Milwaukee Fashion + Lifestyle Blog
Welcome to a book that I absolutely could not put down. Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens was a fast favorite, and it’s no surprise to me that it’s a NY Times Bestselling book, as well as a choice for A Reese Witherspoon x Hello Sunshine Book Club. I’ve even heard some rumblings that it’s going to be turned into a movie, and I cannot wait to see it.
Forever pushed aside and forgotten by the people in her life, Kya is left alone to survive in the marshes of North Carolina’s Outer Banks. Known to people in town as the “Marsh Girl”, Kya has learned from a young age that in order to survive, she needs to rely only on herself. Left by her mother, plagued by an abusive and alcoholic father, and abandoned by her siblings who needed to find their own escape from the swamp, it might seem that Kya has no one left and nothing to live for. Just herself. When her father finally leaves for good, which is quite possibly more of a blessing, Kya is 10 years old. Living in a swamp. Left to fend for herself. And it seems she is more than up to the challenge.
There’s a lot to be said and admired about Kya and her willingness to push through despite the heartbreak and negativity that she experienced during her childhood. Though there’s more than a few things that I admire about Owens’ fierce female lead, there’s three characteristics that stood out to me above all else.
There’s sadness, a dysfunctional family, heartbreak, setbacks, impossible obstacles, and eventually a murder…all set in this wildly mysterious but magical setting. The marsh that Kya calls home is bursting with intriguing plant and animal life. It’s romantic, yet menacing. And I can’t wait to see each scene come to life on the big screen.
I especially love books that feel like the author is painting a picture in your mind. I always try to envision each character, and all of the details that make them who they are – their hair, face, clothes, and even voice. And then as best as I can, I use context clues to try to build the set in my mind, so I have a visual running through my mind as I am reading the books. Owens did a phenomenal job using words to paint each moment across the pages of this book. Now I’ll just have to wait to compare if the images I built in my mind are similar to the way it’s portrayed in the movie.
A must-read, I can’t say enough good things about Where the Crawdads Sing. I knew when I first read the summary, that I would instantly fall in love with this book, and that couldn’t have been more true. Finished in only a few days, this book kept me captivated and curious until the very end. Kudos to Delia Owens on her first novel, can’t wait to see what she writes next.
