Holy interruptus, Batman! It is September. This is the time of year when things really start to speed up and New Year's Eve will be here before we know it!
Carla G hosted our September meeting. Our book, "Where the Crawdad's Sing," provided us with ample suggestions for food. Diana and I arrived a little later than most. She got some great photos of the food but, in the hubbub of greetings, I did not take down who brought each specific item. However, the food, as always was delicious. We had: fried chicken tenders and cornbread; cheesy grits and shrimp; quiche, several salads, watermelon and both blueberry cobbler and gluten free blueberry cobbler. And, our usual assortment of wines and other beverages.
We also had a full house! Lou was in town and able to join us. Gwen accompanied Barb and so we were only missing Darby, Denise and Robbie. This is as close as we have come in a while to having us all in one place at the same time.
The temperature had cooled down enough by the time we got around to discussing the book, that we were able to sit out on the patio. Carla announced that she and Randy have purchased a lot in downtown Norman and will be building something new soon. We congratulate them and look forward to our next adventures in her new home.
"Where the Crawdad's Sing," is a debut novel for Delia Owens. It went quickly to the top of the bestseller list and has been optioned for a movie by Reese Witherspoon. Delia is a zoologist who had authored several non-fiction books with her ex-husband. She grew up in Georgia but lived in Africa for a time and now resides in Idaho. Her writing style is being compared to Barbara Kingsolver, who is a favorite author of many of our members.
Diana said the book rated a 4.66 - but I think we just round that up to a 5. Most everyone loved it. Three of us liked it a lot but thought the telling was rather slow. I was listening on Audible and I thought the story moved slow as did the narration.This is funny, I had not looked at any reviews on line. The first one I looked at says:
The story follows two timelines that slowly intertwine. The first describes the childhood of our protagonist, Kya. She is abandoned, one by one, by her family members and left to raise herself in the marshlands of North Carolina between 1952-1969. The second timeline follows the murder of Chase Andrews a local athlete and celebrity. Delia's extensive knowledge of biology and zoology did give us a depth of understanding what it must be like living off the land alone and what you must know, or learn, in order to survive by your wits. She did have some help and guidance by a few people on the fringes who kept an eye out for her and allowed her this privilege without turning her into the authorities. Although, they authorities did get close a few times. Kya was certainly a person who had a formidable strength and will to survive. I will be interested to see how they bring this book to the screen. Our next book will be Aunti Poldi and the Sicilian Lions.
