Heart-wrenching and eye-opening escapism.
I was stunned and truly captivated while reading Where the Crawdads Sing. So much, that I was sad to reach the last page and put it down. It took me a while to pick up another book after, as I just knew it wasn't going to be as good! Every now and again, a book comes a long that just captures you, even though it may have flaws, it is entirely perfect to you and that is how I felt about Where the Crawdads Sing.
The story follows Kya, the Marsh Girl, as she tries to navigate a childhood in a less than normal family set up. Families, with no income and support have settled on the marsh and live a kind of 'outlaw' existence. After her mum and siblings leave home, Kya is left to fend for herself and avoid her alcoholic father. Eventually, she is left truly alone and begins to grow up into a young woman. From this point, we follow Kya's life through being a teenager, woman and elderly lady. Kya has a first love, friends and a career. All things that she was not destined to have after growing up in the marsh. Until one day, there is a murder in the village and Kya is arrested because she is the 'unruly' Marsh Girl.
Prejudice is one of the main themes of the book. It is set in 1950's - 1960's America, so there is mention of segregation and racism. Kya's dear friends Jumpin' and Mabel are regularly insulted and hurt in racial attacks. Kya herself falls victim to prejudice when she is arrested for murder, for being the Marsh Girl. She is also attacked for being a woman.
The whole book feels authentic. The speech is written as it should be said out loud, which I really enjoyed however I know some people don't enjoy this. I think it helped me escape and picture a world that I am not familiar with. The book has some of the most beautiful description that I have ever read. I have never been to the places mentioned in the book, but I could picture them so clearly and feel like I was there.
This is Delia Owen's first attempt at writing fiction. However, she is a prolific non-fiction writer and has won awards for her books. In her non-fiction work, she details her life as a wildlife scientist in Africa. You can really see that her prowess in writing non-fiction has helped with the setting and story line of Where the Crawdads Sing as I feel like I learnt a lot when reading it.
At the start, I mentioned there were some flaws. When I read reviews online I was sad to see some people giving it four or even three stars (I clearly have given it a five!). But I have to accept that everyone is different. For me, the only thing that let it down was how quick and rushed the ending felt. We travelled through a whole lifetime with Kya, so invested in her movements and wanting the best for her, that when we reached the end it almost went too quickly and there wasn't enough detail.
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