Where the Crawdads Sing

Locations
Call Number: Adult Book / Fiction / General / Owens, Delia, Fiction / Owens, Delia
On Shelf At: Malletts Creek Branch, Pittsfield Branch, Westgate Branch

Location & Checkout Length	Call Number	Checkout Length	Item Status
Malletts Adult Books 4-week checkout	Adult Book / Fiction / General / Owens, Delia	4-week checkout	On Shelf
Malletts Adult Books 4-week checkout	Adult Book / Fiction / General / Owens, Delia	4-week checkout	On Shelf
Malletts Adult Books 4-week checkout	Adult Book / Fiction / General / Owens, Delia	4-week checkout	Due 05-12-2024
Malletts Adult Books 4-week checkout	Adult Book / Fiction / General / Owens, Delia	4-week checkout	Due 05-12-2024
Malletts Adult Books 4-week checkout	Adult Book / Fiction / General / Owens, Delia	4-week checkout	Due 05-12-2024
Pittsfield Adult Books 4-week checkout	Adult Book / Fiction / General / Owens, Delia	4-week checkout	On Shelf
Pittsfield Adult Books 4-week checkout	Adult Book / Fiction / General / Owens, Delia	4-week checkout	On Shelf
Pittsfield Adult Books 4-week checkout	Adult Book / Fiction / General / Owens, Delia	4-week checkout	Due 05-19-2024
Pittsfield Adult Books 4-week checkout	Adult Book / Fiction / General / Owens, Delia	4-week checkout	Due 05-12-2024
Westgate Adult Books 4-week checkout	Adult Book / Fiction / General / Owens, Delia	4-week checkout	On Shelf
Westgate Adult Books 4-week checkout	Adult Book / Fiction / General / Owens, Delia	4-week checkout	On Shelf
Westgate Adult Books 4-week checkout	Adult Book / Fiction / General / Owens, Delia	4-week checkout	Due 04-29-2024
Westgate Adult Books 4-week checkout	Adult Book / Fiction / General / Owens, Delia	4-week checkout	Due 05-12-2024
Downtown 2nd Floor 4-week checkout	Fiction / Owens, Delia	4-week checkout	Due 05-12-2024
Downtown 2nd Floor 4-week checkout	Fiction / Owens, Delia	4-week checkout	Due 05-12-2024
Downtown 2nd Floor 4-week checkout	Fiction / Owens, Delia	4-week checkout	Due 05-20-2024
Downtown 2nd Floor 4-week checkout	Fiction / Owens, Delia	4-week checkout	Due 05-12-2024
Traverwood Adult Books 4-week checkout	Adult Book / Fiction / General / Owens, Delia	4-week checkout	Due 05-12-2024
Traverwood Adult Books 4-week checkout	Adult Book / Fiction / General / Owens, Delia	4-week checkout	Due 05-23-2024
Traverwood Adult Books 4-week checkout	Adult Book / Fiction / General / Owens, Delia	4-week checkout	Due 05-12-2024
Traverwood Adult Books 4-week checkout	Adult Book / Fiction / General / Owens, Delia	4-week checkout	Due 05-17-2024

"Fans of Barbara Kingsolver will love this stunning debut novel from a New York Times bestselling nature writer, about an unforgettable young woman determined to make her way in the wilds of North Carolina, and the two men that will break her isolation open. For years, rumors of the "Marsh Girl" have haunted Barkley Cove, a quiet town on the North Carolina coast. She's barefoot and wild; unfit for polite society. So in late 1969, when handsome Chase Andrews is found dead, the locals immediately suspect Kya Clark. But Kya is not what they say. Abandoned at age ten, she has survived on her own in the marsh that she calls home. A born naturalist with just one day of school, she takes life lessons from the land, learning from the false signals of fireflies the real way of this world. But while she could have lived in solitude forever, the time comes when she yearns to be touched and loved. Drawn to two young men from town, who are each intrigued by her wild beauty, Kya opens herself to a new and startling world--until the unthinkable happens. In Where the Crawdads Sing, Owens juxtaposes an exquisite ode to the natural world against a heartbreaking coming of age story and a surprising murder investigation. Thought-provoking, wise, and deeply moving, Owens's debut novel reminds us that we are forever shaped by the children we once were, and that we are all subject to the beautiful and violent secrets that nature keeps"-- Provided by publisher.

REVIEWS & SUMMARIES

Booklist Review
Publishers Weekly Review
Summary / Annotation
Fiction Profile
Excerpt
Author Notes

COMMUNITY REVIEWS

Where the Crawdads Sing submitted by jlborin on June 23, 2019, 11:01pm I really loved this book! The setting is incredibly immersive and I really fell in love with the characters. The ending was not what I expected at all! I highly recommend!

Crawdads submitted by lpettie on June 24, 2019, 9:41pm It was an enjoyable. I loved the marsh setting.

Where the Crawda's Sing submitted by Beth Manuel on June 25, 2019, 1:04pm This was such a beautifully written story. The descriptions of the marsh and its inhabitants were pure poetry. This was a book that was hard to put down and the characters are memorable. I highly recommend this book!

Fantastic! submitted by jaromatorio on June 29, 2019, 12:16pm This book was wonderful!! The characters are compelling, the nature writing is lovely, and there are plenty of interesting twists and turns to keep you on your toes!

Hard to put down submitted by lhard on July 1, 2019, 5:12pm I read this for a book club with friends, and once I picked it up, it was hard to put down. It's a beautifully written book that draws you in.

Extremely Enjoyable submitted by modestpastry on July 16, 2019, 4:56pm Where the Crawdads Sing is an intensely vivid and beautiful novel, nature settings are described with a sort of passionate ferocity, metaphors painting some wonderful pictures of a rarely featured landscape. While I found the final revelation to be a bit on the disappointing side, the rest of the novel was ensnaring. A definite page turner.

Great Summer Read submitted by kleguiz on July 20, 2019, 3:56pm This book was a wonderful book to read to kick off summertime! Delia Owens does a wonderful job painting the beautiful marsh in your mind. The story was not at all what I was expecting and was definitely a page turner.

Great Read submitted by hpepper on July 25, 2019, 5:33pm This book wasn't what I expected, but I very much enjoyed reading it. I was so connected to the main character that by the end, I couldn't put the book down. I would definitely recommend this book!

Suspenseful, Not Depressing at All! submitted by sdunav on August 5, 2019, 5:26pm I'm not sure why I thought this was going to be depressing, because it wasn't particularly....it was suspenseful, thoughtful, and somewhat philosophical. The setting and environment of the coastal marshes and small town North Carolina in the 1950's through the 1970's were thoughtfully and poetically described, and the characters were complicated, nuanced, and well-drawn. The plot seemed predictable but in the end I was totally surprised.

Don't be put off by its popularity - it's well worth reading!

Beautiful!!! submitted by selujules on August 6, 2019, 7:54pm Took me a little bit to get into it (maybe it was so hyped up I had unrealistic expectations?), but once I did, I could not put it down. The prose is beautiful and the descriptions lush, and the characters are well developed. Unlike any other book I've read. Would highly recommend!

(FYI: Some descriptions of sexual assault. Not graphic, but upsetting nonetheless.)

Another recommendation submitted by ekjensen on August 6, 2019, 8:36pm This rapid page turner of a book was read in 24 hours. The main character Kya Clark is an amazingly bright and self reliant girl/woman who gets caught between 2 loves in her isolation in a fictional North Carolina swamp and misunderstood by the local townsfolk during her lifetime and, in particular, during the murder/death of a local man and the mystery surrounding his demise. No spoiler alert. Read for yourself this appropriately labeled bestseller.

Compelling submitted by thesrays on August 25, 2019, 5:34pm Pulling together mystery, romance, botany, abuse, and murder....this book takes you on a compelling journey weaving all these elements together in a thought-provoking story. A worthwhile read.

Excellent read submitted by admaclean on August 30, 2019, 8:54am Very descriptive writing and an emotional journey, based on a character most of us would disregard in real life. Loved the progression of the story and the ending (endings can make or break an otherwise solid book).

Book submitted by Clown81 on August 31, 2019, 4:40pm Where at.

Where the Crawdads Sing submitted by leighsprauer on September 2, 2019, 9:31am In Where the Crawdads Sing, Delia Owens tells the story of an abandoned girl who must fight for survival in the marsh backwater of the North Carolina Coast. Born into an abusive family, first Kya's mother, then her older siblings flee, leaving her with only her alcoholic father, who also eventually leaves. She becomes known as Marsh Girl by the nearby villagers, until finally she finds companionship with a series of two local men. When one of those men is found murdered, Kya's fate rests in the hands of the prejudiced villagers who have accused her, as a misunderstood outsider, of the murder.
Owens is clearly a biologist by trade and training: her descriptions of and love for the marsh are very well done. Unfortunately this does not automatically make her a competent novelist. Her characters are flat, and any attempts to make them seem otherwise are heavy-handed and artificial. For example, Tate, Kya's first love, is by all accounts a good and decent person, but she all but states "I am giving my character depth!" when she describes a major failing of his. Several other characters are handled the same way. (With the notable exception of the two African American characters, who presumably are perfect. Although the book is not specifically about race, her saccharine treatment of race relations left me rolling my eyes.)
There is a major twist at the end, the unexpectedness of which might account for people's love of this book, that just left me angry. I made it all the way through a mediocre book only to be left with an ending that felt wholly improbable. Although there were bits of foreshadowing, they were not executed well enough to justify the truly crappy ending.

A Bit Overhyped submitted by susan todoroff on January 3, 2020, 3:18pm The story was compelling, the nature writing good, but I don't understand how so many people think this is a great book. The dialog between the lovers seemed like it was written for young adults. The story was also pretty incredulous. A fun summer read, but not a great work of fiction.

Surprised myself submitted by sushai on June 25, 2020, 8:33pm This is another time I wish I had read this book as part of a book club. Even though I gave it 5 stars for its utter readability I had some problems with the writing. Then I found out it was the author's first novel, written at age 70, and felt a little more forgiving. My favorite thing about it was the biology connection, something I love about Barbara Kingsolver's novels as well.
I do understand the buzz of this book and why its sales continue to grow as word-of-mouth spreads.

Disappointed submitted by hookermb on July 9, 2020, 12:04pm I expected more, given the number of people who recommended this book to me. Somewhat superficial, redundant, predictable. However, a good book for a summer read.

Good book submitted by teri on August 2, 2020, 9:05am When I finally got around to reading this, I treated it as just another book.
I thought it very good - not stellar. The marsh biology was particularly enjoyable, and also the story of how The Marsh Girl became the person she was. Loved, and understand the ending (especially in the context of the natural world that she grew up in). Food for thought!

**** submitted by allie0 on August 13, 2020, 8:11am Story captures you. I didn’t want to put the book down.

I couldn't put this down submitted by Trudie G on August 22, 2020, 2:49pm This beautifully written book by Delia Owens had me engrossed right away. The writing is lush and detailed drawing in the reader to the world of Kya, the Marsh Girl. Abandoned as a young girl, she survived living in.the marshes of the Outer Banks of North Carolina. She is resourceful, creative and intelligent. The story is about love, loss and triumph striking every chord as I read this book. This is going to be one of my favorite books ever.

Good nature writing, terrible ending submitted by A2AE on August 23, 2020, 8:08am This is one of those best selling books that people rave about but really disappoint. While the nature writing in the book is interesting and I appreciate the protagonist’s ability to parlay her study of nature into a job that supports her, the ending of the book was undeveloped and just plain bad. There was a whole murder trial to endure as readers but the author elected to put in a twist at the end that was about two paragraphs long and painful undeveloped to the point where it felt angering at the lack of explanation; plus the poems that are tied to the plot twist are pretty bad. I started skimming them after enduring the first couple and wondered why such poor writing was a big part of the book (which isn’t a literary masterpiece, but I wasn’t expecting as much). I don’t recommend this book for these reasons.

Waste of good reading hours! submitted by Heather Dombey on March 27, 2021, 11:51am I expected a really good read after all the publicity & hype but that was not to be. Apart from an underwhelming twist at the very end this book was totally predictable, very repetitive & not well written. The characters were superficial & flat & I objected to the stereotypes of the African American characters. I was on the verge of abandoning it but kept hoping that something would reveal why so many readers loved this. That was not to be either. I am rarely tempted to write a review here but felt the need to warn others off! What an insult to Barbara Kingsolver to compare this to her great writing.

Quick, interesting read submitted by lauramason89 on June 13, 2021, 5:11pm I loved the marsh and Kya's role in it. I wish I could see her illustrations!

Beautiful Book submitted by blancharddana on July 19, 2021, 8:49am Compelling story with so many different facets. Love, poverty, trauma, educational neglect and overcoming obstacles - this book weaves all of it together into a beautiful fabric.

Like Kingsolver, like this submitted by lballard on June 10, 2022, 5:04pm Beautiful nature writing is always a plus, and this book does it well. I also found the characters believable. The ending, to me, seemed to be realistic given the characters, although apparently other reviews didn’t like it.

great submitted by cathydobbins on June 11, 2022, 10:24pm I thoroughly enjoyed it. could not put it down.

Didn't think I'd like it, but ended up loving it submitted by Susan4Pax -prev. sueij- on June 12, 2022, 12:12pm Well, color me surprised! I was so engrossed that I plowed through this book in 24 hours. It’s the coming of age story of a resilient girl-turning woman who deals with a very challenging set of hardships, and oh, yeah, there’s a murder mystery in there, too. The writing was well-balanced to tell the two timelines (growing-up-past and present-at-the-death) in ways that kept me reaching for pages no matter which chapters I was reading. I appreciated the resolution and the ending. It was a rare book that was about young people without feeling like it was written for a YA audience (in that young people don’t go off and single-handedly save the world here). Despite all the rave reviews and hype, I didn’t expect to like it this much (didn’t think it was my kind of story), but truly got caught up in the writing and story. Very enjoyable and recommended.

addicting submitted by umich.reader on June 25, 2022, 6:06pm A unique read. Mysterious story with a strong female lead.

Worth the wait submitted by Bethybeth07 on June 25, 2022, 9:25pm I had to wait 6 months to finally get my hands on it. Totally worth it. This is one of those books that is so well written it feels like you are a part of it

Loved it submitted by cathyen on July 18, 2022, 11:45pm A beautiful book with an interesting female lead.

Crawdads submitted by nmrhoads on July 27, 2022, 6:14pm Good story. I liked the audio book

Interesting, not what I expected. submitted by mmiller15 on August 8, 2022, 9:15pm I wanted to read this book, as it's been everywhere and now there's even a movie about it. Very interesting, as it was not what I expected. The setting and scenery of the marsh are gorgeous, described so well that you never leave it until the end of the book. The author also does well with writing the past and present and combing the timelines at the end. The story is best described as hauntingly, and even heartbreaking, as you learn Kya's story. Lots of lessons to be gleaned about humanity, both with people and alone. A few surprise twists at the end wrap it up nicely.

Surprisingly moving submitted by courtneyhooper on August 13, 2022, 12:03am This book rushes fast toward a tidy, satisfying ending. That’s to be expected from a book club book for this demographic. But prior to that, I found it engaging and moving. I felt deeply invested in this character.

Lives up to the hype submitted by leah karr on August 19, 2022, 5:46pm This book is beautiful. Read it. Stay on the waitlist and let your anticipation grow, because it will be worth it!

Eh submitted by wendylv on August 24, 2022, 10:49am The writing is lovely but the whole premise of girl-in-swamp-teaches-self-science was too much. It felt like it was written as a made for tv movie.

Well-written submitted by mcpapa on August 27, 2022, 10:31am The book is well-written. Immerses the reader into the environment. The characters are well-developed. Once you start, it will be hard to put down. Worth reading!

Opens you up to a new world submitted by tanisha007h on April 12, 2023, 1:26pm I read the book and watched the movie right after, the movie definitely did not do justice to the places this book takes you while reading it. Amazing character development, just a gem in itself, suspense, drama, emotion - has it all.

Read it! submitted by zwachtel50 on June 9, 2023, 2:28pm I know people have a lot of opinions on this book but I really loved it. I read this in about 3 days, I just could not put it down. The writing style took me a little to get used to but the story was fantastic and I recommend to everyone.

Gripping tale but essentially unrealistic submitted by comet on June 11, 2023, 10:53am This book was beautifully written and made for a captivating read. I couldn’t put it down after I started. Readers step into a fresh new world of the marsh, rich with life. Although the story’s development lacks depth and logic, with a lot of blank stretches here and there as to how the murder plays out, that doesn’t stop readers from appreciating and enjoying the overall plot of the novel.

A great read submitted by alharman1022 on July 1, 2023, 3:24pm You think you know and then you are guessing and then do you really know who did it? The story really hooks you

captivating story submitted by Sarahcaps on July 15, 2023, 11:43pm Well written, great character development.

Interesting but at times unrealistic to make the story work submitted by SMHred12 on August 10, 2023, 11:12am I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book. Very interesting story, and a sympathetic but also complicated main character with a lot of mystery.

Glad towards the end her lawyer said how prejudiced the town was to Kya. Really bugged me throughout the book how Kya became the Marsh Girl, because people were...weird about helping a child who had obviously been abandoned? That part was unrealistic and took me out of the story a bit.