Where the Crawdads Sing

I’m terrible at reading current books, especially ones that are all the rage - so when I saw this one for sale in Sainsbury’s for £4 I jumped at the chance to read it (despite having over 100 books waiting to be read at home). The descriptions of wildlife, nature and the marsh throughout the story are absolutely my favourite parts. Delia Owens is a well renowned author in the world of ecology, and her strength in this area really stands out in the story. The murder-mystery, coming-of-age, outsider vs prejudiced towns folk plot lines are widely accessible, and perhaps account for the far reaching acclaim this debut novel reached. It’s fast paced, romantic and easily understood.

As with all bestsellers, I came into it with high expectations - but admittedly felt a little let down by the end - though not because of the plot line. The character development for our main protagonist was tangible, but a lot of her dialogue in the second half of the book became increasingly too cheesy for me. I suddenly felt like I’d left the mystical haze of the marsh and jumped straight into a YA novel (not my usual scene). Owens plays with some big themes, (race, gender roles, domestic violence, class, education) and some of them didn’t quite reach the heights I was hoping for. I did however love the sensory descriptions, the lilt and swerve of dialogue Kya’s family used and the details of food. The interwoven explanations of sea creatures, mating rituals and birds as Kya’s life teachers were also written really well, and felt the most authentic. The story really picks up the pace in the last couple of chapters, and the plot line does have a solid, satisfying ending (no spoilers here).

A female-driven survival story in this kind of setting is not all that common, and I do want to give credit where credit is due for originality and creativity. Overall, I think I’m still umming and ahhring over the rating, and I completely understand the hype. I read it in 2 sittings, and didn’t want to put it down. It’s very easy to read, probably something I’d recommend as hammock accompaniment on a sunny day. It might not change your perspective on the world, but it might persuade you to buy some binoculars…