Carry Me Like Water

By Benjamin Alire Sáenz

Book Overview

"Sentimental and ferocious, upsetting and tender, firmly magic-realist yet utterly modern. . . Sáenz is a writer with greatness in him." -- San Diego Union Tribune With Carry Me Like Water , Benjamin Alire Sáenz unfolds a beautiful story about hope and forgiveness, unexpected reunions, an expanded definition of family, and, ultimately, what happens when the disparate worlds of pain and privilege collide. Diego, a deaf-mute, is barely surviving on the border in El Paso, Texas. Diego's sister, Helen, who lives with her husband in the posh suburbs of San Francisco, long ago abandoned both her brother and her El Paso roots. Helen's best friend, Lizzie, a nurse in an AIDS ward, begins to uncover her own buried past after a mystical encounter with a patient. This immensely moving novel confronts divisions of race, gender, and class, fusing together the stories of people who come to recognize one another from former lives they didn't know existed-- or that they tried to forget.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0060831332
• ISBN13: 9780060831332
• Release Date: September 2005
• Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers
• Length: 503 Pages
• Weight: 1.20 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.2" x 5.2" x 7.8"

Customer Reviews

My favorite novel

Carry me like water uses some very fun and surreal Mexican catholic imagery and new age spiritual imagery. More importantly, it has the best character development of any novel I've read. I highly recommend this book!

My favorite book of all time...

This is the finest writing I've ever seen - you literally forget you're reading a work of fiction. The characters and their stories are so finely crafted, no coincidence is beyond belief, no emotion too handily displayed. This book breaks your heart and fills you with joy at the same time. So unfortunate that it's out of print.

Please, read this book now. It will change you.

I am pretty picky about books about the southwest, the meeting of cultures, and AIDS, as I find these three areas too easy to exploit, skin the surface of, and capitalize upon. Add spirituality to the mix, and chances are you will lose me, as I have no tolerance for the new-agey stuff, especially if it feels too burgeois, as much of it does. This book is so beautiful, i loved it so much the first time I read it, and it truly changed me the second time. It all feels real to me, the magic, the connections, the pain. Any flaws in plot or dialogue are easily forgiven in view of the tremendous power and heart of this work. Alire Saenz is a genius.

The best novel I have read in the past two years.

I can't recall the last time I was so moved by a novel. A story of love, family lost and found, of community, of humanity in the toughest of environments, of broken hearts on the mend. Here is a promise- you will feel so wonderful as you cry through this read. Get it now!!

creative imagery, intriguing conflicts, a great read

The imagery in Carry Me Like Water is incredible.. You can feel the El Paso desert envelop you, as you will the lives of the characters. As the conflicts unfold, you begin to connect so much with the characters that you feel you are part of their intimate but confused circle. Saenz keeps you hooked till the end. My book group (which focuses on Latino fiction) loved it so much our next book was his latest, House of Dreams (another fabulous read!!) I highly recommend them both.