The Shape of Water [B1365]

2018 HCDJ in nice clean condition. The 2018 Academy Award's Best Picture of the Year and New York Times-bestselling novel, The Shape of Water. From visionary storyteller Guillermo del Toro and celebrated author Daniel Kraus comes this haunting, heartbreaking love story. It is 1962, and Elisa Esposito-mute her whole life, orphaned as a child-is struggling with her humdrum existence as a janitor working the graveyard shift at Baltimore's Occam Aerospace Research Center. Were it not for Zelda, a protective coworker, and Giles, her loving neighbor, she doesn't know how she'd make it through the day. Then, one fateful night, she sees something she was never meant to see, the Center's most sensitive asset ever: an amphibious man, captured in the Amazon, to be studied for Cold War advancements. The creature is terrifying but also magnificent, capable of language and of understanding emotions...and Elisa can't keep away. Using sign language, the two learn to communicate. Soon, affection turns into love, and the creature becomes Elisa's sole reason to live.

But outside forces are pressing in. Richard Strickland, the obsessed soldier who tracked the asset through the Amazon, wants nothing more than to dissect it before the Russians get a chance to steal it. Elisa has no choice but to risk everything to save her beloved. With the help of Zelda and Giles, Elisa hatches a plan to break out the creature. But Strickland is on to them. And the Russians are, indeed, coming.

From recent Amazon/GoodReads reviews: "Took me a while to finish but I really enjoyed it, the ending was beautiful. All the characters were compelling, and I loved the few chapters from the creature's point of view."; "what a weird, freaky little book but man did i have the time of my life. the first 25% was a bit rough, trying to learn all the characters and different POVs that constantly flip flopped back and forth. but once i was in it, i was IN IT. this one is for all the little weirdos out there, i hope you feel seen and understood."; "An excellent book adaptation of the movie. Although I haven't seen it, and I'm judging based solely on reviews, I believe I enjoyed this version more than I would have the video. Books allow us to see inside characters' minds and emotions in ways that film cannot by their nature, however fine the actors and directors. That's an important factor to the story in this case, giving added dimension to the tale."; "I really enjoyed this one. The book covered a wide range of topics, such as racism, ableism and ptsd in such a nice way. I also really enjoyed the parallel between the treatment of the people in the story suffering and the treatment of the "monster"."