'A remarkable book' Robert Macfarlane
'A distinctive new voice: attentive and tender' Amy Liptrot
'Elegant, understated, urgent and nourishing' Jessica J. Lee

Home is many people and places and languages, some separated by oceans.

Nina Mingya Powles first learned to swim in Borneo - where her mother was born and her grandfather studied freshwater fish. There, the local swimming pool became her first body of water. Through her life there have been others that have meant different things, but have still been, in their own way, home: from the wild coastline of New Zealand to a pond in northwest London.

This lyrical collection of interconnected essays explores the bodies of water that separate and connect us, as well as everything from migration, food, family, earthquakes and the ancient lunisolar calendar to butterflies. In powerful prose, Small Bodies of Water weaves together personal memories, dreams and nature writing. It reflects on a girlhood spent growing up between two cultures, and explores what it means to belong.

"Nature writing lovers will adore this collection of lyrical essays . . . Traversing Borneo to New Zealand to North London, it explores what bodies of water have meant to [Powles] while navigating girlhood and growing up" - * Evening Standard, Best Non-Fiction Books of the Year *

"Vividly connected to nature . . . Captivating . . . Evocative literary sketches of Powles' life are drawn thoughtfully together . . . Mesmerising . . . Tender, like a flower pressed between the pages of a book" - * Big Issue *

"A shimmering, poetic masterpiece" - * Time Out *