The term “ballad” brings to mind stories shared in verse. They might be immersive narrative poems or tales set to music; they could involve centuries-old traditional folk poetry or a set of Bob Dylan songs. Amal El-Mohtar’s new audiobook, THE RIVER HAS ROOTS, is a kind of ballad in its own right—one that builds on the form with collaboration, transformation, and love.

El-Mohtar writes fiction, poetry, and criticism. With Max Gladstone, she co-wrote the award-winning THIS IS HOW YOU LOSE THE TIME WAR. Her many other honors include Nebula, Locus, and Hugo awards, as well as the Richard Jefferies Poetry Prize. El-Mohtar is a three-time winner of the Rhysling Award for Best Short Poem, and she has been The New York Times’s science fiction and fantasy columnist since 2018. “I take writing quite broadly,” El-Mohtar says. “I’ve written for games and game ephemera. I’ve written a comic. Anything that is writing in a genre I’m interested in trying to do because each one has its own challenges and curiosities and interests.”

The audiobook production of THE RIVER HAS ROOTS, narrated by Gem Carmella, grew through extensive collaboration, something El-Mohtar values. “Historically, I have been very collaborative in my approach to writing, so I have really enjoyed things that involve working with another person and building a creative partnership.”

“It’s been extraordinarily wonderful to see how much creativity has been brought to THE RIVER HAS ROOTS from so many different people in so many different forms. To have the print publication include Kathleen Neeley’s illustrations in it, and to have the audiobook be this treasure trove of narration and audio production, and to have my sister and I participate in it—it’s been just incredible.”

El-Mohtar was encouraged to bring her own ideas to the audiobook production. She wholeheartedly appreciated Gem Carmella’s narrative skill right away. “As soon as I heard Gem’s voice, it was so rich and so wonderful! I felt like it was so suited to the story. And then she gamely sang portions of the text in her audition. Everything about her fit my vision.”

Then, the collaborative spirit blossomed even further. Music is ever-present in the production, and El-Mohtar had an idea to bring that aspect to the fore of the audiobook. The story features two musical sisters, and El-Mohtar and her sister, Dounya, share a musical history, as well. “My sister and I play music and sing together. I play the harp, and she plays the flute,” El-Mohtar says. She adds, “My sister is, as far as I’m concerned, a proper musician, conservatory trained. I am a writer who plays the harp. I make the distinction because she has training and expertise, and I have enthusiasm.”

That enthusiasm was well received at Macmillan Audio, and the sisters worked to develop and rehearse music for the audiobook. Then they recorded together at a local music studio, an experience not unlike entering a different sort of fantastical world. “We were really dazzled by the studio space. The walls have cool material on them to manage the sound. We had to shed our shoes. There was a main entrance, and then there were several doors to go through to get deeper into this place that is more and more insulated from the sounds of the outside world. It’s absolutely like a fairy world.”

Together, the sisters recorded the music for the audiobook, blending their rehearsed material with on-the-spot improvisation to create a unique element. The process proved memorable and magical. “We did not feel time passing at all,” El-Mohtar says. “When I think of the experience, I think of soft golden light. Everything was warm and gentle. It was really special—getting to sing and play with my sister, in that space. We could always catch each other’s eyes as we played together. I felt so accomplished in the wake of it.”

With traditional ballad themes at its heart, THE RIVER HAS ROOTS winds its way through the story of Esther and Ysabel, two sisters whose songs nurture enchanted willows. The music makes for a distinctly memorable audio production. “It all came together, and I was blown away by the result. The absolute delight of knowing this audiobook, which is partially dedicated to my sister, also has our voices and our music on it is extraordinary to me.”

—

Leslie Fine is a longtime AudioFile reviewer and also contributes to AudioFile’s podcast, Behind the Mic

Author photo by Ainslie Coghill