"The Water Knife" by Paolo Bacigalupi

Photo by Aditya Chinchure on Unsplash

Being a writer requires a lot of research, and that is not limited to doing content research for the next book. It’s also important to know what other writers in the genre are writing. I stumbled on The Windup Girl by Paolo Bacigalupi and the premise intrigued me. I noticed that the author took a current problem, just as I was doing in Sābanto, and accelerated that issue to create a dystopian world somewhere in the not-so-distant future. The characters in the book were navigating a cruel world where every human’s worth is measured by a unique scale, calories. The Windup Girl got my attention because of some of the similarities that I found between that book and Sābanto.

I had heard of The Water Knife by the same author and reached out for it as soon as I had a chance. I was not disappointed. The author immediately takes the reader to a new world where the Colorado river is drying up. Texas cities are gone due to the drought and a wave of refugees is trying to make ends meet in blistering Phoenix where water is more expensive than gas, hoping that one day, somehow, they will be allowed to move north where the grass is still green. The natural disaster has only been amplified by humans, their short-sightedness, inaction, greed and hunger for power. Gangs, outlaws and cults are trying to secure the kingdoms they have created for themselves while Nevada, Arizona and California are all in conflict over who gets the water, and how much.

There is, however, something unusual happening in Phoenix. A rich businessman has been killed, his body mutilated. Lucy, a journalist, and Angel, a man for hire, are looking for answers, however, the more they look the more confusing the story gets. When their paths cross they realize that the situation is grave and they need to find what the killers are looking for before they become victims themselves.

I have to say that Bacigalupi has become one of my favorite authors and I’m looking forward to reading his third novel as well. Why do I think that? 

• Sābanto - When I was writing Sābanto, I envisioned it to be a story similar to those that Paolo Bacigalupi wrote. A story about a cruel world where no one is happy-go-lucky, because every success and survival is marked with sweat and blood. I could say that Bacigalupi not only serves as inspiration for me, but also as a writer that I can look up to.
• Action - There is never a shortage of it in Bacigalupi’s books. Every way the characters turn there is a new danger that they need to overcome. Once the momentum is achieved, it keeps the readers on the edge of their seats. This is something that I strive to accomplish in my books.
• World-building - There is a lot of it in Bacigalupi’s books. He transforms the reader to a new reality with ease. There are lots of details in the stories and new things about the world are revealed with every page. 

Spoilers Ahead:

• Which character did you like the most?
  Maria is the character that really got my attention. We learn about Maria when she buys discounted water to sell to workers to make profit. What seems to her like a lucky day quickly turns into her worst nightmare. She goes through hell just to find out there is still a light at the end of the tunnel. She can get out of Phoenix, but at what cost?
• Which scene did you like the most?
  There’s a scene where the city is being engulfed by a fire. That’s when you realize that the risks of a lack of water are not only thirst or lack of food and vegetation, but also the constant threat of fires. There is no place to run or hide when the fire is raging, destroying more and more buildings and refugee tents.
• What didn’t you like about the book?
  Lucy is an interesting character, but during the torture scene she seems weak and scared. Of course we would all scream for the torture to end, but what struck me was how quickly she recovered from that experience. Surrounded by dead bodies, she mended her rescuer with what seemed like a smile on her face.
• Overall notes
  I like the ending of the book and the moral questions it asks. In a world that’s falling apart, there are two paths to take. One is to return, to try and restore it to what it was and should have been. The second is to move forward and find a solution to the current situation. Which one is the correct one? Does the end justify the means? How passive can we remain if the decision is made by someone else?