The Waters (novel)

The Waters is a 2024 novel by Michigan author Bonnie Jo Campbell.

Plot

On an island in the middle of a swamp in Michigan, a family has lived for generations.
The matriarch, Hermine Zook, is a healer and herbalist who inspires fear and hope in the people of the local town, Whiteheart.
Living on the island with her is her granddaughter, Dorothy, who is a budding mathematician and herbalist.

List of main characters

Hermine "Herself" Zook – Herbalist and eccentric matriarch of the Zook family
Primrose "Prim" Zook – Herself's daughter, a lawyer
Molly Zook – Herself's daughter, a nurse
Rose Thorn Zook - Herself's daughter, beautiful and lazy
Dorothy "Donkey" Zook – Rose Thorn's daughter, a budding mathematician and herbalist
Titus Clay, Jr. – Rose Thorn's love interest, a farmer

Reception

The novel was chosen as a Read with Jenna January 2024 Book Club pick. Ron Charles of The Washington Post described it as "pure magic". The Los Angeles Times' Jane Smiley described the novel as "earthy" and a "thought-provoking and readable exploration of eccentricity and of all different kinds of love".