What do readers think of Should the Waters Take Us by Stephanie Soileau? Write your own review.

An epic story of Louisiana told from the perspective of a French Acadian clan who have eked out a living in Pelerin Parish where hurricanes, oil spills, the encroaching Gulf of Mexico and other disasters make life challenging. While a character driven story, the environment is the main character giving meaning and purpose to this hardy group of people.

The novel centers around Boy Boussard, a squatter on land managed by Jacot Terrebonne, his uncle, but owned by Rosalie Terrebonne. Boy makes do by hunting alligators. When Rosalie is dying of cancer, she leaves the land to Boy upsetting Jacot who believes it should be his. The other characters who bring complications to the clan include Boy’s daughter, Lee, and his sullen nephew, Jamie and Father Fabian Dakolo from Nigeria who knows all about oil spills. When Hurricane Nestor arrives the world changes in violence and resentment.

This is a grim story - I’m not sure how these people can could endure a life in this place except for their family being grounded there and their identity etched on the land. I think that was beautifully portrayed in the book. But I found it very hard at times to know where the story was going as the book goes from character to character and then back in time and then to a character - I have no problem reading nonlinear stories but I often felt i was in a short story collection. It got confusing. But the writing is very nice. And the story itself in the whole was a good read.

My thanks to NetGalley and William Morrow for granting me access to this ARC.