I'm going to preface this whole post by saying that any of the hype you've seen around this book should be believed. I was a bit skeptical at first because I wasn't sure if the pace would be too slow for me, but I adored this. It's only been a couple of months since I read it, but I can almost feel myself reaching for a re-read already, and I know it's going to be a book I'll keep forever (which really I rarely do).
Where the Crawdads Sing is set in marshland on the North Carolina coast. Kya Clark's mum and siblings have left her one by one so she lives alone with her drunken, abusive father. When he stops showing up with food, she learns to live off the land, making small amounts of money to keep her going. After trying school for one day, Kya knows that school's not really going to be for her, however she starts collecting and learning about feathers, eggs and all kinds of bits of nature. Eventually Kya meets two boys from the local town who both pursue her as a girlfriend or lover, for different reasons. Kya's forced to grow up suddenly and learn more about the world that has abandoned her.
Running through the narrative on a different timeline is a murder mystery: someone has been found dead in the marsh, and detectives are trying to work out who and whether the strange marsh girl was involved.
I can honestly say this is one of the most beautiful books I've ever read. I was torn between wanting to tear through it as quickly as possible and wanting to savour every word. I'm a sucker for some good world building and descriptions and it's something that Delia Owens does so well in this book. It really does feel like you're there at the marsh with Kya. I could say so so much about why I loved this book, but I mostly feel like this is something that will be on English lit courses in the future. It reminds me a bit of The Colour Purple or To Kill a Mockingbird. I obviously gave this 5 stars.
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