Title: Where the Crawdads Sing
Expected publication: out now
My Rating: 🌟🌟🌟🌟1/2
Book Description:
For years, rumors of the "Marsh Girl" have haunted
Barkley Cove, a quiet town on the North Carolina coast. She's barefoot and
wild; unfit for polite society. So in late 1969, when handsome Chase Andrews is
found dead, the locals immediately suspect Kya Clark.
But Kya is not what they say. Abandoned at age ten, she has survived on her own in the marsh that she calls home. A born naturalist with just one day of school, she takes life lessons from the land, learning from the false signals of fireflies the real way of this world. But while she could have lived in solitude forever, the time comes when she yearns to be touched and loved. Drawn to two young men from town, who are each intrigued by her wild beauty, Kya opens herself to a new and startling world--until the unthinkable happens.
But Kya is not what they say. Abandoned at age ten, she has survived on her own in the marsh that she calls home. A born naturalist with just one day of school, she takes life lessons from the land, learning from the false signals of fireflies the real way of this world. But while she could have lived in solitude forever, the time comes when she yearns to be touched and loved. Drawn to two young men from town, who are each intrigued by her wild beauty, Kya opens herself to a new and startling world--until the unthinkable happens.
My musings:
I often stay away from overly hyped up books, as I tend to be the one solitary voice in the mist that mutters “this didn’t work for me”. But after reading so many glowing reviews about Crawdads, and seeing this book being compared to Kingsolver’s writing (which I adore), I finally took the plunge. I am so glad I did, because I really enjoyed this atmospheric coming of age story that transported me smack-bang into the middle of the marshland, marvelling at plants and creatures I have never laid eyes on in real life.
A warning to those readers who are, like me, afflicted with a terrible lack of ability to suspend disbelief – you will have to put your little demon voices to rest for this one. Until I managed to do so, my internal dialogue sounded a bit like this:
Little voice #1: “A child abandoned at six years of age who not only manages to survive on her own but teaches herself to read scientific textbooks? Ridiculous!”
Little voice #2: “Well, certainly improbable but not IMPOSSIBLE. She may be one of those child geniuses you hear about.”
Little voice #1: Hmmmph! *intelligible sound of derision*
Little voice #2: “You know, someone on the spectrum who has an IQ of 150 and thrives in an environment with minimal human interaction. If she had a photographic memory she MIGHT be able to learn to read from just a few session.”
Little voice #1: *snorts* “Very unlikely!”
Little voice #2: “Unlikely – yes. But not IMPOSSIBLE.”
Little voice #3: “Can you two just shut up and stop bickering? I am enjoying the WRITING here! Those wonderful lyrical descriptions of nature! Can’t you let yourself be swept away by the story just once?”
Little voice #4: “Exactly – the author is a WILDLIFE scientist, not a child development expert. Do you always have to spoil it for the rest of us?”
Little voice #5: “All of you – HELLO! This is FICTION! So shut up and just enjoy the ride!”
At this stage I not only seriously questioned my sanity, but decided to go with it. And to be honest, I really did love the author’s writing and her keen observations of nature in the marsh. As a keen hiker and nature lover, I instantly felt transported into another world, and often envied Kya her connection to the natural environment that we have lost in our modern day and age. It turned out to be armchair travel of the best kind as Owens shared her intimate knowledge of plants and animals Kya encountered in the marsh. I, for one, loved Owens’ descriptive writing and her use of poetry to draw parallels to the human existence. Some little details, like the deadly mating dance of the fireflies, were so fascinating that I had to read up on them later (and “delight” my family at the dinner table with snippets of information gleaned).
All in all, I came to really enjoy the journey, and it turned out to be one of my favourite audiobooks so far this year. I also loved the way the narrator brought the Southern dialect to life for me (even though I have never been there and cannot comment on how true to real life it really was), and the descriptive writing was perfect to lose myself completely in Kya’s world on my long solitary stints in the car. I was briefly worried that the book would get lost in romance at one stage, and happy to see the author managed to steer away just at the right time and give me a mystery and courtroom drama to sink my teeth into. For me, the ending was just right to bring this to a fitting conclusion, and kudos to the author for the courage to stay true to the story and give us something to ponder long after the last page has been turned.
Summary:
All in all, Where the Crawdads Sing is a wonderfully
descriptive, atmospheric and emotive coming-of-age tale which has several
elements that will appeal to a wide audience: a strong and courageous female
protagonist, hints of romance, an intriguing murder-mystery, a slight seasoning
of poetry and one of the best atmospheric settings I have come across this
year. Highly recommended to readers looking for armchair travel of the best
kind – a journey to a wild and remote place.
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