All the Water in the World

A Novel

By: Karen Raney

Narrated by: Rebekkah Ross, Gabra Zackman

A stunning debut novel about a teenage girl and her mother as they grapple with first love, family secrets, and tragedy.

Maddy is sixteen. Smart, funny, and profound, she has loyal friends, a mother with whom she’s unusually close, a father she’s never met, devoted grandparents, and a crush on a boy named Jack. Maddy also has cancer. Living in the shadow of uncertainty, she is forced to grow up fast.

All the Water in the World is the story of a family doing its best when faced with the worst. Told in the alternating voices of Maddy and her mother, Eve, the narrative moves between the family’s lake house in Pennsylvania; their home in Washington, DC; and London, where Maddy’s father, Antonio, lives. Hungry for experience, Maddy seeks out her first romantic relationship, finds solace in music and art, and tracks down Antonio. She continually tests the depths and limits of her closeness with her mother, while Eve has to come to terms with the daughter she only partly knows, in a world she can’t control.

With unforgettable voices that range from tender to funny, despairing to defiant, this novel illuminates the transformative power of love, humor, and hope.

Critic reviews

"Narrators Rebekkah Ross and Gabra Zackman create a memorable portrait of 16-year-old Maddy, who delights in classical music, animation, and her family and friends, but who has been diagnosed with cancer. In a sweet and intelligent tone, Ross captures Maddy's efforts to live in the present moment and her ability to revel in her strong bond with her supportive mother, Eve; her kindly maternal grandparents; her lively school friends; and her caring boyfriend. Zackman expertly conveys the roller coaster of Eve's emotions, which swing from hopefulness to anguish. In an intriguing subplot, Maddy's excitement and apprehensions are revealed when she initiates an email correspondence with her biological father, Antonio, whom she has never met. An immense and powerful exploration of love, friendship, and grief."