The Element Of Water

THE ELEMENT OF WATER

by Stevie Davies

 

Nominations: Booker Longlist 2001, Women's Prize Longlist 2002

 

Date Read: July 14, 2021

 

I have read so many novels that explore the misery of WWII, novels that explore the lead-up to the war and the devastation of turning your loved ones over to an uncertain future. But how does a country and its people recover from a war that laid bare all the atrocity that humanity is capable of. No one is immune and everyone is suspect.

 

The Element Of Water was an incredible look into the blame and suspicion that follow the German people, everyone giving the side-eye to see who has blood on their hands, who still holds anti-Semitic beliefs and who might still harbor Nazi sympathy. Add in the English Allied Forces still occupying Germany and the resentment that comes with it and you have a tumultuous recovery from the unimaginable.

 

Davies takes us to 13 years after the Germans have surrendered to a small English school in Germany. This school is for the children of the English officers stationed to maintain peace during Germany’s “recovery” period. The school is, to put it mildly, completely dysfunctional, and the teachers in charge are clueless as to how to manage small children who are away from home. 

 

Issolde, a German who has emigrated with her mother to Wales during the war, comes to this school, having been fired from her previous English school for a scandalous relationship, for which only she was held accountable. She speaks fluent German and her task is to teach the children German, since their parents will be stationed there for the foreseeable future. As a forced plot point, Davies sends Issolde to a school that was established in the same exact location as where Issolde was born. A contrivance? Indeed. But necessary to pull this beautiful novel together.

 

The big mystery or secret that Renate, Issolde’s mother, would like to remain buried is her brief marriage to an SS officer and her having held pro-Nazi, anti-Jewish beliefs before she fled to Wales. While I understand her shame and embarrassment, this wasn’t quite the bombshell I had expected.

 

Issolde meets Michael and his son Wolfi, at the school. Michael was close friends with Paul, Issolde’s father and Issolde and Wolfi end up falling in love. The actions of their parents, however, threaten to pull them apart until they realize that they needn’t hold themselves to blame for the actions of their parents.

 

While some parts are transparent and flawed, I found this an absolutely beautiful novel dealing with a very fragile time in history. Her characters were bold, particularly Issolde, and their flaws and strengths were on clear display. Overall, a gem of a novel.

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