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Drowning Practice

A Novel

Audiobook
1 of 2 copies available
1 of 2 copies available

Profoundly moving, filled with tenderness, and brought to life by a curious, sprawling imagination, Drowning Practice is the story of a mother and daughter trying to save each other's lives at what could be the end of the world

One night, everyone on Earth has the same dream—a dream of being guided to a watery death by a loved one on November 1. When they wake up, most people agree: after Halloween, the world will end.

In the wake of this haunting dream and saddled with its uncertainty, Lyd and her daughter, Mott, navigate a changed world, wrestling with how to make choices when you really don't know what comes next. Embarking on a quixotic road trip filled with a collection of unexpected and memorable characters, Lyd and Mott are determined to live out what could be their final months as fully as possible. But how can Lyd protect Mott and help her achieve her ambitions in a world where inhibitions, desires, and motivations have become unpredictable, and where Mott's dangerous and conniving father has his own ideas about how his estranged family should spend their last days?

Formally inventive and hauntingly strange, Drowning Practice signals the arrival of a singular new voice in Mike Meginnis, who writes with generosity and precision, humor and sorrowfulness. Stirring and surprising at every turn, Drowning Practice is literary speculative fiction at its best and with a pulsing heart: a mother and daughter trying to decide how they should live out what might be the final months of their—or anyone's—life on Earth.

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    • Publisher's Weekly

      October 11, 2021
      Meginiss (Fat Man and Little Boy) sets a mother and daughter’s escape from an abusive ex-husband against a pre-apocalyptic backdrop in his layered sophomore effort. It begins with an arresting premise: everyone on Earth just had the same dream that they will all die in seven months, on the day after Halloween. Some take their own lives or ask others to kill them, while others burn down buildings, drink excessively, or attempt to continue life as normal. Lyd, a successful novelist and mother to 13-year-old Mott, attempts to hide from her abusive ex-husband, David, who claims to be a spy but won’t say for which agency. Lyd and Mott’s travels through a dystopian landscape has echoes of The Road, up until they arrive at the University of Houston and move into a dorm, where they find a new, semi-civilized normal, and Mott attends a writing workshop and forms a friendship with an awkward woman who works the front desk. Inevitably, David shows up. There’s a lot going on, and it’s a little baggy, but Meginnis writes well about the dread Lyd endured when living with David, and an ambiguous ending leaves many open questions to keep the reader pondering. Many writers continue to imagine the end of things, but Meginnis has found a new way to make it disturbing.

    • Library Journal

      June 1, 2022

      One night, the entire world has the same dream that they will drown on November 1. Everyone agrees, the world will end at that time. With this knowledge, Lyd and her young daughter, Mott, must come to terms with living in the end times and decide to embark on a road trip before the world ends. Along the way, they meet interesting characters, fulfill lifelong dreams, and work through difficult relationships. This heavily literary novel is uniquely written, as listeners are taken along on the road trip and find out information along with the characters. Narrator Stacey Glemboski brings to life a struggling mother, a confused daughter, and a motley crew of individuals courageously facing the most important event in human history. VERDICT Exploring the choices humans make in trying times and offering a more nuanced take on the apocalyptic novel, this mesmerizing listen brings life to the unique writing of Meginnis (Fat Man and Little Boy).--Elyssa Everling

      Copyright 2022 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

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  • English

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