Mini book review: Where the Crawdads Sing, by Delia Owens, PenguinRandomhouse

I’m late to the party about Where the Crawdads Sing, by Delia Owens, which has been out for more than a year and was on top of the New York Times bestseller list for 20 weeks. But, as the saying goes, better late than never. Speaking of late, this one kept me up all night. Even though it’s a cliché, I could not put this book down once I started it.
It’s the story of Kya, a young girl who is abandoned by her family, one-by-one, before she’s 10 years old. Her dysfunctional and abusive family lived in the marches of North Carolina, in a shack. Tragedy splits them apart, but Kya stays. She fends for herself, barefoot, penniless, alone.
Kya’s story is fascinating in itself, but it’s interwoven with a 1969 murder mystery that unfolds in alternating chapters. A local handsome and popular young man, with an penchant for sleeping around, who is rumoured to have been involved with Kya, is found dead, setting off a compelling whodunit.
Although she’s isolated personally, Kya is deeply connected to the natural world, something that is beautifully expressed in Where the Crawdads Sing. Author Delia Owens had already co-written three bestselling non-fiction books about her life as a wildlife scientist in Africa, so the connection to the natural world isn’t just a fluke.
This is a fully satisfying murder mystery, interwoven with an engrossing tale of a young girl who survives despite having to fend completely for herself. It’s irresistible.

Mini book review: The World That We Knew, by Alice Hoffman, Simon & Schuster

A little Alice Hoffman, anyone? In The World That We Knew, Hoffman writes about the French Resistance during the Second World War, but in her particularly special way. Fans of Hoffman – who is one of my favourite writers – will know she always mixes in a little magic into her stories of families, women and love.
And The World That We Knew is no different. It tackles one of mankind’s darkest hours, but tells the story through women’s strength, resilience and power.
Hoffman’s name may not be a household word, but she has written more than 30 novels, including Practical Magic, which you might remember was a 1998 movie starring Sandra Bullock and Nicole Kidman. The World That We Knew is one of her best.
The story begins in Berlin, where a Jewish mother sends her 12-year-old daughter away for her only chance at safety, even though it breaks her heart to do it. The mother sends her daughter off with the protection of a female magical Jewish creature called a golem, created from clay with the help of a Rabbi’s daughter.
The daughter, the Rabbi’s daughter and the golem travel to France, spending the fateful final years of the Second World War intertwined with the French Resistance. It all comes together in this story of love, heartbreak, sacrifice and more. Did I mention there is a heron involved? Enjoy.