As Josie Belle Gore, daughter of a Louisiana train engineer and Texas seamstress, journeys with her itinerant family through the deserts of the boom-and-bust American West and revolutionary Mexico, she learns that in her life, two things are constant: water is precious, and her role in her family is to save it.
When unforeseeable events force the separation of her family, Josie begins an odyssey that takes her from New Mexico’s Jornada del Muerto to Bisbee, Tucson, Los Angeles, and finally post-WWI San Francisco—experiencing betrayal, pandemic, and survivor’s guilt, as well as the compassion and generosity of friends and strangers, along the way. Once she lands in San Francisco, like a river meeting the sea, Josie has nowhere else to run—and she realizes that she must make peace with the past and good on her promise to the family she loves. Inspired by the author’s family lore, The Ways of Water is a lyrical tale of loss, hope, and forgiveness set in the rugged beauty of the turn-of-the-century Southwest that, like Josie, is growing up in fits and starts.
Genre: Historical
When unforeseeable events force the separation of her family, Josie begins an odyssey that takes her from New Mexico’s Jornada del Muerto to Bisbee, Tucson, Los Angeles, and finally post-WWI San Francisco—experiencing betrayal, pandemic, and survivor’s guilt, as well as the compassion and generosity of friends and strangers, along the way. Once she lands in San Francisco, like a river meeting the sea, Josie has nowhere else to run—and she realizes that she must make peace with the past and good on her promise to the family she loves. Inspired by the author’s family lore, The Ways of Water is a lyrical tale of loss, hope, and forgiveness set in the rugged beauty of the turn-of-the-century Southwest that, like Josie, is growing up in fits and starts.
Genre: Historical
Praise for this book
"In the vein of William Kent Krueger's This Tender Land, Teresa H. Janssen seamlessly transports readers into an expertly crafted yesteryear of her grandmother, Josie Belle Gore. As the rivers, creeks and streams flow throughout this land, so too, does Janssen's narrative, recreating the remote, untamed beauty of a region, and the harsh and oftentimes difficult way of life long-past. Janssen honors her grandmother with this exceptional account of the triumph and bravery of a singular young girl who grows into a woman as she makes her own way in the American Southwest." - Donna Everhart
"Teresa H. Janssen draws a riveting story that I could not put down. It is reminiscent of Jeannette Walls's Half Broke Horses and Kristin Hannah's The Four Winds. The prose is exceptional... The imagery is breathtakingly vivid... But it is the fully fleshed-out characters that will grab the reader and refuse to release them, even long after the reading is complete. I look forward to more from this exciting debut author." - Adele Holmes M D
"The enlightening story of a courageous young woman, Josie Belle Gore, and her family as they struggle to survive in the early 1900's of the America West, where 'moving from place to place seemed as natural as the motion of the sun and the moon,' as they searched for the next possibility of home. Engrossing and unsettling, this riveting and beautifully told story held my attention from the first vivid page to the last. The Way of Water is a stunning debut!" - Anna Quinn
"Building on family lore and deep research, Teresa H. Janssen's The Ways of Water is a young woman's poignant coming-of-age story that reveals a fascinating slice of early 20th century life in the American West." - Margaret Rodenberg
"Teresa H. Janssen draws a riveting story that I could not put down. It is reminiscent of Jeannette Walls's Half Broke Horses and Kristin Hannah's The Four Winds. The prose is exceptional... The imagery is breathtakingly vivid... But it is the fully fleshed-out characters that will grab the reader and refuse to release them, even long after the reading is complete. I look forward to more from this exciting debut author." - Adele Holmes M D
"The enlightening story of a courageous young woman, Josie Belle Gore, and her family as they struggle to survive in the early 1900's of the America West, where 'moving from place to place seemed as natural as the motion of the sun and the moon,' as they searched for the next possibility of home. Engrossing and unsettling, this riveting and beautifully told story held my attention from the first vivid page to the last. The Way of Water is a stunning debut!" - Anna Quinn
"Building on family lore and deep research, Teresa H. Janssen's The Ways of Water is a young woman's poignant coming-of-age story that reveals a fascinating slice of early 20th century life in the American West." - Margaret Rodenberg
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