Here is a gorgeous, slowburning story set in the rural 'badlands' of Northern Ontario, where tragedy and hardship are mirrored in the landscape, and even laying too much store by education can be subtly dangerous. For the farming Pye family, life is a Greek tragedy where the sins of the fathers are visited on the sons, and hideous events occur - offstage. Centrestage, are the Morrisons whose tragedy looks more immediate if less brutal, but is in reality insidious and divisive. Orphaned young, Kate Morrison, was her older brother Matt's protege, her fascination for pondlife fed by his passionate interest in the natural world. Now a zoologist she can identify organisms under a microscope, but seems blind to the tragedy of her own emotional life. And she thinks she's outgrown her family - Luke, Matt and Bo, who were once her entire world. In this universal drama of family love and misunderstandings, of resentments harboured and driven underground, Lawson ratchets up the tension, paying out her story with heartbreaking humour and consummate control, so as to overturn one's expectations right to the end. Tragic, funny, unforgettable - a quiet masterpiece that deserves to be bestseller.
Crow Lake
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Amazon Review
Canadian writer Mary Lawson's debut novel is a beautifully crafted and shimmering tale of love, death and redemption set in the eponymous Crow Lake, an isolated rural community where time has stood still. Narrated by 26-year-old Kate Morrison, we dive in and out of the troubled woman's childhood memories over the passage of a year--when she was seven and her parents were killed in a motoring accident, leaving Kate, her younger sister Bo and two older brothers Matt and Luke orphaned. The proverbial can of worms is opened for our heroine when she receives an invitation to Matt's son's 18th birthday. The successful zoologist and professor, so accustomed to dissecting everything through a microscope, must suddenly analyse her own relationship and come to terms with her past before she forsakes a future with the man she loves. She is still in turmoil over the events of that fateful summer and winter 20 years ago when the tragedy of another local family, the Pyes, spilled over into their own lives with earth-shattering consequences. One dark night, a shivering Laurie, Pye's only son, stands mute in their porchlight, straining to share something with them but, startled, turns and runs away. The many strange, longing looks which pass between Matt and Marie, Pye's eldest daughter. And the awful night when Marie stands in their doorway whispering unspeakable horrors. In Kate's eyes, the Pye family drown out the hopes and dreams of her own in that one moment. But does the tragedy really lie in the past or is it in the present? Lawson's narrative flows effortlessly in ever-increasing circles, swirling impressions in the reader's mind until form takes shape and the reader is left to reflect on the whole. Crow Lake is a wonderful achievement that will ripple in and out the reader's consciousness long after the last page is turned. --Nicola Perry
Review
“Crow Lake is a remarkable novel, utterly gripping and yet highly literate. I read it in a single sitting, then I read it again, just for pleasure. I await her next work with eagerness (and a little envy).”
— -- Joanne Harris, author of Chocolat
— -- Joanne Harris, author of Chocolat
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
24 of 24 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
This novel combines a compelling plot with emotional insight. The characters in it are conveyed with tenderness and empathy, and the way they struggle to cope with their own lives, and each other, is moving.
Seen through the eyes of Kate Morrison (older sister to Bo, and younger sister to Matt and Luke), the trials and tribulations of a unique family unit are brought to life. The story manages to convey a rich vein of wisdom without being preachy.
Tricky subjects such as fate, guilt and forgiveness are dealt with, and by the end of the book I felt like I had made the journey through these with Kate.
This is not dissimilar to Anne Tyler. Mary Lawson also seems to find magic and beauty in the seemingly ordinary pattern of everyday life.
Seen through the eyes of Kate Morrison (older sister to Bo, and younger sister to Matt and Luke), the trials and tribulations of a unique family unit are brought to life. The story manages to convey a rich vein of wisdom without being preachy.
Tricky subjects such as fate, guilt and forgiveness are dealt with, and by the end of the book I felt like I had made the journey through these with Kate.
This is not dissimilar to Anne Tyler. Mary Lawson also seems to find magic and beauty in the seemingly ordinary pattern of everyday life.
56 of 58 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I could not put this book down! The story of farmlife in the Canadian wilderness and the struggle to survive and not resign yourself to taking whatever life puts in front of you, was (for me)the main theme of the book. Following the sudden death of their parents, the four Morrison children (Kate, Matt, Luke and baby Bo) struggle to survive, without sacrificing Matt's only chance to gain a scholarship and make something of himself. Interwoven with the Morrisons' lives are those of the small farming community, who, despite their own poverty, strive to help the family to cope. Then there is the Pye family who, because of the hostility of their father, are set apart from the community. Then, the two Morrison boys notice that something is horribly amiss with the Pyes, particularly with Laurie, the son who is mercilessly bullied by his father. Kate and Matt discover that Laurie has scars on his body. Being only young themselves, the Morrison family struggle with this knowledge and whether (and who) they should tell. then Laurie disappears. The main focus of the book seems to be upon the relationship between Kate and Matt and the subtle changes that creep in when an ultimate opportunity seems to be thrown away. This book is written with great feeling, but without undue sentimentality. However, I found myself often 'filling up', my eyes brimming with tears as Kate realises that her years of resentment have been misplaced all along. I loved the ending - it made me feel good about the future for each character.
14 of 14 people found the following review helpful
By Mrs C
Format:Paperback
It is a VERY long time since I read through a book in one sitting AND am about to read it again! A beautiful story, reminding me alot of To Kill A Mockingbird in that it's told in the first person by a girl now grown and looking back on her childhood. Some may say I shouldn't compare this, Mary Lawson's first novel, to such a classic as Mockingbird, but that was Harper Lee's first and ONLY novel remember.
Well written, good story, unputdownable - what more can a reader want? Hopefully this is not Lawson's ONLY novel!
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4.2 out of 5 stars
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
4.0 out of 5 stars
A good read
This book gives a very good account of living in a remote Canadian farm from a child's viewpoint. The tragedies and waste of lives, as well as the hope and successes are well... Read more
Published 22 days ago by R. C. Wolf
5.0 out of 5 stars
Such a great story
I loved this book, and would definitely rate it in my top ten books easily. The way all the characters interact with each other, and how different they all are, makes for a... Read more
Published 2 months ago by FLD
5.0 out of 5 stars
Crow Lake
this book and her first novel, Over the bridge, are two of the best small town stories I have ever read,I wish she would hurry up and write a few more.
Published 3 months ago by linda aldersea
5.0 out of 5 stars
A good read
i thoroughly enjoyed this story. Light and entertaining and a very relaxing read. I should be interested to find other books of hers.
Published 4 months ago by Sheila Thompson
5.0 out of 5 stars
I now want to read more by this author
Beautifully descriptive, both of the characters and the isolated community in rural Canada. A book that drew you in so that you wanted to know what happened to the characters.
Published 5 months ago by jbee
2.0 out of 5 stars
reactive attachment disorder??
Think some of the readers were puzzled by this book. Why the main character in the book found it difficult to form relationships. Read more
Published 8 months ago by geraldine
5.0 out of 5 stars
Love this book
I absolutely loved this book, I could hardly put it down. It is a family story that seems deceptively simply at first, but has a slow burning underlying tension that slowly reels... Read more
Published 12 months ago by Amazonaddict
4.0 out of 5 stars
Beautifully written
I really loved this book and The Other side of the Bridge by the same author, both are slightly melancholic without being overtly sad, but they are beautifully written. Read more
Published on 6 May 2011 by bookaddict
3.0 out of 5 stars
Endearing...
Luke, Matt, Kate and Bo live in Crow Lake, a rural Farming community. After the tragic death of their parents in a car accident, Luke; the eldest of the children takes over the... Read more
Published on 28 Jun 2010 by booklover
5.0 out of 5 stars
Wonderful book - excellent condition
I read a later book by Mary Lawson 'Over the Bridge' which was wonderful and so wanted to track down this one, her first. Magnificent. Read more
Published on 1 Jun 2010 by Mrs. L. Churchill-birch
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