Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens

Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens
384 pages / 12 hrs, 2 mins

"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.

"Perfect for fans of Barbara Kingsolver and Karen Russell, 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."  --from the publisher

I really liked this book even though some aspects of the story were a bit far-fetched.  It is well written with a graceful style.  I gave it four out of five stars.

The Glass Castle by Jeanette Walls

The Glass Castle by Jeanette Walls, 288 pages

Someone told me I would enjoy reading this book and I must say I did.  Jeanette Walls writes this memoir from her viewpoint growing up in an unstable household with two very unstable parents.  Her father is an alcoholic who can't hold a job and her mother is a very flighty artistic woman who doesn't want to spend her time taking care of her four children.  Jeanette is the second eldest of the Walls children hoping to escape the poverty they grew up in Welch, West Virginia.  Lori is the oldest and the first to move to New York City.  As the other children grow into adulthood, they make successful lives for themselves in The Big Apple.  It was shocking to me how the parents followed their kids to NYC and ended up being squatters in an old abandon building.  Glass Castle was a well written novel that was both shocking and eye opening. 

Kisses from Katie by Katie Davis

Kisses from Katie by Katie Davis -- 288 pages

Katie had her life planned out, complete with college aspirations and a boyfriend whom she loved, but her world was rocked during a week-long trip to Uganda. After that week, she decided to spend a year in Uganda before college, before resuming normal life. She never went back to normal life.
Today, Katie runs the non-profit organization she started, "Amazima", which sponsors children in poverty, and she is also mother to no less than thirteen young girls while taking care of hundreds more. Her heart and hands are full and overflowing.
This book isn't professionally written, but the story speaks for itself and I was overjoyed to read about such a young woman fully devoting her life to God.