Book Review Crow Lake By Mary Lawson

   This was an audiobook I picked up via  NetGalley/Brilliance publishing. 

Crow Lake  seemed to fit in with my water theme perfectly. I did not realize this was basically off the backlist, but it seems it was originally published in 2002, so though it is with a new narration by Amelia Sargisson, I think I can still consider it a "beat the back-list" novel! 

This was a debut novel for Mary Lawson!  This is a story set in the Canadian Shield region of Northern Ontario

he story is centered around Kate coming home for her nephew's birthday celebration. As she travels, readers are taken on a journey through memory of her childhood growing up in the Canadian Shield area of Ontario in a farming family. Kate and her brother's were suddenly orphaned, and this event altered their life trajectories. As the youngest Kate was very attached to her brother Matt who loves nature and shapes her own interests, as she becomes a zoologist as an adult. Set against the background of Crow Lake - a small town where everyone knew everyone, the tightly told drama unfolds. As Kate returns home, she must face the facts that she can return to the people she loves, but that they , like her, are not static and things have changed, for better and for worse.

I enjoyed this novel. The writing was direct and elegant in it's simplicity. Amelia Sargisson is the narrator, and she narrated in a clear voice that did not detract from the story line. I felt immediately immersed, within the narration.

This book is sort of quintessential literary fiction. It read a bit like historical fiction at this point, having been first published in 2003. For me the main theme might be how "you can't go home again" and of course, while, one can almost always return to a physical home location, the setting and the persons associated with home are never static..

 This would be an EXCELLENT choice for Book clubs! 

STATS

First Published :2002

Pages: 320

Available as an Audio Book :  Yes (8 hr 34 min) 

Trigger Warnings: mental health, parental death

Not a full list, please read responsibly.