Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens

I have been wanting to read Where the Crawdads Sing all year as I see it everywhere.  I had just finally picked myself up a copy at Costco when it was chosen for the August Rogue Book Club (aka FLICKS) selection.  I finished it before our meeting, but with overlapping vacations of members, our discussion and meeting have been postponed until September.  I can’t wait to talk about this book!

 Kya Clark is just six years old when her mother leaves her family forever.  One by one her older siblings leave her abusive father until it is just the two of them . . . and then eventually her father leaves her on her own.  Kya uses her skills to survive and grow up in the marsh.  Trusting few, she nevertheless makes lifelong friends and spends her time exploring the beauties of her home.  Kya wonders why her mother left her and never returned. She also learns about love.  When her ex-boyfriend is found murdered in the marsh, suspicious town folk are sure it’s the strange “marsh girl.”  Is Kya guilty or not?  Will Kya find true love and happiness?

I loved this novel.  It was a unique story and I loved the setting in the marsh and Kya’s love for nature.  It reminded me of a much older book, A Girl of the Limberlost by Gene Stratton Porter.  Stratton Porters books also heavily included nature and her love for the wetlands of Indiana.  I liked how the book started in the future and was intermixed with the past to see how Kya grew up as the mystery and plot advanced.  I’m always intrigued by a good story of someone growing up in nature on their own, and I also love a good mystery.  This was a great blend.

Favorite Quotes:

“Marsh is not swamp.  Marsh is a space of light, where grass grows in water, and water flows in sky.”

“A swamp knows all about death, and doesn’t necessarily define it as tragedy, certainly not a sin.”

“Ya need some girlfriends, hone, ‘cause they’re furever.  Without a vow.  A clutch of women’s the most tender, most tough place on earth.”

Where the Crawdads Sing is a wonderful novel that perfectly blends, nature, mystery, and love.

Book Source:  I purchased this novel at Costco.