Editor’s note: There are spoilers in this review.
The 2022 drama, mystery film, “Where the Crawdads Sing” (PG-13) is based off the book of the same name written in 2018. There are many different opinions on whether the novel was too slow or boring, or if the film was great or lacked the detail it needed.
I was listening to some of my friends compare the book to the movie, so I decided I was going to read the book and watch the movie myself. Here’s what I thought:
I feel the novel had a lot more detail in the description of Kya’s parents. We got to see more of what her childhood was like in the book; however, in the film they only showed her past for a short amount of time. Unfortunately, the film lacked the depth that the novel had. The novel also did a better job telling us Kya’s thought process when she was alone most of the time. The author was able to convey these details to us while the film did not.
A bigger difference that I saw while comparing these two, was how Kya found out that Chase was engaged. When reading the book, we see that she found out through a more, simple way. When Kya picks up the newspaper, she sees the engagement announcement there. In the film we get a more dramatic scene. Kya runs into Chase with a few friends and one of them introduces herself as his fiancé.
Something I found very interesting that was a big difference was the way Tate found out about Kya’s crime and that there is absolutely no mention of Amanda Hamilton. If you have read the book than you know that Tate finds a poem under the floorboards in their house that contains a very important metaphor. Along with the poem, Tate finds a Shell necklace that belonged to Chase. Now in the film, we still see the shell necklace however, in place of the poem, Tate finds drawings which imply the crime that Kya committed.
If you are looking for some extra drama and less description, then I would definitely say that the movie is the way to go for you. If you are an advent reader and love all the extra detail that the book gives, along with more internal thought, the book is for you. While I did enjoy both portrayals of this amazing story, I would wholeheartedly choose the book every time.
