Where the Crawdads Sing
by Delia Owens
★ Top 5 book of 2018 · #2 on Best Books of 2018
A solitary girl raised in a North Carolina marsh becomes the town's main suspect when a local man is found dead in 1969. The story blends nature writing, a tender coming-of-age arc and a murder question.
Best for: Readers who love nature-rich coming-of-age stories with a murder puzzle at the center
Where the Crawdads Sing is #2 on BookWard's Best Books of 2018, out of 59 2018 books that cleared our data bar.
What Where the Crawdads Sing is about
Barkley Cove is a quiet town on the North Carolina coast, and for years it has whispered about the Marsh Girl. Her name is Kya Clark. Sensitive and sharp, she has lived alone in the marsh for years, finding company in the gulls and learning from the sand and water around her. The town's talk turns darker in late 1969, when Chase Andrews is found dead and suspicion falls on her.
Delia Owens, in this 2018 novel, weaves three strands together: a love letter to the natural world, a young woman's coming of age, and a puzzle about a possible murder. Two young men from town grow curious about Kya, and she begins to open herself to a different kind of life. Atmospheric and melancholic, it suits readers who loved Barbara Kingsolver or Karen Russell.
Where the Crawdads Sing on the Best Books of 2018
Where the Crawdads Sing came out in 2018. Of the 59 books first published in 2018 that met BookWard's data bar, it ranks #2 on our Best Books of 2018 list.
Why it made the list: 2,841 readers have shelved it on Open Library; readers rate it 4.3 out of 5 (102 ratings); 71 are reading it right now. The list ranks each year’s books on how many readers have picked them up, how highly readers rate them, and how many are reading them right now.
It earns Reader favorite and being read right now.
Nearby on the 2018 list
- Heartstopper, Volume 1 Alice Oseman, #1
- The Laws of Human Nature Robert Greene, #3
- Atomic Habits James Clear, #4
See all Best Books of 2018 Best books by year
More years: Best Books of 2017 Best Books of 2019.
The numbers behind it
- Readers: 2,610 want to read it, 71 are reading it now and 160 have read it, according to Open Library.
- Ratings: 4.3 out of 5 from 102 Open Library ratings.
| Signal | This book (0 to 100) | Weight |
|---|---|---|
| Reach | 93 | 55% |
| Reader love | 92 | 25% |
| Being read right now | 92 | 20% |
Questions about Where the Crawdads Sing
When was Where the Crawdads Sing published?
Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens was first published in 2018.
Was Where the Crawdads Sing one of the best books of 2018?
Where the Crawdads Sing is #2 on BookWard's Best Books of 2018, out of 59 2018 books that cleared our data bar. 2,841 readers have shelved it on Open Library; readers rate it 4.3 out of 5 (102 ratings); 71 are reading it right now.
Why is Where the Crawdads Sing on the Best Books of 2018 list?
2,841 readers have shelved it on Open Library; readers rate it 4.3 out of 5 (102 ratings); 71 are reading it right now.
More of the best books of 2018
- Heartstopper, Volume 1 Alice Oseman, #1
- The Laws of Human Nature Robert Greene, #3
- Atomic Habits James Clear, #4
- Five Feet Apart Rachael Lippincott, #5
- Then She Was Gone Lisa Jewell, #6
- Normal People Sally Rooney, #7
See the full Best Books of 2018, the Top 100, or new books on Rising.
How we know
This page uses public data: Open Library reader counts and ratings, and Wikipedia page views for recent years. The description is paraphrased from real source text. Rankings reflect reading interest, not quality or sales, and can be affected by data gaps. Lists update monthly.
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