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  • Shallow Waters

  • A Novel
  • Written by: Anita Kopacz
  • Narrated by: Michelle Kopacz
  • Length: 5 hrs and 49 mins
  • 4.1 out of 5 stars (15 ratings)

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Shallow Waters cover art

Shallow Waters

Written by: Anita Kopacz
Narrated by: Michelle Kopacz
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Publisher's Summary

“Spellbinding...A captivating debut.” (Harper’s Bazaar)

In this stirring and lyrical debut novel - perfect for fans of The Water Dancer and the Legacy of Orïsha series - the Yoruba deity of the sea, Yemaya, is brought to vivid life as she discovers the power of Black resilience, love, and feminine strength in antebellum America.

Shallow Waters imagines Yemaya, an Orïsha - a deity in the religion of Africa’s Yoruba people - cast into mid-1800s America. We meet Yemaya as a young woman, still in the care of her mother and not yet fully aware of the spectacular power she possesses to protect herself and those she holds dear.

The journey laid out in Shallow Waters sees Yemaya confront the greatest evils of this era; transcend time and place in search of Obatala, a man who sacrifices his own freedom for the chance at hers; and grow into the powerful woman she was destined to become. We travel alongside Yemaya from her native Africa and on to the “New World,” with vivid pictures of life for those left on the outskirts of power in the nascent Americas.

Yemaya realizes the fighter within, travels the Underground Railroad in search of the mysterious stranger Obatala, and crosses paths with icons of our history on the road to freedom. Shallow Waters is a nourishing work of ritual storytelling from promising debut author Anita Kopacz.

©2021 Anita Kopacz. All rights reserved. (P)2021 Simon & Schuster, Inc. All rights reserved.

What listeners say about Shallow Waters

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

What an amazing story

I want to read the actual book. This story was so good. Thank you Anita!

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Black Excellence

This book was amazing…. Listened to it in a two day on my commute to work. Amazing story about our descendants and what they have done for us. My only question is when is there a Part 2??

Thank you

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

An Enjoyable Story

I Enjoyed this.

My only issue was the occasional use of a modern idiom in a period piece. it pulled me out of the story. I will need to process this some more.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Quite a pleasant listen. Enjoyed it thoroughly.

Our imagination is all we have and stories keep our imagination alive. I enjoyed this story.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Black woman Is God

Love this story, this shook me to my core! Displaced Africans around the world can finally get a glimpse at their spirituality in a way that hasn’t been demonized. We’ve been taught to hate ourselves and call our ancestors witches, but this story reveals a side that has been hidden from us. What a story! Fills me with hope and love! Thank you Anita.

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