I should have been more attentive to our list of favorite books over the years and, unfortunately, wasn’t.
It seems, however, that you can pretty much track trends like you do poodle skirts or hairdos (or not), so thought I’d take a look back and see how the favorites have evolved.
These books cover a range of genres from contemporary fiction to historical fiction. (Pic link to my reviews.)
So, hmmm, interesting:
Have you noticed a trend in your reading choices? Not sure I see a pattern here, but I’d be willing to bet you read at least one of these! I haven’t looked at how my 2025 year shakes out yet—but that’s coming.
Coming Soon: »My Reading Challenges for 2025 »Favorite Books of 2025 »Book Review – We Are All Guilty Here by Karin Slaughter
It’s the age-old conundrum—which first, the book or the movie? It appears I’ve managed to read several of these books prior to their release. Which ones have you read first?
Wicked poster courtesy Wikipedia.
Haven’t we all been bombarded with the new movies, Christmas theme or not, out now riding on the heels of the book’s popularity? Lots of promos and book trailers, especially the big-budget Wicked by Gregory Maguire. Have you seen them? This one released in theaters on November 21st starring Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande. (Not one of the books I’ve read this year and not my thing.)
Of course, there is the wildly popular Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins, originally released in 2012 (which I also didn’t read, not my thing), and my recent favorite, Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens, released in 2022. The book was excellent–the movie very good.
Another to watch is The Housemaids (book by Freida McFadden) which will star Sydney Sweeney. Gees, I didn’t read that one either!) The release date for the movie is expected to be December 19, 2025. (I read The Housemaid’s Secret but not The Housemaid, so I’ll be interested in the original.)
I did, however, read several others and the ones listed as coming out soon read like a NY Times or USA Today bestseller list.
And surprise, surprise, another popular book, Margo’s Got Money Troubles by Rufi Thorpe, starring Elle Fanning has a release date TBA. I had a lot of fun and learned a lot with this book. Elle plays the daughter of a Hooters waitress and former pro-wrestler who’ll make it big on OnlyFans. Now’s your chance to get all the skinny. ;) I’m looking forward to this one. How about you?
Also in development for 2026 and 2027, The Nightingale and The Women by Kristin Hannah. Are you kidding? Read both, but I can’t wait to see The Women on screen! One of my very favorite books ever and was a Goodreads Choice Award Winner for Readers’ Favorite Historical Fiction of 2024 as well as an Editors’ Pick for Best Books of the Year 2024. Powerful, nostalgic, gripping. If you haven’t read it yet (fat chance), you must before the movie comes out.
Just a few others:
The Woman in Cabin 10 – Ruth Ware – released on Netflix starring Keira Knightley (started it–DNF).
The Husbands – Holly Gramazio – release date TBA – starring Juno Temple – FUN book! Recommended. The movie should be fun.
The Running Man – Stephen King – released on November 7 starring Glen Powell (but I don’t read Stephen King).
Of course, there were many more not listed here. How many of the above have you read? Look for audiobooks for these as well. Always a fast, easy way to get caught up on the latest of the books turned movie lists.
Back in May of 2020 when I downloaded and listened to Where the Crawdads Sing audiobook, I had no idea it would be a movie. The audiobook blew me away. I loved it, although it has not been received with the same genuine appreciation by all who read the book.
When the movie opened in July, I was able to see the result on the big screen, and I should mention, the big screen is the only way to view this atmospheric movie—the cinematography is breathtaking.
I promised a critique of the movie comparing it to the book that took the author ten years to write. Did the movie do justice to the book that has now been read by millions around the globe?
The Movie (Blurb)
“A woman who raised herself in the marshes of the deep South becomes a suspect in the murder of a man she was once involved with.”
My Thoughts
Photo Attribution: Daisy Edgar-Jones
The movie does a credible job following the major plot points of the book. The actors are wonderful, including London star Daisy Edgar-Jones who has to dig into her non-existent Southern roots to get the drawl right. No one likes the guy who ends up the murder victim, everyone loves Kya (both the girl and the woman do convincing, emotional jobs) and the support characters are great. So far, so good.
Photo Attribution: Taylor John Smith
But the photography and cinematography are exceptional. Atmospheric and beautiful, the location draws you in and almost overpowers the storyline, although the storyline as you must know by now is gripping.
It’s a passion-packed plot with themes of abandonment, loneliness, ingenuity, independence, love, loss, and triumph. It’s enough to wring tears from Scrooge.
Reece Witherspoon promoted the film from the get-go, loving the marsh story which was enough in itself, and then the added mystery of the murder—was it murder or an accident? Must be a murderer as Kya goes to trial—she was seen with him. And though I’m not a fan of Taylor Swift, she contributes a lovely, haunting melody.
Movie Details
Director: Olivia Newman
Stars: Daisy Edgar-Jones, Taylor John Smith, Harris Dickinson, Jojo Regina
Released July 15, 2022 (Filmed in New Orleans, Louisiana)
Among the eight producers, Reese Witherspoon is listed as executive producer and promoted heavily.
Although Mychael Danna is listed under Music, Taylor Swift also contributed a song she named Carolina.
4.5 stars
Audiobook (Blurb)
#1 this week
#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLING PHENOMENON—NOW A MAJOR MOTION PICTURE!
More than 15 million copies sold worldwide
A Reese’s Book Club Pick
For years, rumors of the “Marsh Girl” have haunted Barkley Cove, a quiet town on the North Carolina coast. So in late 1969, when handsome Chase Andrews is found dead, the locals immediately suspect Kya Clark, the so-called Marsh Girl. But Kya is not what they say. Sensitive and intelligent, she has survived for years alone in the marsh that she calls home, finding friends in the gulls and lessons in the sand. Then the time comes when she yearns to be touched and loved. When two young men from town become intrigued by her wild beauty, Kya opens herself to a new life – until the unthinkable happens.
Where the Crawdads Sing is at once an exquisite ode to the natural world, a heartbreaking coming-of-age story, and a surprising tale of possible murder. Owens reminds us that we are forever shaped by the children we once were, and that we are all subject to the beautiful and violent secrets that nature keeps.
My Thoughts
Well, if you read my original review of the audiobook, you know I loved it. Unique, beautiful in the telling, and so well drawn and gripping, it’s one of those you truly can’t put down.
The story of six-year-old Kya Clark, abandoned by her mother and shortly thereafter by her (much) older siblings is now living in a marsh shack with her despotic father. Kya has to pretty quickly learn to survive on her own near Barkley Cove, North Carolina.
The novel is divided by her story that begins with her mother leaving in the early morning hours of 1952 and the discovery of a body in 1969 near the old tower.
The storytelling is so emotionally poignant, the prose flows through beautiful descriptions of the natural setting in the marsh that it’s easy to smell the decaying vegetation, algae inhabited waterways, spy the marsh inhabitants, amphibians, birds, and insects…
The characters are brought vividly to life with the narration, alternately spoken by child or adult, literate or illiterate, as well as the Carolina drawl… Once having learned to motor into town on their old marsh fishing boat, she begins to draw the attention of the cashier at the Piggly Wiggly, the African American family, Jumpin’ and Mabel, where she bought the gas, and soon the lady from school, where she was promised a meal–real food–once a day…
Self-educated, no one knows more about the natural world of the marshlands than Kya. She’s come to be known as the “Marsh Girl.” She’s smart, has gone on to publish books on the wildlife of the marsh. But could it possibly have been she to cause the death of Chase?
The conclusion resolves carefully allowing you long enough for your heart to settle back down when you are knocked off your feet by a shocking revelation you didn’t see coming. It’s a brilliant twist, the well-plotted and written narrative so engrossing, so achingly atmospheric, every sense poised that you are hanging on every word. It’s a serious exploration of not a male coming of age this time, but a female left on her own reconciling abandonment, loneliness, hunger, disappointment, and triumph. Completely immersive, so engaging it remains solidly planted long after the end resulting in a tremendous book hangover.
5 stars
Book Details
Genre: Romance, Literary Fiction, Women’s Fiction Publisher: Penguin Audio ASIN: B07FSXPMHY Listening Length: 12 hrs 12 mins Narrator: Cassandra Campbell Audible Release: August 14, 2018 Source: Local Library (Audiobook Selections) Title Links: Where the Crawdads Sing [Amazon US]
The Author:Delia Owens is the co-author of three internationally bestselling nonfiction books about her life as a wildlife scientist in AfricaCry of the Kalahari, The Eye of the Elephant, and Secrets of the Savanna. She has won the John Burroughs Award for Nature Writing and has been published in Nature, The African Journal of Ecology, and International Wildlife, among many others. She currently lives in Idaho, where she continues her support for the people and wildlife of Zambia. Where the Crawdads Sing is her first novel.
The Narrator: Cassandra Campbell is a prolific audiobook narrator with more than 700 titles to date. Winner of four Audie Awards and nominated for a dozen more, she was a 2018 inductee in Audible’s inaugural Narrator Hall of Fame.
Overall Impression
The Movie
While the actors do an amazing job of bringing to life the experience of the marsh, it was (for me) the atmospherics so well drawn in the book that commands attention. It was an engrossing recreation of the novel by Delia Owens, faithful to that jaw-dropping twist at the end. A fine representation of the book and well worth the time spent on the big screen.
The Book
You already know my assessment of the book—while it might approach cheesy a few times—it introduces innocent romance (on one side anyway) and manages to successfully weld a sub-plot realistically with a satisfying conclusion.
Conclusion
Loved the book, loved the movie, the latter being an excellent choice for a cinema visit. For me, however, I’ll still give the nod to the well-crafted narrative by Ms Owens. There’s a reason it’s gone around the world a few times and continues to garner major attention. You can’t go wrong with either the audiobook or the digital/paperback, however, I would recommend the audiobook as being expertly read by Cassandra Campbell.
Goodreads Choice Awards–The Best of the Winners and Losers
Most of my readers know I love keeping up with Goodreads stats. I’ve been known to join the Spring and Summer Challenges, set a new bar every year for the yearly Goodreads Challenge, keeping a tally in the widgets. Also, I like to check what I read against nominees and winners, as I did in 2020. (While we can vote our choice of the nominees, the nominees are all theirs.)
Okay—later this year. (Much later—I’ve been busy.) But the good news is that I was pleasantly surprised at the number of, if not winners in the category, at least nominees. Have you taken a look back?
I read from a sample of categories, including humor, memoir, and biography but of these had only one nominated in both 2019 and 2020 in Memoir (Maid ) and Greenlights). My favorites, of course, are Mystery & Thriller, Historical Fiction, Fiction, and Debut novels.
There are a number of Hot Debuts you may be interested in—I already checked out Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus (audiobook). My review on Thursday, July 14.
Among The Most Read Books of the 2022 Reading Challenge (So Far) are a number of books that I read years ago, some of which are included below in my listing of 2020 and 2021 (nine in my categories). I am not surprised, however, to see the number three spot: Where the Crawdads Sing. The movie is premiering this July 15 and I’ve been waiting for it since the announcement. Directed by Olivia Newman, the lead, Daisy Jessica-Jones (24), is an English actress playing Kya Clark.
The links below are to the Goodreads listings. Those with a thumbnail of the cover also have a link to my review.
While I failed to choose any that were ultimately chosen #1, I did have my fair share of winners listed in the top twenty. Six in 2020 in three categories; six in 2021 in three categories.
How many of the above did you read? Do you look for ideas from the Goodreads winners? Will you be choosing one of the 2022 trending books? And, lastly—will you be going to the movie? You know I’ll be comparing it to the book.
For years, rumors of the “Marsh Girl” have haunted Barkley Cove, a quiet town on the North Carolina coast. So in late 1969, when handsome Chase Andrews is found dead, the locals immediately suspect Kya Clark, the so-called Marsh Girl. But Kya is not what they say. Sensitive and intelligent, she has survived for years alone in the marsh that she calls home, finding friends in the gulls and lessons in the sand. Then the time comes when she yearns to be touched and loved. When two young men from town become intrigued by her wild beauty, Kya opens herself to a new life – until the unthinkable happens.
Where the Crawdads Sing is at once an exquisite ode to the natural world, a heartbreaking coming-of-age story, and a surprising tale of possible murder. Owens reminds us that we are forever shaped by the children we once were, and that we are all subject to the beautiful and violent secrets that nature keeps.
My Review:
Admittedly, this may be a book you’ll struggle with or wholeheartedly love. I went on the WL side. The story of six-year-old Kya Clark, abandoned by her mother and shortly thereafter by her (much) older siblings is now living in a marsh shack with her despotic father. Kya has to pretty quickly learn to survive on her own near Barkley Cove, North Carolina.
The novel is divided by her story that begins with her mother leaving in the early morning hours of 1952 and the discovery of a body in 1969 near the old tower. Kya saw her mother leave–she’d left before following violent outbursts by her father sporting bruises and split lips. He often went into violent rages–and could–with or without the alcohol or moonshine infusion. But she’d always come back–this time she doesn’t. They are living on her father’s disability and at her age, a girl, not like her older siblings taught her much.
The storytelling is so emotionally poignant, the prose flows through beautiful descriptions of the natural setting in the marsh. It’s so easy to smell the decaying vegetation, algae inhabited waterways, spy the marsh inhabitants, amphibians, birds, and insects. Feel and smell the salt air rush inland from the Atlantic as it waves the marsh grasses and reeds. I enjoyed the setting as much as the characters. And the characters are powerful.
The characters are brought vividly to life with the narration, alternately spoken by child or adult, literate or illiterate, as well as the Carolina drawl. More afraid of the occasional human than the critters of the marsh, she becomes adept at hiding and carefully keeps to herself, spying on the few who wander into their area. Once having learned to motor into town on their old marsh fishing boat, she begins to draw the attention of the cashier at the Piggly Wiggly, the African American family, Jumpin’ and Mabel, where she bought the gas, and soon the lady from school, where she was promised a meal–real food–once a day. The problem was the intolerance of the kids, their taunts, sneers, jeers, and humiliation. She never went back. Kya, scrambling to find food, eventually connects with a friend of her brother. Gradually, driven by loneliness, she begins to meet with him and he patiently teaches her to read.
The mystery of the man many years later found just outside of the little village soon becomes a statewide scandal. He’d been a high school football star, son of a well-to-do and well-established family. The “Golden Boy.” And local law enforcement begins to work on tying his murder to Kya, as they’d been spotted together and she an easy target. She is brought up on charges and there are heart-thumping courtroom scenes.
Self-educated, no one knows more about the natural world of the marshlands than Kya. She’s come to be known as the “Marsh Girl.” She’s smart, has gone on to publish books on the wildlife of the marsh. But could it possibly have been she to cause the death of Chase?
The conclusion resolves carefully allowing you long enough for your heart to settle back down when you are knocked off your feet by a shocking revelation you didn’t see coming. It’s a brilliant twist, the well-plotted and written narrative so engrossing, so achingly atmospheric, every sense poised that you are hanging on every word. It’s a serious exploration of not a male coming-of-age this time, but a female left on her own reconciling abandonment, loneliness, hunger, disappointment, and triumph. Completely immersive, so engaging it remains solidly planted long after the end resulting in a tremendous book hangover. I’m going to be awhile getting over this one.
I received this audiobook download from my local library Overdrive offerings. The narrator does an award-winning, stunning job. Heartily recommended now that I have my emotions in check.
Book Details:
Genre: Romance, Literary Fiction, Women’s Fiction Publisher: Penguin Audio ASIN: B07FSXPMHY Print Length: 384 pages Listening Length: 12 hrs 12 mins Narrator: Cassandra Campbell Publication Date: August 14, 2018 Source: Local (Audiobook Selections) Library Title Link: Where the Crawdads Sing (Amazon) Barnes and Noble Kobo
The Author: Delia Owens is the co-author of three internationally bestselling nonfiction books about her life as a wildlife scientist in AfricaCry of the Kalahari, The Eye of the Elephant, and Secrets of the Savanna. She has won the John Burroughs Award for Nature Writing and has been published in Nature, The African Journal of Ecology, and International Wildlife, among many others. She currently lives in Idaho, where she continues her support for the people and wildlife of Zambia. Where the Crawdads Sing is her first novel.
The Narrator: Cassandra Campbell is a prolific audiobook narrator with more than 700 titles to date. Winner of four Audie Awards and nominated for a dozen more, she was a 2018 inductee in Audible’s inaugural Narrator Hall of Fame.
#1 this week
The novel is divided by her story that begins with her mother leaving in the early morning hours of 1952 and the discovery of a body in 1969 near the old tower.
Rosepoint Publishing 