Crow Lake by Mary Lawson review

I picked up this novel from the small shelf dedicated to BookCrossing books near Humus, the café in the Humanities Dept. of my uni. There were no expectations involved; the back cover included the usual praise and the synopsis did not waken any special interest. I just thought it might be worth a try.

Crow Lake is deserving of every praise printed on its covers. I am not kidding. I was hooked pretty much from the start, and had I had the chance to do so, I probably would have devoured it in one day. As it is, it took me two. So what's this novel about, then?

Kate Morrison looks back to the tragic events of her childhood, and in recounting the year after her parents died and reflecting on her relationships in the present day, she works out some very important things. At times I found it almost painful to continue reading - not because of any lack of quality, but because of what was happening on the page. This is written in the first person and mostly in the imperfect tense, and while I often am leery of the first person POV, it works here. I mention this in case anyone else suffers from the same prejudice. I'm telling you, it's worth it. As a matter of fact, I am seriously considering buying a copy at some point.


/ [Linderel]


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