Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens
My rating: 3 of 5 stars
I realize I’m going a bit against the grain here with a 3-star (I liked it) rating. I’ve had many people tell me how much they loved this book, best they’ve read this year/ever/etc.
Don’t get me wrong. I did enjoy it, and the author paints a vividly realistic picture of the marsh. But the plot is thin, the characters cliched, the dialects exaggerated (especially with the black characters of Jumpin’ and Mabel), the structure messy, and the ending, while a nice twist, didn’t ring true. And for me to take 2 weeks to read a book is very rare. In other words, it’s not a page turner.
Now, it could be that I expected so much more because of the hype. Whatever the reason, I mark this as “good, not great.”
GOODREADS RATING SYSTEM:
5: It was amazing
4: really liked it
3: liked it
2: It was okay
1: didn’t like it
I listened to it on audio, so maybe the dialect came through differently than seeing it on the page. I loved her growing up and all the arcana about the marsh, but then was not convinced by the ending. Just didn’t ring true. At that point, I realized what all the foreshadowing with the praying mantises was all about. So, in the end, despite all the good stuff, disappointing.
They probably downplayed the dialects (wisely) on the audio, Vicki. I didn’t mind the ending though it did seem unlikely – but so did her learning so much without a day of school. Overall, disappointing.
Thanks for the review of this book. I’ve been wondering if it’s as good as the hype. I won’t rush out to buy it, but will read it later, probably, from the library.
Library is a good choice, Kaye. I found the dialect particularly stereotypical. Jumpin’ and Mabel, especially. If we heard someone in a movie say, “Lawdy, Miz Kya, yo sho a sight for po eyes” we’d roll our eyes, but that’s the way she has those two characters speak. The story line is interesting and I think most people who love it are nature lovers — it’s really beautifully done from that standpoint. And of course, an endorsement from Reese Witherspoon goes a long way to making something a bestseller. Still, it’s worth reading, just not up to the hype. But that’s my opinion and I’m clearly in the minority (though there are a lot of 1 and 2 star reviews on Goodreads).
That’s an archaic style. I wonder if that’s what she was going for. I don’t see the point of using it today, though. I read *Smoky the Cowhorse* when I was a girl and the whole book is in dialect. I loved it!
No idea. Just found it off-putting. Interesting though. Getting lots of private emails saying they didn’t like the book. I guess they don’t want to admit it when it’s so popular.
Interesting!