We Died in Water by Meg Flores (Review by Caitlin Winkler)

Rating: 5/5 stars

Wow…where do I even begin? For a reader who rarely dives into a book of poetry, this book made me question why I haven’t read more. I can’t even describe all the emotions I felt while reading this story, but the one that stuck out the most to be was awe. I was awed by this author’s writing and ability to pull you in as a reader, find myself relating to almost everything she is describing, but also remembering this is a memoir of her own life.

We Died in Water is an author-described memoir that discusses love, loss, leaving, and healing amongst many other topics, in such gorgeous prose. I found myself marking so many moments and passages throughout that hit me as I was reading. One example is, “We died in water. Like any fire would”. It sounds like such a simple statement, but combined with the fact that it is the only sentence on that page, I felt it just really drove that point home.

Saving you, the reader of this review, all the boredom of hearing my own personal experiences with love and loss, I will just simply say that this book was so incredibly relatable and meaningful. I could feel that author’s sadness and her joyfulness in equal turn as I read each page. The back cover describes this as “nonlinear and poetic”, which I felt was a perfect way to describe the way it feels to read it. I HIGHLY recommend this book to absolutely everyone.