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A review by apalershadeofwhite
Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens
5.0
Wow. The storytelling in this novel was phenomenal. This book was so artfully written; every detail felt deliberately chosen and intentional. It was amazing. It felt so well thought out and paced that everything made sense and had a purpose which made for such a captivating reading experience. There are so many things I want to say and analyse about this book, so buckle in because this is going to be a loooong ride!
There is nothing in the novel that felt like a throwaway piece of information for purposes of the word count or a substance-less desire for engagement and interest. I’ve had this issue with previous reads. Small things like Kya remembering something her mother or brother used to say or do was extremely well-placed; as if the author was telling the reader that they didn’t forget this part of the novel and the character development, that it actually meant something and had a purpose in the text. It was not overly done or disgusting repetitive but done in a way that felt natural and believable, not overloading you with reminders of what happened to the protagonist. One example of this that I loved was when Kya, when reading her textbooks, looked for reasons why a mother in the wild would leave their offspring. It’s small things like this, that don’t overshadow our experience of reading about her life and growth, that made the character believable and relatable.
Although Kya was aging and experiencing new things and growing throughout the novel, she will always feel like the girl who is just trying to fit in. She tried to fit into her household with her dad by cooking and cleaning; into the school environment; with Tate before he left for college; and also, with Chase despite him keeping her a secret. No matter what she did, people were implicitly telling her that she didn’t belong because she would always be that girl from the marsh that everyone chose to leave, even her own family. It’s so heart-breaking. She will always wonder why her mother left her. She just wanted someone to love her and teach her how to live, which is probably which she felt so much so quickly for Tate – as he was teaching her all these new things and bringing her resources so she can learn. All the things her mother could have done if she hadn’t had left.
The layout was something that played a huge part in this narrative. The time jumps between chapters was well chosen and well-paced, with the book starting between 1952 and 1969. As you progress through the book, the gap between the two perspectives gets smaller until both are happening at the same time in 1970. I didn’t realise at first how much these time jumps created tensions while reading as it was quite gradual, but it was really well done. As we learn more about Kya as a protagonist, there was more of a break between the time gaps. It was paced well and deliberately which is so effective! At the beginning, the time jumps quickened the narrative, whereas later it was split up so that it created suspense and intrigue. For example, there was a time jump back to 1969 – the investigation – after Tate leaves for college. After reading along with their relationship from the start, you got invested and the jump left us wondering what happened between the two. This, paired with the fact that in the present-day investigation someone theorises that “that marsh girl” killed Chase, we assume that Kya was still residing in the shack or at the very least in the marsh area, which leads to us questioning what happened to Tate and between the two.
(Not to call myself out, but I’m way too dumb for time jumps in books lol. Even though I read the date at the start of the chapter, it still didn’t register until a couple chapters in that there were time jumps going on! For example, the jump between the three young boys almost knocked Kya over with their bikes to the next chapter about the murder investigation shocked me when it shouldn’t have. I imagined a little Chase, so I did a double take when the police officer mentioned telling his wife and kid about his death haha.)
Something about the layout and writing that I loved was that it was influenced by the narrative and the plot points. Although the descriptions, comparison, metaphors, and similes, etc. are really good throughout the novel, they progress and develop with the protagonist. At the beginning, they were not poetic or whimsical because it would not reflect Kya’s character. The writing was quite straight-forward, following, in layman’s terms, a ‘this has happened, and this is how it occurred’ sort of layout, but every now and again there would be a beautiful comparison. They were small, sharp, quick lines – about a sentence or so – that worked really well because, at that point in the narrative, Kya had not interacted with a lot of people and didn’t know how to read or write. Someone could possibly describe the writing at first as ‘standard’ or uneventful, but it was written in a way that was not boring to read and it pertained to Kya’s character which is such a smart choice.
However, as the narrative and timeline progressed, and as a result of that would be Kya growing and developing, there was an increase in the poetic nature of the descriptions and comparisons. The small bits of poetic writing she would include grew longer and grew in observational maturity as Kya aged. The more she read books and discovered her love of poetry, the more beautiful her descriptions and overall narration became. It was super interesting because the writing style progressed with the protagonist and her mental capacity, which is something I have seldom seen in the books I’ve read. As she read more, I noticed that, especially when it came to chapters that focused on Kya instead of the trial (although they do bleed into each other towards the end of the novel), the descriptions were very factual. For instance, during the scenes at the courthouse there was a paragraph focused on the history of the building. This could definitely call into question the relevancy of the writing, but I saw it as a reflection of Kya’s mind and how it works. She learned to read through textbooks, which are largely fact and history based. I think this is such a cool little detail.
Side note: we love a title reference in the text and this book has a few! I was so happy lol.
*SPOILER WARNING*
I did not see those twists at the end coming. Due to the novel being more of a chilled reading experience (almost like watching a documentary as opposed to the rollercoaster ride of some books; SJM, I’m looking at you), I didn’t think there would be a big revelation at the end besides the verdict of the trial. When I saw that there were a few small chapters left after Kya was acquitted, I was so confused. I was also worried when I saw there was a massive time jump to Tate and Kya growing older together because I thought it was going to be boring and cliché. Boy, was I wrong. I kept repeating the words “oh my god” reading that final chapter! Not only did she actually commit the crime, but we found out through an unwritten Amanda Hamilton poem. Kya’s favourite poet,l whom she quoted and recited throughout the majority of the novel, was actually herself! That blew me away, to be honest.
Also, I thought it was hilarious that Tate said he thought and would express his feeling about Amanda Hamilton’s poems being “weak” when it was his partner all along lmao.
There is nothing in the novel that felt like a throwaway piece of information for purposes of the word count or a substance-less desire for engagement and interest. I’ve had this issue with previous reads. Small things like Kya remembering something her mother or brother used to say or do was extremely well-placed; as if the author was telling the reader that they didn’t forget this part of the novel and the character development, that it actually meant something and had a purpose in the text. It was not overly done or disgusting repetitive but done in a way that felt natural and believable, not overloading you with reminders of what happened to the protagonist. One example of this that I loved was when Kya, when reading her textbooks, looked for reasons why a mother in the wild would leave their offspring. It’s small things like this, that don’t overshadow our experience of reading about her life and growth, that made the character believable and relatable.
Although Kya was aging and experiencing new things and growing throughout the novel, she will always feel like the girl who is just trying to fit in. She tried to fit into her household with her dad by cooking and cleaning; into the school environment; with Tate before he left for college; and also, with Chase despite him keeping her a secret. No matter what she did, people were implicitly telling her that she didn’t belong because she would always be that girl from the marsh that everyone chose to leave, even her own family. It’s so heart-breaking. She will always wonder why her mother left her. She just wanted someone to love her and teach her how to live, which is probably which she felt so much so quickly for Tate – as he was teaching her all these new things and bringing her resources so she can learn. All the things her mother could have done if she hadn’t had left.
The layout was something that played a huge part in this narrative. The time jumps between chapters was well chosen and well-paced, with the book starting between 1952 and 1969. As you progress through the book, the gap between the two perspectives gets smaller until both are happening at the same time in 1970. I didn’t realise at first how much these time jumps created tensions while reading as it was quite gradual, but it was really well done. As we learn more about Kya as a protagonist, there was more of a break between the time gaps. It was paced well and deliberately which is so effective! At the beginning, the time jumps quickened the narrative, whereas later it was split up so that it created suspense and intrigue. For example, there was a time jump back to 1969 – the investigation – after Tate leaves for college. After reading along with their relationship from the start, you got invested and the jump left us wondering what happened between the two. This, paired with the fact that in the present-day investigation someone theorises that “that marsh girl” killed Chase, we assume that Kya was still residing in the shack or at the very least in the marsh area, which leads to us questioning what happened to Tate and between the two.
(Not to call myself out, but I’m way too dumb for time jumps in books lol. Even though I read the date at the start of the chapter, it still didn’t register until a couple chapters in that there were time jumps going on! For example, the jump between the three young boys almost knocked Kya over with their bikes to the next chapter about the murder investigation shocked me when it shouldn’t have. I imagined a little Chase, so I did a double take when the police officer mentioned telling his wife and kid about his death haha.)
Something about the layout and writing that I loved was that it was influenced by the narrative and the plot points. Although the descriptions, comparison, metaphors, and similes, etc. are really good throughout the novel, they progress and develop with the protagonist. At the beginning, they were not poetic or whimsical because it would not reflect Kya’s character. The writing was quite straight-forward, following, in layman’s terms, a ‘this has happened, and this is how it occurred’ sort of layout, but every now and again there would be a beautiful comparison. They were small, sharp, quick lines – about a sentence or so – that worked really well because, at that point in the narrative, Kya had not interacted with a lot of people and didn’t know how to read or write. Someone could possibly describe the writing at first as ‘standard’ or uneventful, but it was written in a way that was not boring to read and it pertained to Kya’s character which is such a smart choice.
However, as the narrative and timeline progressed, and as a result of that would be Kya growing and developing, there was an increase in the poetic nature of the descriptions and comparisons. The small bits of poetic writing she would include grew longer and grew in observational maturity as Kya aged. The more she read books and discovered her love of poetry, the more beautiful her descriptions and overall narration became. It was super interesting because the writing style progressed with the protagonist and her mental capacity, which is something I have seldom seen in the books I’ve read. As she read more, I noticed that, especially when it came to chapters that focused on Kya instead of the trial (although they do bleed into each other towards the end of the novel), the descriptions were very factual. For instance, during the scenes at the courthouse there was a paragraph focused on the history of the building. This could definitely call into question the relevancy of the writing, but I saw it as a reflection of Kya’s mind and how it works. She learned to read through textbooks, which are largely fact and history based. I think this is such a cool little detail.
Side note: we love a title reference in the text and this book has a few! I was so happy lol.
*SPOILER WARNING*
I did not see those twists at the end coming. Due to the novel being more of a chilled reading experience (almost like watching a documentary as opposed to the rollercoaster ride of some books; SJM, I’m looking at you), I didn’t think there would be a big revelation at the end besides the verdict of the trial. When I saw that there were a few small chapters left after Kya was acquitted, I was so confused. I was also worried when I saw there was a massive time jump to Tate and Kya growing older together because I thought it was going to be boring and cliché. Boy, was I wrong. I kept repeating the words “oh my god” reading that final chapter! Not only did she actually commit the crime, but we found out through an unwritten Amanda Hamilton poem. Kya’s favourite poet,l whom she quoted and recited throughout the majority of the novel, was actually herself! That blew me away, to be honest.
Also, I thought it was hilarious that Tate said he thought and would express his feeling about Amanda Hamilton’s poems being “weak” when it was his partner all along lmao.