I know very little about Sri Lanka, and this book is set in the recent past with very specific political context with which I was not familiar. The illustrations are lush, and Nimmi's family story is complex and engaging. Her parents' relationship is something of a mystery to her, although we're never really told what she *thought* before the revelations in this book. Nimmi is forced to confront her assumptions about her mother and the region where she was born, since she left when she was a baby and has no firsthand memories of either before this story begins.

Perhaps it's a limitation of the medium, but there were a few places that felt a little rushed or incomplete. In part, that may have been a function of the art style, since the individual children in the orphanage Nimmi visits are hard to distinguish from one another visually. All of my comments are quite small, though I did have some questions that makes me wonder about how someone with greater knowledge of the region would interpret certain choices that were made here.

The core relationships were beautiful, though, and I'm going to have to look more into the history now. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me to read this beautiful book before its release.

Tall Water is a graphic novel about a Nimmi, a Tamil American who longs for her mother. Growing up in the US with her father, Nimmi hasn’t seen her mother for over 16 years. Through a physical and personal journey, Nimmi is reunited with her mother. But how can Nimmi begin to understand the mother who abandoned her yet is raising children in an orphanage? 4 stars

Thank you to NetGalley for the opportunity to read Tall Water!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing an eARC for me to review!

The art is GORGEOUUUUUUS in this one!! Great colour palette throughout, with soft art that gave me Studio Ghibli vibes. There are some serious themes alongside one girl's search for meaning in her mother's distance and also a side foray into her own queer identity, all told around a devastating tsunami. Realistic without being overly graphic.

I loved it!! Beautiful work all around.

This was a carefully researched and beautifully illustrated documentation of events in Sri Lanka both before and after the tsunami that devastated South Pacific countries in 2004. The characters were complex, and the story took a careful look at journalism, telling one's own truth, and the tragedy of war and disaster in Sri Lanka. I was drawn in by the beautiful drawings, and though I wished this book was longer because there is so much story to be told, I am so glad the author chose to focus on one family and their dynamics.

I hope to read more by SJ Sindu, she is a very talented author. I recommend this book for schools and libraries.

5 stars

I absolutely love Sindu's writing, but based on what I've encountered so far, I did not anticipate a YA graphic novel. This - though serious in its themes - was a pleasure to encounter.

Nimmi is in her teens and facing the impending challenge of college admissions, a birthday, and a reminder that her mom is more distant (in all ways) than she'd like. She's determined to get to know her mother, who lives in Sri Lanka (Nimmi does not), and she takes drastic measures to try to make that happen.

The book is set in the thick of violence, and Sindu does not shy away from this. The depictions are appropriate for older teen readers, but they are there, so I'd suggest a quick content check for all prospective readers simply to make sure they're in the right headspace to encounter all of this. There are scenes of war-related violence and Mother Nature's wrath, and both reflect reality, difficult as they may be.

I really appreciate a book that not only comes through with engaging characters and plotting but also that has a lot to offer in a cultural and historical context that will be new to many. I'm looking forward to sharing this one with students (and recommend it highly to prospective readers of all kinds) for many reasons.

This was absolutely gorgeous! I had a beautiful time with this and it was such a hard time putting it down. I adored this story and will be checking out this author again

Tall Water was a beautiful story that takes place in the days before and after the devastating tsunami in Sri Lanka. Nimmi is a strong lead who is looking to find her direction in life as she prepares to go to college but also wishes to meet the mother she never knew. I loved being able to learn more about the civil war that occurred in Sri Lanka.

I found the growth between Nimmi and her mother to be moving and I loved how it contrasted where her mother work.

I received an ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review

Tall Water by SJ Sindu and illustrated by Dion MBD is a YA graphic novel with light speculative elements exploring the Sri Lankan civil war through a biracial teen’s return to her home country. Nimmi is a high school senior aspiring to follow in her parents’ footsteps and become a journalist. Her passion for the conflict in Sri Lanka has made her butt heads with school officials and contributed to her feeling isolated. When her father’s press access to Sri Lanka is finally reinstated, Nimmi takes the chance to finally see her mother again and return to the place she was born.

Before picking this up, I was not only unaware that Sri Lanka had a civil war so recently (the conflict ended in 2009), but that it was so violent and that it had lasted 26 years. I was also unaware of the December 26th, 2004 tsunami that impacted half a million people. I love it when kidlit explores historical conflicts, especially more recent ones that many people might be too young to have been aware of or that never really got talked about on the news, because it is so important for us to know our history so we can make more informed decisions when we want to contribute to activism to help mend the harm done. SJ Sindu and Dion MBD do not shy away from the realities of the civil war and there are depictions of violence, discrimination against Tamil people, families being torn apart, and death, but it was what happened. Those stories deserve space.

The main thrust of the story is the complex relationship between Nimmi and her parents. Her father is a white American who met her Tamil Sri Lankan mother eighteen years before and the two formed a romantic relationship but never married. This made it exceedingly difficult for Nimmi’s mother to get a visa after Andrew and Nimmi came to the US when Nimmi was a baby (with Nimmi’s mother’s full knowledge and permission). Nimmi’s contact with her mother is limited by the technology at the time (2004) and the complications created by the civil war. While it is frustrating that Nimmi’s father was very resistant to bringing Nimmi to Sri Lanka when his press pass was reinstated, you learn very quickly why he was concerned and that he has no hard feelings towards his sort-of life partner (it’s complicated. It’s never stated if they are still in a relationship but given that the two are still single and their reunion, it’s possible that they are still emotionally committed to each other).

The art uses a lot of soft colors and a more limited color palette, which makes red really stand out every time it’s on the page. I think that was such a smart choice because I was shocked at how vivid blood was and the red of the Red Cross, which one of the characters is a member of. Red is the color of violence, but it’s also the color of an organization that SJ Sindu says has done a lot of good in Sri Lanka. Dion MBD’s use of color and color theory makes for a beautiful book and helps push the complex themes forward.

Content warning for death, emaciated children, violence, and racism

I would recommend this to fans of works with biracial leads exploring their heritage and fans of YA graphic novels looking for works focused on recent conflicts

Perfect. The pacing was great, the illustrations were amazing. This was such an impactful book about wars and the strain on families.

A fascinating graphic novel about a young American who returns to Sri Lanka to meet her mother for the first time and happens to be there during the devastating and fatal Christmas tidal wave. The illustrations are great and the way various characters stories are intertwined is compelling.

Nimmi's sure she is ready to be a journalist, but a trip to Sri Lanka to see her estranged mother exposes her to the real horrors of both war and natural disasters. The artwork depicts the harrowing tsunami and violence viscerally but not so graphic as to be unapproachable. A great read for teens who are interested in recent history, familial relationships, and human rights work.