Noria Kaitio's father is the last in a long line of male tea masters. Despite her gender, Noria's father has been training Noria for the role of tea master. Tea Masters have traditionally held a lot of power and responsibility, as they have hidden knowledge of water. Water usage is strictly controlled by the military as global warming has decimated the earth. What choices will Noria make when tensions heighten and water becomes even scarcer than before?

MEMORY OF WATER is a very bleak and somewhat disturbing portrait of a world in which global warming has destroyed earth as we currently know it. Emmi Itäranta does a marvelous job at painting a dark, grim world in water has become a far more precious commodity than gold. I love how Norian and her friend, Sanja, comb through the debris of the past, seeking items that can be repaired or used for parts; it gives a very vivid message about how many of our items are not biodegradable and can last for generations.

However, the weightiness of the world itself, coupled with a somewhat preachy tone, makes MEMORY OF WATER a book that is far too easy to put down. Noria's own confusion and ambivalence about her relationships with her family, her friend, and even her own village also make her a very unreliable narrator and thus the ending leaves the reader with more questions than answers. I wanted to like MEMORY OF WATER a lot more than I did.

Emmi Itäranta's lyrical writing style is highlighted in MEMORY OF WATER. Her descriptions of water are quite stunning, enabling readers to easily envision the power water has in this desolate society. I only wish we had less preachiness and more plot development as MEMORY OF THE WATER has the potential for being a classic tale otherwise.

Book Summary

An amazing, award-winning speculative fiction debut novel by a major new talent, in the vein of Ursula K. Le Guin.

Global warming has changed the world’s geography and its politics. Wars are waged over water, and China rules Europe, including the Scandinavian Union, which is occupied by the power state of New Qian. In this far north place, seventeen-year-old Noria Kaitio is learning to become a tea master like her father, a position that holds great responsibility and great secrets. Tea masters alone know the location of hidden water sources, including the natural spring that Noria’s father tends, which once provided water for her whole village.

But secrets do not stay hidden forever, and after her father’s death the army starts watching their town—and Noria. And as water becomes even scarcer, Noria must choose between safety and striking out, between knowledge and kinship.

Imaginative and engaging, lyrical and poignant, Memory of Water is an indelible novel that portrays a future that is all too possible.