I highly recommend this book. WOW!It is for those readers who appreciate good writing rather than for those who want an exciting plot. There is excitement, but that is not why you pick this book. The ending is special; I loved it, but others may hate it. See the book like this - you pull back a curtain and glimpse another life, and then that curtain swings shut, and the book ends. Not everything is spelled out. And the future? Who knows for sure what the future will bring. The focus is about bayou life on the islands at the mouth of the Mississippi, about fishermen communities to whom New Orleans is seen as the 'Big City'. This is a story about life on these islands - the weather, the storms, the swamp; it's scary even to them. The animals and insects (the creepy crawlies) and plants. The feel of the sticky air on your skin. The heaviness of the air before a storm, and the color of the sky. Feuds, women's roles and men's - who does what and who decides what? And if you don't agree, what happens then? Drinking and partying and sex too, but never offensively drawn. It is about the people there on these islands. What is their life like? It is not about high achievers. They swear; they talk their own dialect. Forget proper grammar. But what really makes the book so special is how the author gets you inside the heads of such different characters - a teenager whose mother has recently died and whose father remarries. How does she feel about her father remarrying? And how do all teenagers act and behave and talk? My, what sass! One minute these kids want independence and freedom, and the next they want their parents' closeness and support. You will recognize teenage behavior! The widower marries a widow who has a young child. How does this child see his new life and existence, his new sister and a new father?! There is another outsider there on the island, on a boat going to New Orleans, but the sand bars are tricky and he is stuck there. You get inside all of these characters’ heads, and there are others too. Through their words, through dialogs you hear what they say and you understand their thoughts and confusion, hopes and wishes and struggles. There is also an old woman on the island; she is related to just about everyone. It is a small community where everyone knows everything about everyone. How does she see what is happening around her, and death sneaking in at the crevices of her house? Rivalry and dog fights and a small shop-owner. Through what they say to each other, what they do and the choices they make you understand them and their lives. You get a glimpse into another world, their world.And here is a thought - who you are, doesn't that consist of how you react to what happens around you? Isn't that what determines who you are? Forget plans. What makes this book special is how the reader gets into so many different characters; you see each of their lives and each one becomes special and unique.Don't read this book. Listen to it, narrated by Luci Christian Bell. The narration is marvelous. Each character has their own intonation. The slang used and how it is pronounced is perfect. You will laugh. Wait till you hear the islanders' "NO?!" A question and an answer all in one!************************I have finished the audiobook and I am so terribly impressed. This one gets five stars. I have to figure out how to write a review that does it justice. ************************After chapter 21: Oh my, I forgot to mention the flirting. It is delightful, both between the teenagers and the older couples too. This covers young adult relationships, love between a widower and widow and other attractions between women and men. I love it. There is so much in this book about how people interact and how that interaction is different at different ages.*************************I am absolutely loving this book. I have only listened to about one third, 20 chapters are completed, but I HAVE to express how I am reacting to this book. The people - I love them. They are Southerners, people of the bayou, not people I know, not people I have been acquainted with, but now I feel I know them and I feel part of their community. I absolutely LOVE the dialog. I absolutely love these ordinary people. No, they are not high achievers. I couldn't care less, what they have accomplished with their lives. I don't know where the plot is going, although I have a few guesses now. I am not reading the book for where it is going. I am reading it for being part of the island community.A marriage has taken place. Two kids have become brother and sister. No, they were not asked or even informed. Their reactions are so absolutely pitch perfect. One is about three and the other seventeen. Please listen to the audio version narrated by Luci Christian Bell. I don't believe any reader of the paper book could better imagine the Southern dialect, and no other narrator could better capture the emotions of the characters. Grau, the author, won a Pulitzer for The Keepers of the House. That is what got me started with the author. FANTASTIC writing. I don't have a superlative that adequately describes how I appreciate the writing.People, if you don't know of this author, please pay attention. Grau can write.
