All the Water in the World by Eiren Caffall

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


I’ve been sampling a series of post-apocalyptic contemporary novels in search of “comps”–comparable titles–for my own. I’ve been putting most down, as they’re focused more on the action than the characters, but I’m pausing to write reviews about those that stand out. Eiren Caffall‘s All the Water in the World is one of the best entries I’ve come across in the copious environmental catastrophe category.

Caffall is a nature writer and science journalist who’s covered changing ecosystems. Her godfather’s experience during Hurricane Sandy gave her the idea of writing a novel about what would happen after a massive climate and civilizational collapse. The book follows a group of survivors in a now mostly deserted New York City who are living on the roof of the American Museum of Natural history, which they call Amen, and doing what they can to preserve the treasures there. The narrator is a thirteen year old girl who is neurodivergent, although whether she has an autism spectrum disorder, trauma, or something else isn’t explained. Still, Nonie is an interesting character with a feel for predicting storms, and her slightly askew point of view a fascinating perspective.

Much of the novel alternates between the present and flashbacks, which sometimes bog the story down. The book could have benefited from a looser structure, I think. But the novel stands out from others of its kind in its attention to character and its general thoughtfulness. Whereas other novels in this group tend to allow the action to take over, this one never loses sight of its characters and its reason for being. Caffall’s writing here evokes Emily St. John Mandel‘s outstanding pandemic novel Station Eleven. In fact, I’d be surprised if Caffall didn’t use that book as a model, as the climactic scene at the end echoes the one in Mandel’s book.

Caffall, a museum lover, asks what we save in times of collapse. She also takes seriously the question of what comes afterward. How can we build a better way? This is a thoughtful book wrapped in a speculative adventure story. It’s well worth reading and thinking about.