[A Note from the Reviewer on 10/21/2021:
It has been almost two years since I read this book. At the time, I was incredibly taken by it, and as you’ll read in this review, I spoke highly of its craft and contents. However, in the time since, I have read significantly more books, and I have learned some disturbing information.
Although I will leave my original blog post intact (for now), I would like to comment that I no longer stand by my previous praise. It was an enjoyable read for me at the time, but in hindsight, I now feel that it is a very mediocre book. True, the writing is pretty strong in many cases, but it is not as strong a work of fiction as many other books I’ve read more recently.
Moreover, I have discovered some information regarding Delia Owens and her husband Mark Owens. In a very thorough The New Yorker piece, their complicated actions in Africa allegedly connect them with the hunting and killing of poachers. Though a theoretically just cause, the methods employed are quite ethically questionable and perhaps even racially motivated. All in all, the information makes me feel uncomfortable lauding this book, and while I would typically leave this blog post to collect dust and forget it in the abyss that is the Web, it appears that viewers are still clicking on this post to this day, so I wanted to add this disclaimer.
Do what you will with this insight.]
Where the Crawdads Sing: A Book Review
Slanted Spines 