Under Water, the debut novel from Tara Menon, is a compelling exploration of friendship, grief, and the fluidity of both. With two natural disasters – the 2004 tsunami in Thailand that claimed a quarter of a million lives, and Hurricane Sandy in 2012 as it made landfall in New York City – framing the story.
Throughout the novel, Menon weaves themes of uniqueness and extinction, distillation and expansion, into the language of sea life, flora, and fauna, as well as the beautiful bond between these two young girls. The story also deftly explores the relationship between the consumer and the consumed, and how we live as both, with varying degrees of awareness and complicity.
I spoke with Menon about her writing background, writing her debut, and how the structure came to be.
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