Sister Water

Landscapes of Childhood

by Nancy Willard

The widowed Jessie Woolman, now in her seventies, her two married daughters, Ellen and Martha, and two grandchildren live in Ann Arbor, where the family owns a museum that harbors a meandering stream and historical artifacts of the region bounded by the rivers. Just as Jessie's aging mind begins to wander, Ellen's husband dies in a car accident and the Woolman family begins a new journey led by two very different Harvey Mack, a developer with an eye on the Woolman property and the grieving Ellen, and Sam Theopolis, a mystic hired to care for Jessie. Sam becomes both Harvey's rival and a healing presence for the family until a crisis descends and he, too, needs the protection of the Woolmans' innocent belief in the saving power of love.

Combining sorrow and grief with considerable light-hearted wit and eccentric characters, Sister Water is a novel that will reach old and young readers alike. Through her lyrical prose, author Nancy Willard draws on the rich style of magical realism to create a narrative flow that is at once powerful and seductive. Important to the Landscapes of Childhood series, this novel raises significant questions about the state of childhood and how that state affects adult sensibilities.

Genres: Fiction

240 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1993

About the author

NANCY WILLARD was an award-winning children's author, poet, and essayist who received the Newbery Medal in 1982 for A Visit to William Blake's Inn. She wrote dozens of volumes of children's fiction and poetry, including The Flying Bed, Sweep Dreams, and Cinderella's Dress. She also authored two novels for adults, Things Invisible to See and Sister Water, and twelve books of poetry, including Swimming Lessons: New and Selected Poems. She lived with her husband, photographer Eric Lindbloom, and taught at Vassar College in Poughkeepsie, New York.

Reviews

[Lilah Doblin · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love magical realism and especially Nancy Willard, who is so so good at it. This book is about sisters and mothers and unlikely friendships and underground streams that connect two worlds. It was whimsical and quirky and so fun — it made me feel that magic is everywhere!!

[Ann · Rating 5 out of 5]

As a fan of magic realism, I was primed to love this book before I opened its covers (if ambiguity bothers you, however, leave this book on the shelf).

The first chapter was the most difficult to get into, but once I found my bearings in this world Nancy Willard created, I was immersed. In the nearly 20 years since then, it's become like a favorite old quilt, or a hugged-to-pieces teddy bear: something I often return to for comfort.

However, it is not all sweetness and light (despite the line in the publisher's blurb about "innocent belief in the healing power of love."). Some wounds remain unhealed, and some shadows remain dark. For me, the joy expressed in this story comes by way of finding beauty in the midst of the pain, and the assurance that, despite all appearances, we are never alone, and all life is interconnected.

Nancy Willard's keen eye for detail, especially of undomesticated nature, and the grace of her language, beyond the arc of the plot, also convey a love of the world, and all the people (human and otherwise) within it.

[Christine · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such poetic storytelling!

[Sharry · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely loved this book.(Okay, so I am one of those readers that tends to get overwhelmingly infatuated with a certain kind of writing, and Nancy Willard's work is the current object of my deep affection) Although perhaps 'softly' plotted, Willard has drawn her characters with such generosity and tenderness, creating for them a landscape where it is possible to cross between the worlds of despair and hope/faith, human folly and purity of heart, matter and spirit.

[Rene Glendening · Rating 2 out of 5]

I found this book on the $2.00 shelf at my local used book store. It's a weird one! I guess I should have been warned by the words "magical realism" among others in the book jacket despcription. This will definitely go down as one of those books that I desperately want to put down and never pick up again. I give it 2 stars because although the story and characters were extremely odd, the author clearly has a skill for writing and creativity; it's just not my cup of tea.

[Kathi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nancy Willard infuses magic into all of her books, but this one stands out. It's a love story, it's a grandmother story, it's a wise story. There's a river in the basement, a young man with wings tattooed on his shoulder, and a dog who crosses from one side of life to another. It's a beauty of a book. Trust me.

[Elisabeth · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very lyrical and poetic, a lovely book. One of my all-time favorites.

[Manya · Rating 5 out of 5]

I usually don't love magic realism but this was amazing. Well written, compelling, unpredictable, I couldn't put it down.

[Jill · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was only ok. There was very little plot, and I didn't like the mythical/ magical element.

[Nance · Rating 5 out of 5]

A little book full of wisdom, lovely characters and oftentimes hilarious. Second time reading it.

[Margaret]

Could not get into this book. Did not read