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'Remarkable' Robert Macfarlane'Goregous' Amy Liptrot'Urgent and nourishing' Jessica J. Lee
Nina Mingya Powles first learned to swim in Borneo - where her mother was born and her grandfather studied freshwater fish. There, the local swimming pool became her first body of water. Through her life there have been others that have meant different things, but have still been, in their own way, home: from the wild coastline of New Zealand to a pond in northwest London.
In lyrical, powerful prose,
Small Bodies of Water weaves together memories, dreams and nature writing. Exploring everything from migration, food, family, earthquakes and the ancient lunisolar calendar, Nina reflects on a girlhood spent growing up between two cultures, and what it means to belong.
About the author
Nina Mingya Powles is a writer, editor and publisher from Aotearoa New Zealand. She is the author of three poetry collections, including
Magnolia, which was shortlisted for both the Ondaatje Prize and the Forward Prize; and
Tiny Moons: A Year of Eating in Shanghai. In 2019 she won the Nan Shepherd Prize for
Small Bodies of Water, and in 2018 she won the Women Poets' Prize. She is the founding editor of Bitter Melon. Nina was born in Aotearoa, partly grew up in China, and now lives in London.
@ninamingya | ninapowles.com
Summary
'Remarkable' Robert Macfarlane
'Gorgeous' Amy Liptrot
'Urgent and nourishing' Jessica J. Lee
Nina Mingya Powles first learned to swim in Borneo - where her mother was born and her grandfather studied freshwater fish. There, the local swimming pool became her first body of water. Through her life there have been others that have meant different things, but have still been, in their own way, home: from the wild coastline of New Zealand to a pond in northwest London.
In lyrical, powerful prose, Small Bodies of Water weaves together memories, dreams and nature writing. Exploring everything from migration, food, family, earthquakes and the ancient lunisolar calendar, Nina reflects on a girlhood spent growing up between two cultures, and what it means to belong.
Foreword
A lyrical, poetic essay collection that blends memoir with powerful writing on the natural world, taking us from London to New Zealand, Shanghai to Malaysia - from the winner of the Nan Shepherd Prize
Additional text
A hauntingly beautiful work - as deep and varied as the bodies of water it explores - and just as affecting. Powles writes of the body, the self and the natural world in ways I've not experienced before; full of raw and glistening truth. This book is exquisite and perfectly formed and reflective and it leaves ripples on your insides like the sea. The writing is off the scale
