Heart Like Water: Surviving Katrina and Life in Its Disaster Zone

by Joshua Clark

Try it. Right now. Picture the lights going off in the room you're sitting in. The computer, the air conditioning, phones, everything. Then the people, every last person in your building, on the street outside, the entire neighborhood, vanished. With them go all chitchat, coughs, cars, and that wordless, almost impalpable hum of a city. And no dogs, no birds, not even a cricket's legs rubbing together, not even a smell. Now bump it up to 95 degrees. Turn your radio on and listen to 80 percent of your city drowning. You're almost there. Only twenty-eight days to go.

Joshua Clark never left New Orleans during Hurricane Katrina, choosing instead to band together with fellow holdouts in the French Quarter, pooling resources and volunteering energy in an effort to save the city they loved. When Katrina hit, Clark, a key correspondent for National Public Radio during the storm, immediately began to record hundreds of hours of conversations with its victims, not only in the city but throughout the the devastated poor and rich alike; rescue workers from around the country; reporters; local characters who could exist nowhere else but New Orleans; politicians; the woman Clark loved, in a relationship ravaged by the storm. Their voices resound throughout this memoir of a unique and little-known moment of anarchy and chaos, of heartbreaking kindness and incomprehensible anguish, of mercy and madness as only America could deliver it.

Paying homage to the emotional power of Joan Didion, the journalistic authority of Norman Mailer, and the gonzo irreverence of Tom Wolfe, Joshua Clark takes us through the experiences of loss and renewal, resilience and hope, in a city unlike any other. With lyrical sympathy, humility, and humor, Heart Like Water marks an astonishing and important national debut.

A portion of the author's royalties from this book will go to the Katrina Arts Relief and Emergency Support (KARES) fund, which supports New Orleans-area writers affected by the storm.Visit www.NewOrleansLiteraryInstitute.com to find out how to make a direct and positive impact on the region.

Genres: Nonfiction, Memoir, History, Biography

368 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2007

Reviews

[Catherine · Rating 2 out of 5]

I struggled to make it halfway through this book. I really tried to give it a chance. The first strike being that the media coverage on Katrina was so intense and unending for such an extended period of time that it's difficult to learn any new, pertinent information that you haven't already heard or read about. Clark's account suffers from dense, miniscule information that turns into a slog to pick through. It reads like a transcript. My biggest gripe with Clark is the daily excessive alcohol consumption, most of the time acquired by looting, and his lack of moral ethics, i.e., entering strangers' apartments, using their telephone, sleeping in their apartments, even though he could have slept in his own place, and partying with his friends. As an Amazon reviewer put it, he behaved like a "frat boy." If that wasn't the case, at least that's the impression I got from his writing. I wasn't there, so I can't possibly know exactly what it was like. But I lived through a devastating natural disaster that destroyed our home, and somehow my family worked through the recovery effort without resorting to the behavior exhibited by Clark and his cohorts.

[Diane · Rating 1 out of 5]

I found this book nearly unreadable. The subject matter fascinated me, but the writer seemed very self-absorbed. The book is at its best when the New Orleans voices come through; at its worst when the author reflects on his relationship with his girlfriend. I'm also bothered that he continues to be described as a chief correspondent for NPR, when in actuality, he was someone they were able to contact by cell phone and continued to interview through out the Katrina disaster. So yes, he did report what he was seeing for NPR, but he wasn't an NPR correspondent that they sent to New Orleans to cover the story.

[Ronald Wilcox · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 stars

I live in New Orleans and this year is the 20th anniversary of Hurricane Katrina so I decided to read this memoir of a man who lived in an apartment on Jackson Square when Katrina hit who stayed throughout the hurricane as well as the one three weeks later (Rita) which also hit Louisiana. His story is interesting and most of the details intriguing but the most moving stories are from others who he interviews. Worth the time

[Lynette Lark · Rating 5 out of 5]

Two things this author recommends you have with you if you're going to go through a hurricane: mosquito netting and marijuana. The first so you can get some sleep and the second so you can barter.

[Mickie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book because Joshua Clark possesses in one brain and body more heart than most, tenrandom people combined. He proactively lived through a disaster that left his city in shatters and heshares those experiences with the world in the most honest and raw narrative, and it always feels truthful, energetic,and is often laced with acerbic humor. I love New Orleans, and still choke back tears when I reflect on the sheer magnitude of the lack of help and resources for a community at a time when it needed them the most. Still, from the depths of despair, Joshua reveals a human force so much filled with love and empathy - regular people helping one another in during their shutdown from the rest of the world. I was never so proud but to learn about so much kindness and patience and dedication, you know, attributes we all hope would arise during chaos and mayhem. I will write more about this book in the future on my blog: http://www.mickieturkauthor.blogspot.com Check it out in a few days.

[Hillary · Rating 4 out of 5]

this is a different memoir of the aftermath of Katrina, Rita & the federal flood than i expected. josh's account sounded privileged & a lot of this memoir angered me at first. however, this is his story and i was sorta relieved to read something different - to get a perspective i didn't realize existed. it was hard to imagine someone being so insensitive and not crying daily.
his musings are pretty affected at times (a seeming attempt to channel a poor man's Anthony Bourdain) and i almost felt uncomfortable with how popular josh made himself sound - like i am the last one in school to hear the ubercool kid's summer vacation story in october.
people unfamiliar with new orleans & the french quarter culture might not get a lot of it or understand the layout of the city - despite the included map. there are beautiful, thoughtful passages in here and the characters he runs into are classic new orleans. ultimately it feels really honest & it is definitely worth reading.

[Patty · Rating 2 out of 5]

What did you know about New Orleans before Katrina hit? Had you visited the city? Maybe for Mardi Gras? I had never been to New Orleans or even Lousiana. Neither had my husband.

However, after Katrina, my husband, two colleagues and a group of students went to New Orleans the January after the hurricane to tear down houses. It changed Bill's life. It gave both of us lots of questions about why such things could even happen.

Heart Like Water by Joshua Clark has given me more food for thought. It also gave me an opportunity to see into New Orleans at its most trying time. Clark stayed in the French Quarter for the whole terrible mess. He saw things that I can't even imagine.

As Kirkus says this is a "difficult and joyless read". It probably wasn't the book for the month of hearts and love. But thanks to the Book of the month challenge, I found it and I am not sorry to read it. I just hope and pray we can avoid another tragedy like this in our national history.

[Denise · Rating 5 out of 5]

I guess I sort of understand the negative reviews. This book isn't for everyone. But personally , I thought it was very raw and honest. It is very much a first person account of what was seen and experienced before, during and after Katrina right in the French Quarter. Told by someone who chose not to evacuate, it describes the sights, sounds, smells, sadness, comraderie, and coping that those who stayed experienced. It is only much later in the book that the author has ventured outside the Quarter and started to really see how vast the devastation was. I was riveted all the way through. Probably mostly because of how raw the writing is. There were no happy endings to this devastation. Not sure why anyone would pick up this book and expect any.

[Reggie · Rating 3 out of 5]

This account of Hurricane Katrina and its aftermath is more than a bit irreverent so far, but that is one of the reasons I chose to pick this book up. The author has managed to visit Johnny White's Sports Pub twice by page 34, which I can certainly identify with. I imagine this is how Andy Graber would have spent his post-Katrina days if he had been living in the French Quarter at that time. The difference is that Andy wouldn't have brought a tape recorder and a girlfriend along for the ride. I also suspect that National Public Radio wouldn't have been calling Mr. Graber for on-the-scene reports.

[Michelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

I never did finish this book but want to buy it. As with most books, it's an issue of taste. I have to say it was possibly a bit of morbid fascination that I continued to read this book. The colossal joke of how Katrina was handled was shown in more detail. If you don't like any "bad behavior", this is not a touch of sugar for your cup of tea. A little dangerous living while "taking a stand" and continuing your day job with your old and new friends---a long, surrrrrreal journal of sorts....

[Churleys · Rating 1 out of 5]

Heard him interviewed on NPR- I am having a hard time getting thru it- it seems as if he wrote the book and then decided it needed adjectives- it doesnt flow- I hope it contains good info about the victims and their stories- so far nope. This book is written poorly, the stories are not really so much about the victims as they are about this guys experience , which isnt very interesting and his relationship with his, apparently usually naked, girlfriend. I found it boring and disappointing.

[Bettynz (Larraine) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really fascinating insight into life in New Orleans during Katrina from the perspective of someone who didn't evacuate, but stayed, along with his girlfriend and other randoms, in the French Quarter for the duration. Some incredible contrasts between the portrayal of events in the media and what it was like in his shoes. Day to day survival, travel around the quarter and then the city, inspection of the levees and rescue of inhabitants and animals. The friendships and the fallout. A good read.

[Lisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you want to learn about life, love, and the magic that is New Orleans, Joshua is the artist that brings it all together- but not in the traditional sense. There is no other book on the market- maybe Chris Rose's 'original' One Dead in Attic that captures the essense of what life is really like.

[Skip · Rating 1 out of 5]

Terrible book. The writing is tedious, slow and I really don't care about how many times this guy and his girlfriend have sex during Katrina.
Anyone wanting to know the Katrina story would not get it from this memoir.

[Stacy Lewis · Rating 1 out of 5]

Author stayed in New Orleans during and after Katrina, ignoring mandatory evacuation orders. Good first-person description of life in an empty town. I bought the book expecting more descriptions of what happened - what stories were true and what were lies. Disappointing.

[Jane · Rating 1 out of 5]

This was very disappointing. I really looked forward to hearing the story, but I had to set the book aside because there were too many sexual references and foul language. Where was the editor in all of this? I saw other reviews that said the same thing.

[Ted · Rating 2 out of 5]

starts out fantastic... but after about 100 pages you want to beat the author with a phone book. got so sick of it i never finished.

[Ellen · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was so damn conflicted over this book. Its such a compelling story, but the author left me cold. His unnerving obsession with Katrina seems borne of guilt.

[Anita]

Just started this yesterday and finding it very compelling.

[Lynn]

Coast Guard/Katrina

[Elusive.Mystery · Rating 3 out of 5]

A personal account of the author’s experiences staying in the French Quarter during and after Katrina, scavenging for booze and acting like the selfish jerk he seems to be.

[Ami Elizabeth · Rating 2 out of 5]

So absorbing but almost went on too long.