This story gave me "Water World" prequel vibes, like this is the start of the world sinking and these people are attempting to hold on to humanity as best they can. Medical practices are crude, the government has fallen, segregation has reappeared, and tribes are formed for the purpose of survival.

The cover art for this book is perfect! As I tandem read and listened to this book I would occasionally glance at the cover art and shake my head in agreeance. The writing was descriptive enough for me to visualize every scene and that is always a win for me.

I could not put this book down, when I was able to sit and devote time to read it, I did, When I did housework and ran errands, I listened.

There were parts that sounded a lot like news reports of today. If we are not careful and pay attention to the ever changing weather patterns and the severity of them, our future could easily look like the world depicted in All The Water In The World.

I am leaving this honest review voluntarily and without coercion.

Thank you to Macmillan Audio for the early copy of All the Water in the World.

From the description, I expected this to lean more toward genre fiction about a family living in the American Museum of Natural History in NYC after rising water levels due to glacial melt submerge much of NYC. It’s compared to Station Eleven, From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler and Parable of the Sower. Having read the first two (and with the third on my TBR), I’d say this book skews more toward literary fiction. This isn’t a bad thing, of course! But it does mean the book will probably resonate with a different group of readers than the comps suggest.

At its heart, this is a reflective story about a family’s post-apocalyptic journey from their makeshift home in AMNH to a farm in the Hudson Valley. In flashbacks, we see this family and fellow (former) museum employees racing to preserve both cultural artifacts and human knowledge before they’re lost to the encroaching sea. It’s a beautiful story that serves as a bleak warning against climate apathy.


Narration notes: The writing is poetic and atmospheric, with a lyrical quality that really invites the reader to linger. Typically, I prefer to read this type of writing with my eyes rather than listening with ears, but with Eunice Wong as the narrator, you really can’t go wrong. She does a phenomenal job brining the atmospheric setting to life. If this is your kind of book, the audio is a great way to go!

Wow… just wow! I really picked this up because of the narrator and the museum connection described in the synopsis. in fact, if not for Eunice Wong, I probably would’ve passed this up because of the description tying this book to Emily St John Mandel who has never quite my cup of tea. Well, I think there’s something here for fans of Mendel’s work for those of us who don’t tend to gravitate towards her particular brand of literary sci-fi. Do not let that dissuade you from picking up All the Water in the World. Caffall has built a truly convincing and terrifying world that draws on examples of history all told through the story of a young girl and her family who are trying to preserve a museums collection in the face of catastrophe. These beautifully flushed out characters were made all the more compelling by Eunice Wong’s masterful narration. I swear she could make me feel compassion for an inanimate object, she’s just that good at bringing a story to life. Make sure you pick this up on audio!

I can’t quite pinpoint why this didn’t work for me, I just know that it didn’t. It’s a concept I had a lot of hopes for, and Nonie is fine as a protagonist, but nothing ever quite grabbed me or clicked like I’d hoped. I think maybe I wish we spent more time sooner with the whole AMNH community, rather than having it scattered and flashing back and forth, since by the time a lot of the “reveals” happen, it’s already been so referenced to that the flashback to it feels repetitive. So that meant that I never really connected with the cast, because most of them were dead by the beginning, giving their presence in the flashbacks less weight.

The overall plot is also pretty straightforward and paced so that between the flashbacks and the events themselves, aside from a couple of points, there’s not a lot of respite - it’s all tense, frantic moments, which gets exhausting. It means we don’t get to see a lot of the community building that I was hoping for, and it’s more trauma bonding than actually building.

The epilogue feels almost out of nowhere, like “okay I’m stopping here, but I’ll let you know with a flash-forward how it all wraps up”. It’s very abrupt.

It’s a shame because Eunice Wong has become one of my favorite narrators, but the directed cadence really didn’t fit Nonie as a young girl narrator and it wasn’t clear until later that the whole thing was a flashback.

This felt like a book that was more concept than execution for me. I'm not sure if it fell truly flat or if I've just read too much dystopian fiction recently, but I simply did not enjoy this.

Nonie and her family are living on the roof of NYC’s Museum of Natural History. All the glaciers have melted, the seas have risen and storms are cataclysmic. Nonie, her family and a few other survivors try to create a community and preserve the treasures within the museum. But a devastating storm tears their world apart and Nonie, her sister Bix, their father and their friend Keller must travel the Hudson and find a new way to survive.

This dark dystopian novel has the literary feel of Station Eleven, the heartbreak of The Road and the desperation of Waterworld. It is told from the viewpoint of Nonie, a young girl gifted with the understanding of water and weather but struggling with a neurodivergent of others. She is honest and earnest, intelligent yet emotionally raw.

The group’s trip up the Hudson is harrowing and tense, as they experience violence, illness and injury.

Caffall’s view of a possible future is filled with despair and hope, terrifying endings and new beginnings. Her writing is lovely, as she skillfully describes either a mother’s love or the science of weather and nature.

A thrilling and heartwarming read.

I have a fascination with climate fiction so this literary science fiction novel was right up my alley. It was interesting, slow and contemplative. I liked so many aspects yet I actually felt a touch disappointed since this one never reached the five star potential the plot had. I wish this one had a bit harder with a punchier story. I liked it but I found it's message a bit soft.

Disclaimer I received a copy of this book from the publisher.

This book alternates back and forth between current day and memories of how the world became to be what it is now, covered in water. Big fan of post apocalyptic type books but I wouldn’t call this one a thriller. It almost has the feeling of Parable of the Sower with some of the main fears and goals, maybe that’s just a thing. While very descriptive I had a difficult time picturing the landscape they were experiencing. How some buildings were standing and others weren’t, I don’t understand how the base is kept together for some but not others given water. On a positive I did like how this book details the lengths they go to protect the artifacts. That isn’t something I have read in similar books. It brought up situations and ideas I wouldn’t have thought of.

This has been posted to Goodreads and fable.

Short chapters. Engaging story. I thoroughly enjoyed this listen. Short chapters. Engaging story. I thoroughly enjoyed this listen.

A child's story of found family and dead dreams. A happy ending clouded by death and loss, the hope of the characters comes through in the story.

I gravitate toward a dystopian or post-apocalyptic story, so when All The Water In The World popped up on netgalley, I snapped at the chance to read it. I quickly got bored with the beginning, though. Plenty of reviews say this starts slow and I definitely agree. I switched to the audiobook in hopes of increasing the pace, but the narrators voice felt far too old for Nonie's age and inner monologue. I just didn't feel connected to this story or the characters. Obviously I see the realistickkness of these "unprecedented" super storms and I see in real time how these storms are a new reality coming alongside climate change in my real life outside this book, but overall this book just lacked intrigue and intensity. Sure, it’s sad and raw and I sort of rooted for Nonie, but I also didn’t really care and there was a totally underwhelming storyline of Nonie’s potentially superhuman connection to water that wasn’t truly addressed. It’s unfortunate that this book fell so short overall. I’m sure it will resonate with some, but it just didn’t do it for me.

A bit too slow for my liking so I did not finish, but what I did hear was very well written with a great narrator

I loved the style of prose in this novel. It helped maintain an air of mysticism in a post- apocalyptic world that seemed doomed to fail. I was fascinated by the story and all the characters went through, clinging to hope as if it was all they had left, because, well, it was. Lovely tale i greatly enjoyed and would recommend.
Thank you to NetGalley, Eiren Caffall the author, and Macmillan Audio for my advance copy of this audiobook.

I'm so torn on how to rate this book and would give it 3.5 stars overall. I absolutely love apocalypse movies, and this was the book version of the post climate apocalypse. The book through Nonie's POV was very intriguing and the author did an amazing job with descriptions, and I could almost envision her group living at AMONH and her journey to the farm. I really enjoyed the climate what-ifs and imaging what life would be like if this happened for real, it's scary to imagine because weather and storms are actually getting worse. There were times the story felt like it dragged on with no end in mind. In addition, I got confused at times when Nonie toggled between past and present. Maybe it would've been different if I read the book instead of listened. This book would be a good read for book clubs, it brings to light a lot of topics such as climate change, survival, and humanity.
 
Thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin’s Press, and Macmillan Audio for the advance audiobook!

All the Water in the World is a dystopian novel told from the point of view of a child named Nonie. This reminds me of a quieter Station Eleven in the capacity of a need to preserve history in a post-apocalyptic society. There is nothing wrong with this story, yet I found it hard to finish due to my lack of interest in the narrative. It was fine. I'm sure most people will enjoy this wholesome story. There is a lot of beauty in the found family woven with past grief. This just wasn't for me.
I read the ebook and listened to the audiobook. The narrator has a very pleasant voice that also comes across often as hesitant in tone and often left me feeling a little unstable with the narrative.
Thanks to NetGalley, St. Martin's Press, and Macmillan Audio for this ARC!

ARC REVIEW: all the water in the world by eiren caffall 🌊 a literary thriller set partly on the roof of new york’s museum of natural history in a flooded future.

WOW, simply unlike anything I’ve read before! our fmc is told through a child named nonnie mayo who can sense through her body when a storm is coming. which is very fortunate because the world as they know it is at the mercy of hypercanes, irreversible climate changes, food shortages and looting.

🌬️ in this story there were flashbacks serving as a refuge to a quieter, gentler time opposed to the dread and fear stricken group of survivors having to overcome one obstacle after another.

personally, the writing style and structure took some time to get into as certain scenes were hard to picture. once I understood the flow of the story, it was much easier and almost an unputdownable read!

I really enjoyed eunice wong's narration! they truly kept me invested in this windswept story while still being relaxed by their quiet voice!

while reading ATWITW I had a nightmare that I was drowning, so to say this apocalyptic, coming of age story was thought provoking, is an understatement. thank you macmillan audio & st. martin's press for the early copies! 💙 3.5 stars!

For a debut book, this was a decent read. It is told from Nonie's point of view. Her parents are researchers, and with the help of their colleagues, are tying to preserve and catalog as much historical artifacts at the Museum of Natual History as they can before all is lost. But more disasters take place, and Nonie, the few left in their settlement, must leave and head north before they lose their lives to the rising water and storm surges. Those they meet along their travels are varied. Some are willing to help them, whereas others refuse to help unless they can get some benefit out of it in means of labor or a useful skill. Eunice Wong did a good job with their narration. They kept my attention, but i had a hard time connecting to the character. This was a thought provoking read though, and it made me doom reseach what the earth would look like if all the glaicers melted and what would happend if Yellowstone erupted. Did I also look to see how my city would be impacted? Yes. Yes I did.

I really enjoyed this apocalyptic novel with a new slant, The whole world gets basically destroyed by water and Nonie, Bix, Keller and Dad made a life living on the roof of the American Natural History Museum aka Amen.They decide to leave to attempt to find the farm that should be a safe place for everyone. Their adventures vary and they encounter a variety of people along the way, some helpful & some evil. The characters are interesting and I liked the way their game of identifying insects ties the book together. One notable detriment of this book for me is the first part is very preachy about the use of Indigenous knowledge and technology by non-indigenous people. I feel like if it’s the end of the world then people should use whatever help they can get. The narrator was fabulous and I would listen to other books read by them.

Thanks to NetGalley and MacMillan Audio for St. Martin’s Press for a copy of this audiobook.

I thought the writing was immediately engaging, action mixed with poetic introspection. I felt invested in the characters within the first few pages. The horrific situations created both by climate catastrophe and the complete breakdown in society were believable to me (as an ex-New Yorker) and consequently scary. I enjoyed the ending and will recommend to any reader interested in cli-fi.