February 2019 Book Club - Where the Crawdads Sing

Discussion in 'Reading Pad' started by Karen, Dec 19, 2018.

  1. Karen

    Karen Wiggle it, just a little bit!

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    This was me... I wasn't sure what to think and didn't have any expectations, but was hooked immediately and I LOVED it!

    Spoilers in white >>> I LOVED the first part of the book completely, I did lose a little interest once it became about her trial and her being in jail because I realized I loved the other-worldness of how she lived in the woods by herself. And THEN at the very end when they drop the bomb on me that she killed the guy... I guess I shouldn't have been surprised because they offered no other explanations.... but I didn't see that coming at all! Was I the only one that was so surprised by this? <<< end spoilers
     
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  2. bcgal00

    bcgal00 Say, "birdseed!"

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    @Karen Totally agree with your thoughts. SPOILERS IN WHITE >>> I know, right??? I was surprised too that she did it. I agree, the trial part dragged on a bit too long and was the least interesting part of the book. Overall, what a wonderful surprise of a story that I thought would be dull. <<<END OF SPOILERS
     
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  3. michelepixels

    michelepixels A pun is not fully matured until it is full groan.

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    Actually >>>>>I suspected her early on. I suspected her good friend (ugh, I forgot his name already) at another point, too, in defense of her. I even suspected the sheriff briefly, because of how it went on about him wanting safety features added to the tower. But by the end of the trial, I was just relieved she was set free and accepted that they weren't going to solve the mystery. So I was shocked when her brother found the evidence too, and considered rewinding the audiobook to check that heard correctly! <<<<end of spoiler

    On another note, do you like how fast they sped through time in the last couple of chapters? I mean, I'm the type to always wonder what happened next, so I'm glad to know how things turned out in the long run, but it was kind of jolting for me.
     
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  4. umyesh

    umyesh President of the Hangry Ladies Supper Club

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    Just finished! Thanks for the good read!
     
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  5. umyesh

    umyesh President of the Hangry Ladies Supper Club

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    SPOILERS IN WHITE >>>>> I did not expect Kya to be the killer because she seemed so innocent in jail, but now that I think about it, she never said she didn't do it. I thought it was Tate for sure and that the sheriff sped up to him to arrest him. <<<<< END
     
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  6. umyesh

    umyesh President of the Hangry Ladies Supper Club

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    I thought the end was jolting too. I can't decide if I like closure for everything or if I like to imagine my own endings... Probably the latter. @michelepixels
     
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  7. djp332

    djp332 She sells seashells down by the seashore

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    My loan just became available to download last night. I’ll start reading later today.
     
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  8. djp332

    djp332 She sells seashells down by the seashore

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    I really liked this book. >>>>>I felt so bad for her as a little girl, but she defied the odds and survived. I loved that once she started reading she never quit and soaked up all that she could about just about everything. I thought I figured out early on that Tate killed Chase, but I was wrong. I really didn't think she did it, and kept wondering why she was never put on the stand? Maybe the lawyer knew?<<<<<
     
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  9. Karen

    Karen Wiggle it, just a little bit!

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    Interesting point Donna @djp332 >>>>I kind of think that maybe her lawyer didn't want to put her on the stand for fear that she would be an awful witness for herself because she didn't fit the normal mold and wouldn't say the right things or seem likeable, etc... but maybe he did know or was worried that she did it<<<<<
     
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  10. KellyM

    KellyM Kickin' cancer's butt!

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    Can't wait to start this book! Also reading it for my local book club for our April read!
     
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  11. Cherylndesigns

    Cherylndesigns All glasses should be bigger than 1.5 oz

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    I'm listening to the audio book right now.
     
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  12. Tree City

    Tree City Get a stepladder, I'm busy

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    Usually I don't comment at all if I can't (or don't) read much of the book, but, Karen, since you asked in the original post, I have to say..I didn't like this book. :hide I got through the prologue and said "Nope. Not for me." And I waited a few months to get this cuz I put it on hold as soon as I saw how many votes it was getting in the voting thread! I just couldn't handle the writing style. And Rae says it'll be one of her faves of 2019! What is wrong with me??? (Wait, don't answer that! :giggle) Maybe I just was in the wrong mood. Maybe I'll try again another time. But, one nice thing about having a chunk of Reading Pad Picks at once is that I can move onto the next book. :) I was just so happy to actually check out the book during the month we were "supposed" to read it lol!
     
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  13. Karen

    Karen Wiggle it, just a little bit!

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    I love that you're honest and will say you didn't like it. I've had that happen before with me where everyone was raving about a certain book and then I will read it and not like it at all and feel like I missed something or wasn't in the right mood. While, I know my mood or what I have recently read can totally affect my reaction to a book, sometimes the writing style will bug me so much that I can't actually absorb the story. So that's funny that you said that too. In fact, Before We Were Yours was like that for me... everyone I know that reads said it was amazing and I found the writing to be lazy and confusing and I really was super disappointed with that whole book. I didn't even want to finish it, but my book club picked it, so I "had" to finish. I finished it and actually said "what's wrong with me?" :giggle
     
  14. Tree City

    Tree City Get a stepladder, I'm busy

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    It's tough when we don't like a book that everyone else seems to like. And I expected to like this book, so I was disappointed. As a proofreader, I have no choice in what I have to read for my job; that lack of control has made me reevaluate my choices for "reading for pleasure" and I make myself stop reading a book if it doesn't grab me for whatever reason... But there's still that feeling like I'm missing something that others can see in a book.
     
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  15. Karen

    Karen Wiggle it, just a little bit!

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    Yep... totally agree!
     
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  16. michelepixels

    michelepixels A pun is not fully matured until it is full groan.

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    We're all unique so of course books will have mixed reviews. I actually love to read the poor reviews a little bit more than the rave reviews because it opens my mind, whether I agree or not.

    Also, I am such an easygoing person in general that I think it extends to my book reading. If you look at my Goodreads all my reviews are at least 4 stars. I can't really be that perfect at picking great books and if I'm pressed I could probably indicate which ones I really loved and and which ones were just amusing at the time but now I've forgotten. But when I'm reading a book, I get immersed in the world of it, fascinated by it, and eager to see how the story unfolds, and I pretty much accept everything the author does. Then, after I post my boring review on Goodreads or here, I read what others say about the book and often think, "Hmmm, I hadn't thought of that, but it's a good point!"
     
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  17. Tree City

    Tree City Get a stepladder, I'm busy

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    This made me giggle! But really, how nice would it be if we could always pick the right books for us??? It would be wonderful to only purchase (or check out from the library) books that really grab us (regardless of other people's opinions on the same books).
     
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  18. busywoman139

    busywoman139 Wish and hope and ... poof! There it is!

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    I really liked this book (and I did rate it 5 stars) but it was a slow burn for me...like it took me a while to get to the point where I really liked it. I think a lot of the author's phrasing was lovely, the way she described the environment/atmosphere of the marsh (something I have zero familiarity with). I loved the relationship development between Kya and Tate, and Kya and Jumpin/Mabel.
    Also >>> I did like the trial section, in part because it shed more light on what may or may not have happened, and in part because it reminded me of To Kill A Mockingbird - where it felt like justice itself was on trial. I was incredibly disappointed that in the end it did end up being her - or least, it SEEMS that way. I was trying to come up with a different way that it could have been an accident but somehow she ended up with the necklace!! I also thought that it was Tate when the sheriff approached him on the boat...and I didn't want that to be it either! I would have been content to not know how it happened and just let it be kind of a mystery. I loved that Kya ended up being her own hero via her expertise of the place she loved and that she eventually got honest about her feelings for Tate in a way that they could still spend a lot of their lives together. <<<
     
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  19. 3BluEyedBabies

    3BluEyedBabies Falling for pumpkin ...

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    Guess what...after reserving this book back in DECEMBER...I finally got the email this morning that my loan was available. Can't wait to start this!!
     
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  20. berniek

    berniek I have a girl crush on the Naming Fairy

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    So I read this book last month and I am still in awe. I loved it so much!
    I apparently love in-the-middle-of-nowhere settings of books. It's so different and foreign for me (I'm from the Netherlands, there is no such thing here) and that alone is interesting. Then she has to make it on her own out there PLUS the extra burdens. I cannot even imagine how I would cope. I think I just couldn't.
    I loved the descriptive writing of all the nature around here and the dialect in the dialogue made it even more real. It's the reason I read it in English: that would have never been translated into Dutch and if they tried it would be even worse probably.
    Anyway, I loved it.

    But I kept thinking of all the grits she ate. And how much I disliked them when I tried them when I was in the US some summers ago. Surviving on grits is not something I would be able to be willing. Brrr.
     
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