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The Nature of Water and Air
My mother was never easy in the world of houses. She was a tinker, a traveler girl who had married a wealthy man. Her name was Agatha Sheehy....There are silences all around my mother's story.
So begins The Nature of Water and Air, set on a patch of Irish coast where, amid a flurry of whispers, we meet Agatha's only surviving daughter, Clodagh. Determined to secure her mother's elusive love and the truth about her, Clodagh is swept into a relationship with a handsome, isolated man. He brings her to the heart of her mother's story, where she must confront the questions "Does a truth change love?" and "What madness will come from chasing a secret?"
Powerfully sensitive, this startling debut novel about forbidden love will place Regina McBride among our most celebrated novelists.
So begins The Nature of Water and Air, set on a patch of Irish coast where, amid a flurry of whispers, we meet Agatha's only surviving daughter, Clodagh. Determined to secure her mother's elusive love and the truth about her, Clodagh is swept into a relationship with a handsome, isolated man. He brings her to the heart of her mother's story, where she must confront the questions "Does a truth change love?" and "What madness will come from chasing a secret?"
Powerfully sensitive, this startling debut novel about forbidden love will place Regina McBride among our most celebrated novelists.
320 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2000
19 people are currently reading
711 people want to read
About the author
Regina McBride
12 books83 followersRegina McBride is the author of The Nature of Water and Air, The Land of Women, and The Marriage Bed. She is the recipient of fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts and the New York Foundation for the Arts. Her poems have been widely published in literary journals and magazines, and her book of poetry, Yarrow Field, won an American Book Series Award.
She grew up in Santa Fe, New Mexico, and lived for a time in Ireland. She teaches creative writing at Hunter College in New York City, where she lives with her husband and daughter.
She grew up in Santa Fe, New Mexico, and lived for a time in Ireland. She teaches creative writing at Hunter College in New York City, where she lives with her husband and daughter.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 135 reviews
December 1, 2008
This book is an example of how a well-written book can go awry. From the first page, I was hooked on the writing style. The author seemed to be a pro at beautiful prose poetry style writing. And although the first segment of the plot, with the protagonist, her sister, their mother, and a housekeeper all living in a house by the sea, seemed to go on far too long, the book later picked up pace and began being quite good.
But then came the ending.
I had heard that this book had a strange ending, and I thought "well I don't mind that." If by "strange" people mean "gross, disturbing, and a complete let-down" then I wholeheartedly agree.
And another thing...I've read books that use mythic subjects as a metaphor, and I've read mythic fiction books in which magic becomes real, but I've never before read a book that *reads* like the latter, so that you read and read, expecting a wonderful magic twist at the end, and then it ends up being the former, with the "twist" ending being just plain disturbing.
If it weren't for the amazingly eloquent writing, I'd give this 1 star.
But then came the ending.
I had heard that this book had a strange ending, and I thought "well I don't mind that." If by "strange" people mean "gross, disturbing, and a complete let-down" then I wholeheartedly agree.
And another thing...I've read books that use mythic subjects as a metaphor, and I've read mythic fiction books in which magic becomes real, but I've never before read a book that *reads* like the latter, so that you read and read, expecting a wonderful magic twist at the end, and then it ends up being the former, with the "twist" ending being just plain disturbing.
If it weren't for the amazingly eloquent writing, I'd give this 1 star.
January 26, 2010
I thought this book was beautifully written. I think that people are getting too distracted with what was admittedly a very disturbing and taboo twist. I did not love the twist, but I do not think the author's intent was to disgust the reader, but more to fully relay to you the core of the story. This is about Clodagh trying to figure out herself and even more than that, her mother. She is essentially so fascinated by her mother and the story that she does not know, that she is brought to a dark place. I really believe that Clodagh wanted to be her mother, and to really embody what she thought her mother was. I also think she knew even as she did this that her decisions and her mother's were so wrong. I loved the whole Selkie myth and the way it was woven through. I had this feeling while reading this that the time period it was supposed to be taking place in felt false. I was reading this like it was taking place in the 1800's for some reason.
April 30, 2013
Wow. I did enjoy this book, but it was QUITE unsettling... truly crossing the line into disturbing territory, even. The plot really took me by surprise. It was hard to see what was coming, and even in the moments that took more predictable turns, it wasn’t something that a reader wanted to correctly guess. While not an uplifting book (at all), its harshness was really balanced about by the moments of beauty and the strength of the writing itself. The shock of the end really overshadowed the majority of the book. The haunting quality of it is really lingering... and I have no idea of what I will read next! I did really like it, even if it was so shockingly upsetting.
July 24, 2007
Set on the Irish coastline, this book is hauntingly beautiful, sad, sensitive, and thought-provoking. I love books with an ironic (even if it's heart-breaking) twist and surprise. She is a beautiful storyteller.
November 7, 2011
This is the only novel i ever chose to read twice. It remains my favorite ever.
unfinished
September 12, 2012Regina McBride is a poet and this, her first novel, feels very much like poetry. The prose has a sweet, lilting quality. It's steeped in sensation and emotional resonance. It's lovely. But, for me, it was a little too immediate. Too much water and air. Not enough thoughtful analysis. WAY too much horrifying sex. --I don't mean "graphic." I definitely mean "horrifying."
McBride achieved what she set out to do. (Or I'll assume she did.) It just isn't for me.
McBride achieved what she set out to do. (Or I'll assume she did.) It just isn't for me.
January 24, 2008
Regina McBride, The Nature of Water and Air (Simon and Schuster, 2001)
Wow.
Okay, now that my first impressions are out of the way, this is one hell of a ride. All the more so because most books that have that effect on me are your typical big budget thrillers that, were they to go to the big screen, would be directed by John McTiernan or someone along those lines who uses a lot of pyrotechnics. The Nature of Water and Air is anything but; stuff doesn't blow up here at all. In fact, it tends to do quite the opposite; characters implode on a fairly regular basis, but they do so within the context of a pervasive atmosphere that this is the way things are supposed to be. It's hard to explain why something that's so low-key can have such an effect, but I'll give it a go.
Everything that makes this book work is atmosphere-- big old houses that are falling apart, characters for whom clinical depression means things are looking up, Catholic schools harboring reclusive nuns, it all adds up to an unshakable feeling that not only is something bad bound to happen, but that everything that's bound to happen is bad. It's the revival of classic tragedy--bad things happen not because of the flaws in the characters (and there are certainly character flaws aplenty), but because the gods have deemed that, for these folks, the dice came up snake eyes again and again, no matter how many chances they got. And yet still, when bad things happen to these people (be they good or not so good), every once in a while the way in which the bad things happen, or the scope of the bad things that do happen, is carried off so brilliantly that it might as well be the roof of the Nakatomi Plaza being blown to bits in Die Hard. Enchanting.
The story centers around Clodagh Sheehy and her mother, Agatha. Clodagh's father has been dead for most of her life, and she has no memory of him. She has a twin sister, Margaret Mary, who's too frail to do much other than play the piano once in a while. To top it all off, she's convinced that her mother is a selkie, a seal taken human form who is destined to return to the sea at some point. Agatha married into the Sheehy family, and is not beloved of the rest of her husband's family, so they send her to the other side of Ireland to live in a decrepit mansion the family still owns over there. Mrs. O'Dare, one of the housekeepers, comes along for the ride, and it is there our story opens. Most of the action goes forward through the reader finding out more and more about Clodagh's family (the unraveling of her mother's mysterious origins, the relationships between Agatha's husband and his sisters, etc.), but there is also Clodagh's growing up; the book takes place over the span ow twenty years. from Clodagh's girlhood until just after her twenty-first birthday.
It is an uncompromisingly dark novel, one for which the word "bleak" is too light and airy. And yet it never fails to be beautiful. ****
Wow.
Okay, now that my first impressions are out of the way, this is one hell of a ride. All the more so because most books that have that effect on me are your typical big budget thrillers that, were they to go to the big screen, would be directed by John McTiernan or someone along those lines who uses a lot of pyrotechnics. The Nature of Water and Air is anything but; stuff doesn't blow up here at all. In fact, it tends to do quite the opposite; characters implode on a fairly regular basis, but they do so within the context of a pervasive atmosphere that this is the way things are supposed to be. It's hard to explain why something that's so low-key can have such an effect, but I'll give it a go.
Everything that makes this book work is atmosphere-- big old houses that are falling apart, characters for whom clinical depression means things are looking up, Catholic schools harboring reclusive nuns, it all adds up to an unshakable feeling that not only is something bad bound to happen, but that everything that's bound to happen is bad. It's the revival of classic tragedy--bad things happen not because of the flaws in the characters (and there are certainly character flaws aplenty), but because the gods have deemed that, for these folks, the dice came up snake eyes again and again, no matter how many chances they got. And yet still, when bad things happen to these people (be they good or not so good), every once in a while the way in which the bad things happen, or the scope of the bad things that do happen, is carried off so brilliantly that it might as well be the roof of the Nakatomi Plaza being blown to bits in Die Hard. Enchanting.
The story centers around Clodagh Sheehy and her mother, Agatha. Clodagh's father has been dead for most of her life, and she has no memory of him. She has a twin sister, Margaret Mary, who's too frail to do much other than play the piano once in a while. To top it all off, she's convinced that her mother is a selkie, a seal taken human form who is destined to return to the sea at some point. Agatha married into the Sheehy family, and is not beloved of the rest of her husband's family, so they send her to the other side of Ireland to live in a decrepit mansion the family still owns over there. Mrs. O'Dare, one of the housekeepers, comes along for the ride, and it is there our story opens. Most of the action goes forward through the reader finding out more and more about Clodagh's family (the unraveling of her mother's mysterious origins, the relationships between Agatha's husband and his sisters, etc.), but there is also Clodagh's growing up; the book takes place over the span ow twenty years. from Clodagh's girlhood until just after her twenty-first birthday.
It is an uncompromisingly dark novel, one for which the word "bleak" is too light and airy. And yet it never fails to be beautiful. ****
April 17, 2010
This is not my review. It is a review from Luan Gaines but much better than I could write:
Indeed, the young Clodagh lives in thrall of her beautiful if distant mother, Agatha Sheehy, one come from the world of itinerant tinkers, who listens carefully to the call of the wild land where they live, at the edge of the sea. Agatha's actions are shrouded with secrecy and sexual intimation, and she drifts just beyond her daughter's knowing, unwilling to be caught by time or place.
Clodagh's fragile twin sister, Mare, has died, and the girl wills Mare to remain, if only as her other half, the opposite coin of her identity. She plays the piano one-handed, leaving the other part, the other hand, for Mare, and shares her innermost fears, sometimes staring into the cloudy mirror, hoping for a glimpse of her "other" self. Their father, Frank Sheehy, dies before the twin's birth, and Clodagh desperately clings to the only person left alive: her mother. But, like the mythological selkie, half-seal, half-woman, Agatha returns to the depths of the sea, unwilling to remain in this world, unable to meet the needs of her surviving daughter. Cut adrift and friendless but for a loving housekeeper, Clodagh begins a journey toward self-discovery, often tangled between the worlds of reality and superstition. In reaching out to identify the face of her mother, Clodagh discovers the truth of herself. Her adolescence is often painful and life changing, her passion for music frequently the only solace. Away at convent school or living with her paternal aunts, this is a world where Clodagh cannot find a place. Clodagh's dead father Frank, her possibly real father, a tinker, and her own early foray into sexuality are without meaning until she allows the woman inside to break free and claim own identity.
McBride's novel is flooded with images, page after page, opening windows that may only exist in this magic land, Ireland. The vast canvas of such rugged, gorgeous geography serves as the background for dreams and emotions as tumultuous and changeable as the storm-tossed waves that beat along the coast. This author has accomplished more than storytelling; she has opened my imagination to the true nature of Ireland, the very nature of water and air.
Indeed, the young Clodagh lives in thrall of her beautiful if distant mother, Agatha Sheehy, one come from the world of itinerant tinkers, who listens carefully to the call of the wild land where they live, at the edge of the sea. Agatha's actions are shrouded with secrecy and sexual intimation, and she drifts just beyond her daughter's knowing, unwilling to be caught by time or place.
Clodagh's fragile twin sister, Mare, has died, and the girl wills Mare to remain, if only as her other half, the opposite coin of her identity. She plays the piano one-handed, leaving the other part, the other hand, for Mare, and shares her innermost fears, sometimes staring into the cloudy mirror, hoping for a glimpse of her "other" self. Their father, Frank Sheehy, dies before the twin's birth, and Clodagh desperately clings to the only person left alive: her mother. But, like the mythological selkie, half-seal, half-woman, Agatha returns to the depths of the sea, unwilling to remain in this world, unable to meet the needs of her surviving daughter. Cut adrift and friendless but for a loving housekeeper, Clodagh begins a journey toward self-discovery, often tangled between the worlds of reality and superstition. In reaching out to identify the face of her mother, Clodagh discovers the truth of herself. Her adolescence is often painful and life changing, her passion for music frequently the only solace. Away at convent school or living with her paternal aunts, this is a world where Clodagh cannot find a place. Clodagh's dead father Frank, her possibly real father, a tinker, and her own early foray into sexuality are without meaning until she allows the woman inside to break free and claim own identity.
McBride's novel is flooded with images, page after page, opening windows that may only exist in this magic land, Ireland. The vast canvas of such rugged, gorgeous geography serves as the background for dreams and emotions as tumultuous and changeable as the storm-tossed waves that beat along the coast. This author has accomplished more than storytelling; she has opened my imagination to the true nature of Ireland, the very nature of water and air.
July 23, 2013
I did not actually read this book, I listened to it on audio. The atmosphere of this book comes through with every word. The narrator spoke in the lilting Irish accent that only added depth to the story that I am sure I would have missed had I read this. Some books are meant to be heard, rather than read. If you have a choice, listen to this one.
The sentence structure of this book is far from plain, but at the same time, is not too flowery. Sometimes a word was simply exchanged for a more perfect word that made this such a joy to listen to.
I was pulled in to this book from the very first paragraphs. Clodagh (pronounced Clo - long o - duh) has a very mysterious mother who was a tinker (also known as a traveler) in her younger years when she catches the eye of Clodagh's father Frank Sheehy. He is of genteel Irish upbringing with two sisters and himself living on the family estate. Frank is taken by her untamed, wild beauty.
Sadly Frank passes away early in the story and the rest of the book is more about Clodagh, her twin sister Mary, and her mother Agatha. Along with the housekeeper Mrs. O'Dare, Agatha struggles with being drawn to her tinker roots while raising her two small daughters while banished to a distant house belonging to the Sheehy family.
Tangled amongst this story is the legend of the Selkie, a mythical sea animal that becomes human through her relationship with a man. Add Clodagh's longing for a father figure and later as she matures, for someone to love, and you've a cast of characters poised for joy and heartbreak.
At times I felt I could feel the meadow grass, hear the birds, feel the howling sea wind of the Irish coast. Slow in its telling this haunting novel, in the tradition of the oral Irish storyteller, is not a book you read with speed in mind.
Sadly, this book also has some very disturbing twists that were not my favorite. (No spoilers from me on exactly what.) This book, with the talents of this master weaver of words, could be amazing no matter which way she'd decided to turn the plot. Even with the twists I didn't like, all is forgiven at the end of this beautifully written story. Sometimes I love a book not for the story as a whole, but the sum of its parts. This is one of those books.
Recommended for fans of Angela's Ashes, Ireland, and on a totally unrelated subject matter but a book that must be listened to rather than read - Ava's Man.
The sentence structure of this book is far from plain, but at the same time, is not too flowery. Sometimes a word was simply exchanged for a more perfect word that made this such a joy to listen to.
I was pulled in to this book from the very first paragraphs. Clodagh (pronounced Clo - long o - duh) has a very mysterious mother who was a tinker (also known as a traveler) in her younger years when she catches the eye of Clodagh's father Frank Sheehy. He is of genteel Irish upbringing with two sisters and himself living on the family estate. Frank is taken by her untamed, wild beauty.
Sadly Frank passes away early in the story and the rest of the book is more about Clodagh, her twin sister Mary, and her mother Agatha. Along with the housekeeper Mrs. O'Dare, Agatha struggles with being drawn to her tinker roots while raising her two small daughters while banished to a distant house belonging to the Sheehy family.
Tangled amongst this story is the legend of the Selkie, a mythical sea animal that becomes human through her relationship with a man. Add Clodagh's longing for a father figure and later as she matures, for someone to love, and you've a cast of characters poised for joy and heartbreak.
At times I felt I could feel the meadow grass, hear the birds, feel the howling sea wind of the Irish coast. Slow in its telling this haunting novel, in the tradition of the oral Irish storyteller, is not a book you read with speed in mind.
Sadly, this book also has some very disturbing twists that were not my favorite. (No spoilers from me on exactly what.) This book, with the talents of this master weaver of words, could be amazing no matter which way she'd decided to turn the plot. Even with the twists I didn't like, all is forgiven at the end of this beautifully written story. Sometimes I love a book not for the story as a whole, but the sum of its parts. This is one of those books.
Recommended for fans of Angela's Ashes, Ireland, and on a totally unrelated subject matter but a book that must be listened to rather than read - Ava's Man.
February 2, 2011
Emily White of the New York Times Book Review says “Regina McBride writes in a shimmering and often hypnotic prose style, one that’s full of incantatory repetition…The Nature of Water and Air has an urgent melancholy about it — it casts an undeniable spell.”
I have mixed feelings about this book. On the one hand, I thought McBride managed to capture a particular time and place (1970s Ireland) extremely well. I was intrigued by the book’s opening lines: “There are silences all around my mother’s story.” But in some intangible way, I felt that the novel failed me.
The narrator of The Nature of Water and Air is Clodagh, a sensitive, intelligent girl whose life is touched by tragedy. Clodagh and her twin sister, Mare, live with Agatha, their emotionally distant mother, and Mrs. O’Dare, their housekeeper, in a crumbling manor house. Agatha is not a traditional mother - before she “settled” she was a tinker- part of a sub-culture of people who traveled in caravans, selling bits and pieces and camping in fields. What little affection Agatha does manage to share goes to Mare, who is very ill and subsequently dies. Clodagh spends the rest of her young childhood watching her mother from behind corners and through windows.
It is difficult to say much more about this book without spoiling some of its revelations.
McBride is a poet and it’s apparent in her prose. Her writing is lyrical and often quite lovely, but it also occasionally stands in the way of the narrative. While I can’t say that I loved this book, I certainly appreciated McBride’s talent. And in the end, despite some of the questions I had, I felt satisfied by the time I had spent with Clodagh.
I have mixed feelings about this book. On the one hand, I thought McBride managed to capture a particular time and place (1970s Ireland) extremely well. I was intrigued by the book’s opening lines: “There are silences all around my mother’s story.” But in some intangible way, I felt that the novel failed me.
The narrator of The Nature of Water and Air is Clodagh, a sensitive, intelligent girl whose life is touched by tragedy. Clodagh and her twin sister, Mare, live with Agatha, their emotionally distant mother, and Mrs. O’Dare, their housekeeper, in a crumbling manor house. Agatha is not a traditional mother - before she “settled” she was a tinker- part of a sub-culture of people who traveled in caravans, selling bits and pieces and camping in fields. What little affection Agatha does manage to share goes to Mare, who is very ill and subsequently dies. Clodagh spends the rest of her young childhood watching her mother from behind corners and through windows.
It is difficult to say much more about this book without spoiling some of its revelations.
McBride is a poet and it’s apparent in her prose. Her writing is lyrical and often quite lovely, but it also occasionally stands in the way of the narrative. While I can’t say that I loved this book, I certainly appreciated McBride’s talent. And in the end, despite some of the questions I had, I felt satisfied by the time I had spent with Clodagh.
August 21, 2013
This is one of the most well written stories I have ever come across. The author truly has a way with words. I loved the fact that this story was something different. Irish Literature at its best. Reader beware though this novel deals with depressing and taboo subject matter that may not be everyone's cup of tea.
April 10, 2023
Made me feel icky
April 4, 2021
no idea how this book came into my being, & i absolutely would’ve never picked it out myself. so not surprising that i found it just fine. it’s the most beautifully written, languid & lyrical. i also found it achingly sad, completely unsettling, plus i haaaated the ending. i’m gonna think about it for a while.
January 30, 2009
This book is beautifully written, almost poetic. Regina McBride tells a gripping story that revolves around love, folklore, and the ability to find yourself.
Clodagh is on a journey to discover herself and the secrets of her family. She wants only to find some acceptance and love. She does find it but only to realize that other darker things are at work here.
The atmosphere in this story is what helps to make it so compelling. We can almost see the buildings, the water and the fires that burn. We can most definitely feel Clodagh's pain and anguish.
While this is a dark story, it is worth the read. I hated to see it end.
Clodagh is on a journey to discover herself and the secrets of her family. She wants only to find some acceptance and love. She does find it but only to realize that other darker things are at work here.
The atmosphere in this story is what helps to make it so compelling. We can almost see the buildings, the water and the fires that burn. We can most definitely feel Clodagh's pain and anguish.
While this is a dark story, it is worth the read. I hated to see it end.
January 31, 2008
I really enjoyed this book though it seems I'm on a kick with reading books containing subjects that may be uncomfortable or downright unacceptable to some. I'm not going to give away what it is because to me, it's a pivotal place in the book and you'd lose part of what makes this book so beautiful if you knew from the beginning. I'd recommend it...the writing is beautiful...I felt like I could literally see and smell what was described...and the characters and story will gain your interest and your sympathy.
April 2, 2013
A beautiful story about a young girl, the loss of her family, and her grips with finding her own identity. Told in Ireland, Clodagh is born to a mother whom everyone believes is a Selkie. After the death of Clodagh's wealthy father, Clodagh's mother becomes more attached to Clodagh's twin sister Mare. After Mare's early death, Cloddagh's mother seems to abandon her altogether and reclaim her old life as a tinker.
A beautiful story that capture's the essence of Ireland and the life of Tinkers.
A beautiful story that capture's the essence of Ireland and the life of Tinkers.
December 9, 2016
Reading Regina McBride's latest book, her memoir, GHOST SONGS made me think of her debut novel "THE NATURE OF WATER AND AIR," which I remember loving for its beautiful language, and they way she incorporated the myth about Selkies who live as seals in the sea but shed their skin to become human on land. I regret not having written a review when I first read this lyrical and sensorial book, but recommend it to you.
February 22, 2011
I'm enjoying this as much as I did The Marriage Bed. I look forward to everything this author has, or will have to offer.
I've been reading some of the reviews here - I don't really know what happens at the end, but I doubt I'll be that shocked.
Better wait till I get there, I guess but I doubt I'll change my rating.
I've been reading some of the reviews here - I don't really know what happens at the end, but I doubt I'll be that shocked.
Better wait till I get there, I guess but I doubt I'll change my rating.
January 26, 2008
This is a sordid tale of love, passion and destiny. I am not one for sordid twisted plots, but her style of writing is remarkable. It was a riveting read. If not for the twisted end I would have rated the book a five star.
August 9, 2010
One of the more intriguing books I've ever read. Touchy subject matter, but what I rally liked about it was that I never could guess ahead of time where the author was going with something and something always surprised me. Definitely not predictable.
June 1, 2013
Wonderful book. Regina was able to depict the life of a female that is living, thinking , and striving for wholeness in a way I have never read, only experienced first-hand. Well done. I think we are all her students today; with a teacher that took something deep from herself and gave it to us.
February 6, 2015
Second star for the language, it was beautiful.
But what a terrible book! Star-crossed lovers, bad mothers, evil aunts and a cliche-built heroine with a great talent - everything is in there. Readers, stay away, crappy romance inside. I so regret spending dollar on it.
But what a terrible book! Star-crossed lovers, bad mothers, evil aunts and a cliche-built heroine with a great talent - everything is in there. Readers, stay away, crappy romance inside. I so regret spending dollar on it.
July 8, 2011
I read this two years ago and loved it! Today for some reason I picked it up again and I can't put it down. Utterly beautiful, steeped in myth. The kind of novel that bears periodic re-reading.
March 11, 2010
Beautiful writing. Intense story, McBride draws you into her world completely.
April 23, 2011
This book was full of pain and beauty. It made my heart ache.
February 17, 2011
Fascinating, obscure novel about Irish Travellers.
March 12, 2011
I loved it. But not for those with very conservative views or who might be easily offended. Looks like people either loved it or hated it.
August 14, 2011
An engrossing little book that I couldn't put down.
December 27, 2011
Is fada cuimhne sean leanbh.
(An old child has a long memory.)
- Irish proverb
(An old child has a long memory.)
- Irish proverb
July 17, 2012
One of my favorite books. I have the audio version, and the reading, as well as the writing, is beautiful and full-bodied. This story is deeply sad, but so beautiful.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 135 reviews