Why people recommend it
The North Water by Ian McGuire is a gripping historical novel that follows a disgraced army surgeon aboard a brutal whaling ship bound for the Arctic. On The Book Review, the host recommended pairing the novel with The Abstainer, contrasting the shadowy urban setting of Manchester with the stark, freezing expanse of the Arctic wilderness. Greg Cowles highlighted the novel's debut on the publication's prestigious bestseller list, while Gilbert Cruz featured it as one of the standout ten best books of the year. Pamela Paul shared her experience finishing the work earlier in the publication cycle. In a separate interview segment, author Ian McGuire discussed his writing process, explaining how historical research for this narrative unexpectedly led him to uncover historical incidents that later inspired his subsequent fiction. McGuire and the host also reflected on the enduring emotional impact of the story, particularly discussing the character Henry Drax as the quintessential villain and examining the deliberate narrative choices involved in crafting such a bleak and immersive historical thriller that continues to resonate deeply with contemporary readers and critics alike.
Who recommended it
- Ian McGuire Discussed
- Greg Cowles Recommended
- Gilbert Cruz Recommended
- Pamela Paul Recommended
Ian McGuire — 2 mentions
“actually no that was one of and that was one of the reasons why I I was intrigued by it so I came across this when I was doing research for the north water and I was surprised”
“The abstainer is is is how large the kind of gaps are in the historical Rec record and I suppose that's the that's a great opportunity for the novelist”
Greg Cowles — 1 mention
“wa one of our best novels of the Year Ian McGuire's the northwater makes its debut on that list”
Gilbert Cruz — 1 mention
“chances are you'll want to turn to the northwater Ian Maguire will tell us about his latest novel also one of our 10 best books”
Pamela Paul — 1 mention
“I just finished um a book that came out earlier this year um Ian McGuire's uh book the north water”
Mentioned on the show without a named speaker — 5
“you mentioned earlier that you came across this historical incident while you were working on the North water in your novels”
“what's stuck with you you from the north water like what was her to let go of Henry Drax who is the real villain of the northwater”
“both colem toy bean and his review of the nor northwater and Rody Doyle in his review of the abstainer this new novel compare your writing to that of Joseph Conrad”
“well I hope I don't embarrass you but I also have to bring up two other names that you've been compared to in both in the previous book and in this cormi McCarthy with regard to the north water and then in this one for this one Charles Dickens”
“all right listeners start with black start with the abstainer the soot the the dark shadowy Manchester novel then go to the northwater for the white novel”
Also mentioned in the same episodes
Other mentions (2: passing, ad reads, own books)
“who are the Manchester Martyrs and how do they figure into Ian McGuire's new book the author of The award-winning novel The northwater will be here to talk about his latest novel The abstainer”
“Paul Ian McGuire joins us now he is the author previously of the north water which was one of our best books of 2016”