Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens

This has got to be one of the worst books I have ever read in my life. I genuinely do not even know where to start. Is it the large age gap where one of them is literally 14? Or maybe comparing a white girl who choses to isolate herself with segregation? There’s also the issue of the racist caricatures of the few characters of color? I could use the fact that she steps on her entire point through the ending of the book. NOPE, that’s not even the worst part of it. The author herself is genuinely terrible. She was involved in what is *allegedly* a racially motivated murder in Zimbabwe and is advised by the American government to never go back because then the government there can question her about it, a fact she skipped over when discussing how fun it was sipping champagne on her trip.

The age gap between the couple is “only” three years, and would be okay if they were both adults, but considering Kya, the main character, is only 14 and her boyfriend is 17 when they sleep together, that is a completely different story. And the argument that it is that the story was set in the 60s, so it is okay, is bullshit. This book was written around 2018, when that is not an okay situation (age them both up by a year and it is illegal). In the book, he is seen as her savior and there is never once a mention that it is a problem. It is absolutely disgusting and I do not know why authors continue to get away with this even in 2023. 

I feel like the racism present in the book, and I do not mean historically accurate racism that people of color would have faced at the time but the racism embedded in the actual message given by the book, should be a complete red flag, but this is never even discussed when the book rose to fame. Kya, the main character, is a white girl who lives alone in the marsh because kids were mean to her on her first (and only) day of school. She isolated herself in the marsh, and then blamed others for her isolation. Several times throughout the book, she compares herself to the black girls who are suffering the effects of segregation. Never once does any of the black characters (because there are only black and white people in the book) correct her, and even go as far as to agree with her. This is not while she is a child either, but when she is an adult. The black people in the book have no access to the same quality of education because they are being systematically denied access to the same opportunities as white people. Kya does have access to that, but chose to run away when she was given that opportunity. And we are supposed to read that she is being oppressed, but also that she was powerful for turning away, all at the same time. At the end of the day, Kya is white, and that gives her so much privilege that Owens denies in her book. There are two main black characters, a husband and wife, and they both are caricatures. Specifically the wife, who is the definition of the “mammy” caricature, which was first used to justify slavery and then to show that black women were content to take care of white people.

Basically, this book has messages of racism and glorification of abuse from beginning to end. To top it all off, she steps on the point. The moment that Chase Andrews is found murdered, everyone immediately suspects Kya and she is quickly the number one suspect. *SPOILERS* She gets off, but it is then discovered that she was the one who murdered him, which subsequently proves that everyone was right about her in the first place. The ending makes no sense and is honestly so infuriating that I wrote an entire essay (6 pages) for my English teacher about why she should not ever force anyone to read the book again.

Nick and Charlie – Alice Oseman (she/they)

3.5 stars (objectively) 4.5 (for me)

It would shock anyone who knows me well that I would give a story about Nick and Charlie anything less than five stars, but I will explain why as this review goes on. 

About Nick and Charlie

The appropriately named book focuses on Nick Nelson and Charlie Spring, Alice Oseman’s most recognizable characters. This novella serves as a sequel of sorts for Oseman’s graphic novel series, Heartstopper, which has reached new levels of success with the Netflix series by the same name, starring Kit Conner and Joe Locke. Set 2 years after the two get together, this book follows their struggles being a year apart, with Nick about to go off to university, and Charlie being left behind. They planned to keep their relationship going, just long-distance, but with Nick leaving in only a few months, doubts about whether they’re going to last creep into their relationship. Will they be able to make it work, after all, they’re Nick and Charlie as everyone reminds them, or will this be the end of their relationship forever?

My Review

Like I said, it is shocking that I would give a story about Nick and Charlie anything less than 5 stars. But I have to say that this book does not live up to Alice Oseman’s abilities, as I know her writing.

Some Context

Now, it is important to give this book some context. It was released in 2015, but did not really have the same level of success as many of her other books, at least to my knowledge. Oseman has discussed publicly that she has been drawing and writing Nick and Charlie since she was a teenager, even if that work isn’t public now. This book was released prior to the graphic novel (first volume was released in 2019), so while many people reading the book now have a lot of knowledge of these characters, that was not the case when the book was released. Nick and Charlie were first introduced in Oseman’s first book Solitaire which tells the story of Tori Spring, Charlie’s sister, around the time of Heartstopper, but after the two have gotten together. It is important to note that I have read Heartstopper many times, and am very familiar with the characters.

 Nick and Charlie original release cover

The Writing

While this was not the worst writing in the world, it is not really what I would have expected from Alice Oseman. The writing is very childish, almost like she is writing the graphic novel, but using words instead of drawings. The writing is like a young middle grade novel, but is marketed to Young Adult audiences due to the content (mentions sex like 4 times) and god forbid middle schoolers see that. When reading through the book, it is easy to see why this book did not gain as much attention as her other books. There were a lot of lists, which happens in her graphic novels too, but it works very differently in the two mediums. It felt like reading when a middle schooler is writing a book and just starts listing off he did this, then this, then this, in that format.On top of that, there is a lot of just info dumping because of how short the book is, instead of letting it develop over time. Overall, the writing of the book does not match the plot. It is a story that would hit older high schoolers very well, and middle schoolers would have no real context for, but appears to be written the other way around. 

 Nick and Charlie page

most YA book Pages (Cress)

The Plot

The plot was really touching. The focus on both Nick and Charlie’s emotions as they grapple with the change that will inevitably occur when they go from seeing each other everyday to being 200 miles apart, hits really hard. As someone who lives almost 200 miles away from my family and most of my friends, and nearly 400 miles from my best friend, the feeling of being so ready to leave, but still being sad to go is something I can relate to a lot. There is a complex understanding of what it is truly like to prepare for uni, the good, the bad, and the ugly, that Oseman truly captures, just in 150 pages. I think it would be even better if she could have flushed it out even more, to really explore both sides, especially Nick’s feelings about university. 

“And they have all turned up to school either in red basketball outfits or cheerleader outfits. Disappointingly, Nick went for basketballer.”

 ~ Alice Oseman, Nick and Charlie, 5

The Romance and Representation 

As per usual, I love these two. They really are one of my favourite couples of all time. They are not a couple that is hard to read about, because they feel so real. There is never a huge fight, even in this book. Oseman does not need to rely on normal romance tropes to cause tension or make them more appealing to read about, because they bring in that attention for themselves. It is always refreshing to read (or watch) Heartstopper or anything else by Oseman because they write about happy queer stories. Something all too common about queer romances is that they tend to be written to be very intense and dramatic and stressful, and many overlook the appeal and necessity for genuine happy first love about queer people. We deserve to have our own happy love stories as well, and Oseman always delivers.

My Rating

I did include 2 ratings for this because there is what I would consider an “objective” rating and then my own rating for me personally. Personally, I loved it, and it brings me a lot of comfort. But in all honesty, if you are not that invested or in love with these two, I don’t think you would enjoy reading it all that much if I am being honest. It might be cute and fun, but it’s not a book that will really stick with you. I also chose not to include a full five stars, even for myself, because of the length. There is not a lot of actual depth to the story, which is something I look for in a book, and this did not deliver. I don’t mind when that is the point of the book, but this book could’ve gone deeper and didn’t. The book would have been better if it had. Bonus points for include a Pride and Prejudice quote at the beginning though.

Youngblood – Sasha Laurens

3.5 stars

Four words: Lesbian, Vampire, Boarding School

About Youngblood

Kat Finn has grown up her entire life isolated from other vampires, and hates it. Instead, it is just her and her mother living in Sacramento, California, barely scraping by to buy Hema, the blood substitute that they have to rely on because of the deadly disease running through humans, deadly to them, and even more to vampires. Kat realizes she can change all of that if she can just get into Harcote, the elite boarding school exclusively for vampires. Except, it’s incredibly expensive and offers no financial aid for potential students. So, when Kat secretly applies to the school against her mother’s wishes, she does not expect to be able to go because of her financial struggles. So when she receives an email telling her that she has got in and has her tuition paid for in-full by an anonymous benefactor, it’s a dream come true. Nothing can ruin it for her, not her mother’s disapproval or her roommate/ex-best friend. But sometimes, there is so much more at play than anyone could ever know?

Taylor Sanger has been forced to go to Harcote every year, despite how much she hates it. Everyone there lives in a white, heteronormative world, with their strict adherence to traditionalism. When some of your teachers are quite literally from another century, being the only openly queer student is extremely isolating. Her only friend on campus is the only other openly gay person on campus, who also happens to be her science teacher. The only other person who she talks to is her worst enemy who she is also hooking up with on the downlow, who she is going to be forced to room with. Instead, the infinitely worse possibility has happened, Evangeline has switched with none other than Kat Finn, the girl who she was in love with until she one day told her to never speak to her again. So, when both girls are dragged into something darker than they ever could have imagined, will they be able to work together, or will they go down in flames?

My Review:

Was this the greatest book in existence? Absolutely nowhere close. However, when you are starved for queer content that is not purely romance, your bar is very, very low. All I knew going into reading this book were the four words I wrote above. I was not ready for the rollercoaster that I was dragged into instead.

The Writing

This was, by far, the worst part of this book. But it was just good enough that it wasn’t unreadable. Instead, it gives fanfiction vibes, not great, but you’ll put up with it for the content. That’s all I really have to say because it was pretty mediocre, not terrible, but not great.

The Romance

When it came to the pacing of the romance, I will say that it was not my cup of tea. It felt too short to be a slow burn, but it was too long to be anywhere close to insta-love. I think Laurens was going for a “will they, won’t they” vibe with Kat and Taylor, but it was not drawn out enough. That being said, the romance and chemistry between the two of them was real. It was not some over dramatic romance novel level of chemistry. Instead, it felt like what falling in love as a teenager should feel like. It focuses far more on the idea of just being excited to be with each other and less on the “I want to have you right now” vibes of many romances. 

This was like a breath of fresh air. As an asexual person, simply having two people who want to be around each other is what is important to me, and it sometimes feels like that gets overlooked, even in Young Adult fiction. That being said, they’re still teeangers, and have their uh…teenage hormone moments.

Overall, it felt more real than a lot of romances out there. (That being said, I am about to reread the confession scene in Red White and Royal Blue, which goes against everything I just said.)

The Plot

No, the plot was not very original. Two girls find out people are assholes and that there’s something bad brewing at their school. Together they stop it. Nothing about that is original. Except this time, they’re also lesbians, and lesbians make everything better.

All jokes aside, the plot was interesting enough, and had enough twists and turns to keep me drawn into the story (I read the first 460ish pages in one day, (and then took another week and a half to read the last 40)). But like I said, the plot was rather predictable. While that normally makes me not like a book, it actually works well with this book. A large part of this book relies on the audience knowing that a character is making a bad decision, but watching them do it anyway. It’s predictability actually aids the story, especially when looking at it critically.

The Representation

It is always nice to read a queer book written by a queer person who understands the queer experience. Too often, a lot of the queer fantasy books are written by straight people (and no, I am not saying that they cannot write about queer people) who cannot understand what it is like to be a queer person. Some of the books that people (heterosexual people specifically) credit as “the best queer books” are written by openly straight people. Part of this is because when straight people write queer books, it is easier for other straight people to digest and relate to. But in that, the queer experience is not present in the book, and can alienate the queer audience by focusing on queerness for the heterosexual gaze. 

This book is the opposite of that. Every part of the book is infused with the queer experience, even if quite subtly. It is something that many queer people can relate to and understand, both from the perspective of still figuring it out and from being comfortable in your identity. 

“Not that any straight person would have described it that way, but they couldn’t hear the voice in my head that second-guessed and analyzed every little thing I did — or wanted to do. What were the consequences? Was it worth potentially getting hurt?”

~Sasha Laurens, Youngblood, 370-371

The Critical Analysis

(I’m keeping this short because it is already over a 1000 words)

It is easy to glance at this book and think about how this book is just a cliche plot, but with a lesbian romance thrown into the mix. Looking at it from that perspective takes a huge part of why I like this book. This book utilizes its predictability to illustrate how those with wealth and power are able to manipulate everyone around them. This book covers socioeconomic privilege and how COVID made it even more apparent. In the book, we see that those who have a lot of money are able to protect themselves against CFaD, while those without money have no choice but to endanger their lives if they want to be able to even have a chance at living. We see that with Kat’s father, who died from CFaD, because he was poor and had no choice but to risk feeding on a human, which cost him his life.

We see how not coming from a prestigious fang maker (basically family) impacts Kat’s life. She does not get the same support and opportunities as her classmates get from simply being born into the right family, and how they don’t even really realize the amount of luck and privilege that they have.

Harcote, the school itself, stands for that. Used as a high school equivalent of an Ivy league school, we see how financial privilege helps so many, and how it is tightly linked to racial privilege. The school says it’s for “The Best of the Best” but it is only for the best who can also afford to go to the school with its practically nonexistent financial aid. This further shows how simply being born into a well-known family can impact how society views them as “harder working” or “smarter,” just because they were able to afford to go to a certain school and have resources that most people do not have the ability to even consider.

*Note: this is not necessarily based solely on the film’s overall rating, but on my opinions about the adaptation process

The Worst:

3. Pride & Prejudice (2005) 

Based on: Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen

Before I get a bunch of people attacking me, I don’t dislike this movie. I would not say that I love the movie, but it was a pretty good movie yet forgetful movie. However, as a page-to-screen adaptation, it is mediocre at best. The biggest issue with the movie is that they cut a lot of details and nuance from the book and overdramatized a lot of the scenes to make a 2 hour film to make it more popular. While I understand that in some aspects, most books do not make for good screen adaptations, Pride and Prejudice (1995) proves that the book absolutely does. The movie took what was meant to be a satirical commentary and turned it into a full on drama.

2. Shadowhunters (2016-2019) 

Based on: The Mortal Instruments series by Cassandra Clare

As a show, this is the perfect shitty TV show. You know the kind of TV show that is so bad that it’s good. However, as bad as this show is, it is even worse as a book to movie adaptation. The first few episodes seemed like it might’ve fared better than the movie, City of Bones, but eventually it became abundantly clear that the only good thing in the entire movie was Harry Shum Jr. as Magnus Bane (I mean, seriously, if they ever try to do another Shadowhunters adaptation, they need to bring him back. But put him in heels so that he’s as tall as he’s supposed to be because Magnus is 6’ 3” and Harry Shum Jr. is 5’ 11”). By the end of the series, the only thing connecting the show to the book series was the names of the characters (and even that was iffy).

(I mean look at this man, he played this role so well)

1. Percy Jackson and The Olympians: The Lightning Thief (2010) 

Based on: The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan

Having a bunch of 20 year olds playing 12 year old characters and changing what is generally thought of to be one of the best books of all the time is practically a recipe for disaster. While I do not think that it is a bad thing to change a few plot details, completely rewriting the entire plot makes the movie a terrible page-to-screen adaptation. What makes it even worse is that they rewrote it terribly. Many people felt betrayed by the adaptation and were expecting it to be better than it actually was. 

Here’s hoping that the TV show fairs better than its predecessors. 

Also, we should probably stop casting the Daddario siblings in page-to-screen adaptations (because Alexandra Daddario is in Percy Jackson and Matthew Daddario is in Shadowhunters) Like I love them, but they seem like a bad omen or something.

The Best:

3. Shadow and Bone: Season 1 (2021) – 

Based on: Shadow & Bone and (prequel to) Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo

While half of the show differs significantly from the books, we as readers were warned ahead of time that they would be different and the reason why they decided to change the plot. When the characters of Six of Crows were announced to be included in the show, show runners (and Leigh Bardugo) assured us that it would serve as a prequel to their stories. This proved that the changes made to the original plot were done to improve the storyline (such as making some of the characters better overall) and were not frustrating to watch the way that so many do. 

This has been renewed for a second season. 

(There’s also footage of me screaming and crying while watching this, but sadly I cannot include that, despite how entertaining it is to watch a seventeen year old fall off a couch when a character comes on screen)

2. Pride and Prejudice (1995) 

Based on: Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen

This is one of my all time favorite shows of all time, and I have watched it over 75 times in less than six years. Spanning five and a half hours total without commercials, this is one of the best screen adaptations. It barely differs from the book, with only a few things changed here and there. It keeps the original humor and social commentary from the original source. The tone matches the book very well and the casting was immaculate. The overall cinematography of the film matches the speed and pace of the book. It is a beautiful show overall, and it has Colin Firth in it, so what more could you ask for?

1. Heartstopper: Season 1 (2022) – Based on: Heartstopper by Alice Oseman (Volumes 1&2)

This has got to be the best book-to-screen adaptation I have ever seen in my life. With a 100% critic rating on Rotten Tomatoes, I am clearly not the only one who thinks so. As much as I love the source material, I personally think that the show was even better. The casting of the characters was incredibly well-done and makes me incredibly happy. It cast queer kids to play queer kids, and simply expanded on the story that had previously been looked over in the book. And it pays homage to its graphic novel beginnings with the artistic elements in the show. Instead of relying on unnecessary drama and plot twists, the show is able to make itself interesting without causing a lot of stress for the audience. This is a show about love and acceptance, and queer identities at its finest.

This has already been renewed for 2 more seasons, and I hope they are just as good as this one.