I really enjoyed this apocalyptic novel with a new slant, The whole world gets basically destroyed by water and Nonie, Bix, Keller and Dad made a life living on the roof of the American Natural History Museum aka Amen.They decide to leave to attempt to find the farm that should be a safe place for everyone. Their adventures vary and they encounter a variety of people along the way, some helpful & some evil. The characters are interesting and I liked the way their game of identifying insects ties the book together. One notable detriment of this book for me is the first part is very preachy about the use of Indigenous knowledge and technology by non-indigenous people. I feel like if it’s the end of the world then people would use whatever help they can get.

Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for a copy of this book..

This book is absolutely perfect for fans of Station Eleven and books like it. It captures the end of the world in a beautiful literary style and focuses on the preservation of humanity rather than mere survival. The backdrop of a museum and the POV of a young teen are perfect choices to view this "World as it is" and creates a beautiful blend of innocence and hunger for knowledge that no other main character could've offered.

I do wish there was a bit broader picture of the new world presented, but it makes sense that the POV character would have limited understanding of anything beyond what she's experienced or been told. If you enjoy literary style writing and are okay with a slow paced story, I highly recommend diving into this one.

In this powerfully compelling dystopian tale of climate change, toxic floodwaters have taken over much of the mainland, crops have failed, the army has move inland, the U.S. president takes refuge in an ocean liner offshore, and waves of refugees are constantly on the move. A few folks who worked at the American Museum of Natural History had keys and as water breached New York Ciity’s floodwalls, they raced over to a rooftop refuge behind the locked museum doors to escape what eventually became known as the “Old City.”

The Museum (“AMNH”) gets abbreviated to being pronounced AMEN, in respect and awe of the shelter it gave them. Nonie comes to AMEN as a young teen along with her older sibling Bix along with father and her mother who worked there. The small group of survivors takes on as their conservationist mission to save, and to catalog in a Museum Logbook, as many of the collections as possible. Nonie creates her own Water LogBook – cataloguing all the storms, floods, droughts, and surges. Nonie and Bix learn to hunt in the above water parts of Central Park, escape wild roaming dogs, and avoid “The Lost” which are all the displaced refugees seeking shelter and potable water. Of note, the AMEN community lets no Lost in their doors out of fear and protection of the Collection from being ransacked.

And it turns out that through a series of tragic events including a water borne Dengue type virus and a “hypercane” – a huge leap up from a hurricane, that day arrives and Nonie, Bix, their father, and another man Keller embark in a Museum display canoe out onto the toxic waters of the Hudson to head up north to a farmland belonging to her mother in western Massachusetts that has held out as a possible escape if they ever need to flee the museum. Their treacherous trek, filled with both physical hazards, death, dangerous people, and a deeply troubled walled town, has them fleeing to see if a second refuge can be found.

You get swept up into the story and its fast-moving waters and hold your breath to see who will survive and to glimpse a glimmer of a future out there in which humanity might once again thrive.


Thanks to St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for an advanced reader’s copy.

3.5 rounded up!

ALL THE WATER IN THE WORLD is a perfect dystopian novel for those that love the genre. Written in beautiful prose and a nonlinear timeline, it mixes the story of Station Eleven with the action of The Day After Tomorrow. The story, as told through the perspective of Nonie, is one that explores the idea of connection, family, and the damage we are doing to our planet. However, on a personal level, I didn't fully connect with the narrative style, which impacted my enjoyment of the novel itself.

As previously mentioned, this story is beautifully written and mixes the character driven aspect with action. The world that the author envisions is one that is unique, but also scarily plausible. The writing is gorgeous and tells of a world where people must not only trust each other, but form found families, as the world slowly succumbs to a rising sea level, disease, and the conflicting parts of human nature. It makes this a complex novel, but one that is interesting and makes you think.

However, what makes this story beautiful is also what made me lose some interest in the story as a whole. As told by Nonie, a child, the narrative style did not appeal to me personally. Because this is told through the eyes of a child, I felt that I missed a lot of information and that there were large fixations on the water itself, as that is what Nonie is interested in and feels connected to in this chaotic world. As a result, I didn't really feel engaged with the novel. And the pacing was a bit off for me. It was very slow and reflective towards the beginning, with action and flashbacks interlaced. And then it became all action, but not enough reflection for me to care about what the characters are experiencing.

Overall, if you love reflective stories, character driven novels with action, dystopian novels, slower storylines, and beautiful prose, this is your novel.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

“I can feel water and I can feel heavy weather on the way. ”
Here are reasons to read the SciFi book:

Glaciers - in a world where the earth has flooded and the glaciers melted
Museum - there is a small community living in the Museum of Natural History
Storm - but when when a storm wipes out most of their community
Safety - Nonie and her family must race to escape to safety, taking with them the logbook filled with their lost collections and information

When I heard about this book, I was surprised to hear it was based on stories from people in Iraq and Leningrad who tried to protect their collections during war times. While it was fast paced in a few parts, and suspenseful in others, if you watch any end of times movie, you will be familiar with the people this community meets along the way. It is almost expected to encounter selfish people desperate to survive, and this book definitely has a discussion about what this means in the bigger picture. While I thought it was beautifully told, I have to admit I got lost with the large amount of characters. I wish there was more time devoted to getting to know them.

Climate dystopian novels are becoming a favorite genre of mine. This one starts in NYC where everything is going under water. Nonie and her family have relocated from their apartment on 10th street to the Museum of Natural History where her mother worked. They live there with some other museum researchers and build a community, until a bad storm hits and they are forced to flee. The book chronicles their journey up the Hudson in search of Nonie’s grandparents farm in the Berkshires. This book is BLEAK but the writing is gorgeous. Think Migrations meets The Walking Dead. Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This book is absolutely perfect for fans of Station Eleven and books like it. It captures the end of the world in a beautiful literary style and focuses on the preservation of humanity rather than mere survival. The backdrop of a museum and the POV of a young teen are perfect choices to view this "World as it is" and creates a beautiful blend of innocence and hunger for knowledge that no other main character could've offered.

I do wish there was a bit broader picture of the new world presented, but it makes sense that the POV character would have limited understanding of anything beyond what she's experienced or been told. If you enjoy literary style writing and are okay with a slow paced story, I highly recommend diving into this one.

I love a good dystopian book, and this one was good. Different in the fact that the world is now mostly under water, there was still the same amount of drama, violence, and death as any other apocalyptic book.

The story centers around a young girl, her sister, their dad, and friend as they try to make their way from NYC to a family farm. All they encounter along the way makes for a tense and interesting story. While I think the book started out a little slow, and there is a lot of jumping between present day and the past, once they leave the museum where they were living, things really start to take off.

Overall, a highly enjoyable and original apocalyptic book, and one I would definitely recommend.

Thank you to NetGalley and Angry St. Martin’s Press for the advanced copy of this book.

Thank you to #StMartinsPress and #NetGalley for the digital ARC of #AlltheWaterintheWorld. The opinions expressed her are entirely my own.

This is an impressive debut novel set in a United States that has been dramatically changed by increasingly volatile weather. In a nearly deserted New York City, Nonie and her family take refuge in the Museum of Natural History, creating a settlement and forging a new life in the World As It Is. When a hypercane destroys the museum, the survivors are forced to leave in search of higher ground and a place to call home.

This is a compelling and timely story about family, human nature, climate change and finding purpose in the face of adversity. Highly recommend.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the complimentary digital ARC. I wish that I would have liked it as much as others seem to have liked it. I had difficulty staying with the book from the start. I am not sure if it was the writing style but I couldn't engage. It took a lot of effort for me to stick with it. Very slow paced. I took to reading it in chunks until I made it through. The storyline was solid, which kept me going out of curiosity. Global warming, climate change needs to be brought to everyone's attention. Three stars raising awareness of a significant issue--I will leave it at that.

Due to severe climate change, New York City is covered in water, as is much of the world. A strong, resourceful group of survivors lives on the roof of the Natural History Museum until a super hurricane destroys it. This is their story of hope and courage to travel north in a canoe to find a farm that once belonged to a family member. Depictions of the environment and atmosphere are so well written that it paints a very clear picture of the disastrous conditions they must face. The character development is also done extremely well, and much of the story is told from the viewpoint of a 12 year old girl. This could be called her coming of age story along with a dystopian adventure. Lots of doom and gloom with a trickle of light at the end.

All the Water in the World by Eiren Caffall is a dystopian novel set in a world where storms have destroyed parts of it. It is filled with gripping descriptions of what the world could become. The story is told from the perspective of Nonie, a preteen, and shows her coming of age during this disaster. The pacing, at times, could be slow, but overall, it was an interesting read.

All the Water in the World is set in a dystopian, post-apocalyptic world that is being ravaged by the effects of climate change. Told from the perspective of Nonie, this is a haunting preview of what could be, blended with a coming-of-age story.

Nonie and her family are some of the remaining survivors in post-apocalyptic New York City. They have created a community on the roof of the American Museum of Natural History and work to preserve the artifacts, while trying to survive in a changed climate and lawless city. When a storm hits and the flood walls fail, they escape North on the Hudson.

I was so excited to read about Nonie's time in the AMNH but was disappointed to find that the book begins with the storm and their escape. There are still flashbacks - moments where Nonie recalls a memory that provides more insight into their life and work inside the museum - and these were my favorite.

The pacing is a bit slow as we follow their escape North and the dangers they run into, but the descriptions of a destroyed coastline, deadly and sudden storms, and sense of lawlessness is so chilling and realistic that my curiosity for more information kept my interest.

3.5 stars, definitely recommend if you don't mind a slower read.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the copy of the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

4 🌟

I really loved this - ponderous and ultimately hopeful, with moments of hard reality and devastation. The determination of a found family to stay together, a world that's trying to build itself up again after falling apart, all narrated by a girl who's been forced to grow old before her time made for one cozy winter read that really tugged on my heartstrings.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC!

9/10

Wow.
This may be the best book I’ve read all year.
It is Eiren Caffalls first novel and if this doesn’t hit The NY Times Best Sellers list then something is wrong.

This book is not just great because of the incredible (and realistic and scary) premise, but because of Eirens incredible talent with words. I’m in awe of her writing.

Ok, here’s the premise.

The glaciers have melted and sea levels rise by 80 meters. New York City is mostly flooded, though there are sea walls that were put up to help stop the devastation. Until the sea walls burst in a hypercane (which is a hurricane that is way beyond).

Most of NYC is abandoned. Or, rather, most people have died. Nonie (who I think is around 10 or 12 years old) and her family live in the roof of the American Museum of Natural History.

But one thing leads to another and they have to leave.

Nonie is deeply connected to water. She keeps a journal about water. It’s called the water logbook.

This is their story of survival in the dystopian world of tomorrow.

It is all written from Nonies perspective.
It is all so vivid in its descriptiveness. I feel like I’ve been there with her.

Incidentally, Eiren herself has a pretty amazing - and pretty frightening - story that tangentially relates to a character or two in this book. Go to her website and watch the video. It’s worth it.

Anyway, this book comes out in Feb 2025.
Order it now.
Thank me later.

And thank you Eiren for bringing this book to life.
It’s beautiful and important.

#netgalley #allthewaterintheworld

All the Water in the World is a post-apocalyptic novel that follows Nonie, a precocious preteen on her escape from a flooded New York city. The blurb I read cited Station Eleven, but this reminded me more of The Light Pirate and The Road. It is gripping, and the plot moved forward. Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the galley.

An excellent if very grim view of a possible future where the waters of the world have risen to the point that life on the coasts of the United States is untenable. New York City is almost entirely under water and periodic storms cause surges that threaten even those places above water.

An intrepid group of people, mostly scientists who had worked there, gather at the American Museum of Natural History with their families, both to have a safe place to be and to try to preserve what they can. Soon that refuge, too, becomes perilous, and those who remain must make the hardest choices of their lives if they wish to survive.

I have read a great deal of post-apocalyptic fiction and admire most those that, as here, refuse to shy away from the tragedy inherent in the situation, yet do not lean into an excessive sense of dread. It is an admittedly difficult line to walk, and Caffall does so masterfully.

This is clearly a first novel, the prose a bit stiff and the plot overdetermined (you can sense the outline that was undoubtedly used to write it). But the heart in the center of this book, the author's affection for her characters, her deep concern for their plight, and her grief at what we are doing to our planet, shines through and makes this book a joy to read.

When I began reading All the Water In the World, I was immediately transported to a dystopian society in which vast portions of the United States have been flooded and storms are frequent enough to make things very dangerous for those still living.

Told through the eyes of Nonie, a young girl just entering her teen years who has the ability to predict an upcoming storm. Readers learn a bit about the past and about what has happened in Nonie’s life thus far. As another bad storm bears down on the area where they live, their shelter is destroyed. The small group consisting of Nonie, her father and sister, and family friend Keller, make the decision to try and go north to a farm owned by a family member.

The journey North was a treacherous one and I found myself unable to put the book down at times. A dystopian world is a sad world and this was no exception. But sometimes a tragedy can bring out the best in people and by the book’s end, readers will see this can happen.

Many thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for allowing me to read an advance copy. I am happy to offer my honest review and recommend this to other readers.

Set in a dystopian future where severe climate change has all but destroyed civilization, Nonnie, her family, and what few remain in what's left of New York City. They've taken shelter in the Museum of Natural History, balancing what they need to do to survive and trying to preserve what they can of what's left of the world that once was. They are faced with the constant threat of devastating and toxic floods, and eventually, they must evacuate the city.

The author does a terrific job of capturing the atmosphere of what a, more or less, post-apocalyptic New York City might look like. Most of the dystopian novels I've read tend to take place in some unknown, often fictional place, so imagining a place as familiar as New York City underwater makes the reading all the more unsettling.

I struggled to connect with the characters, finding a lot of the narration repetitive and not engaging compared to the world-building. The plot was interesting, but missing something for me. I wish I knew exactly what. It may come to me after some further reflection. Still, very much worth the read with such a haunting, well-crafted atmosphere.

Thanks to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for providing a free digital ARC!

This book was so interesting. A new way to look at the future, at New York City, and at the world in general. It really left me thinking, and I thoroughly enjoyed this perspective.