Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens
Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens
This is my first 5/5 star read of 2019 which seems kind of crazy since it's already April and I've almost read about 30 books. But I am a bit stingy with my 5's and there was no denying that Delia Owens deserves a 5 for this masterpiece.
Like so many other books that are on the book club lists or getting too much attention, I became skeptical of whether this would actually be as good as people said. However, a co-worker of mine kept raving about how much I'd enjoy it so I caved and I am so glad I did! I listened to the audio version of this read by Cassandra Campbell which was amazing; Cassandra's delivery and accented voices added to the lyrical prose and mystical atmosphere Owens created with this book.
Where The Crawdads Sing is about strength, resiliency, loss, hope, love, loneliness, trust, determination; I could add a whole slew of other emotions this book hits on so perfectly and makes you feel right along with the main character, Kya. And wow, Kya is an outstanding person with her strength, resiliency and how she survives through all her experiences and what others do to her.
There are several other characters that add so much to the story line and are developed so perfectly. The two young men who come into Kya's life and make her experience love and heartache. Will they be a chance for her to finally belong? To be accepted? To be loved? A shop owner and his wife who become a second set of parents to Kya. There is also murder mystery within the story where we follow two policemen as they investigate as well as the court room drama which adds a lot of exciting action to the book and additional interesting characters. The town is quick to accuse the Marsh Girl, but why? What motive does she have?
One of my favorite aspects of this book however, is the detailed descriptions of the marsh and Kya's experiences and observations of the land and animals that also call the marsh home. Owens is often poetic in her descriptions, even adding some poems within the novel that add to the overall atmosphere of the story. It is so beautifully written and perfectly balances a story of growing up and survival along with a murder mystery that makes every page so intriguing and enthralling that so many readers will find themselves enjoying it.
Synopsis: For years, rumors of the “Marsh Girl” have haunted Barkley Cove, a quiet town on the North Carolina coast. So in late 1969, when handsome Chase Andrews is found dead, the locals immediately suspect Kya Clark, the so-called Marsh Girl. But Kya is not what they say. Sensitive and intelligent, she has survived for years alone in the marsh that she calls home, finding friends in the gulls and lessons in the sand. Then the time comes when she yearns to be touched and loved. When two young men from town become intrigued by her wild beauty, Kya opens herself to a new life–until the unthinkable happens.