A review by twistykris
The Crane Husband by Kelly Barnhill

dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.75

 “On the farm,” she said quietly, “mothers fly away like migrating birds. And fathers die too young. This is why farmers have daughters. To keep things going in the meantime, until it’s our time to grow wings. Go soaring away across the sky.” 

There is just something about the way that Kelly Barnhill writes that just consumes me. She has the ability to write bizarre, disturbing, sad subject matters so beautifully. I've read When Women Were Dragons, and this has a very similar feel in regards to the magical realism and the stifling emotions around motherhood and women's transformations to leave it.

I went into this vaguely familiar with the original Japanese tale of "The Crane Wife" and I found this was an interesting, emotional retelling of it from the perspective of an unnamed 15-year old girl trying to protect and take care of her younger brother, while her mother- a weaver- becomes consumed by an abusive, mysterious crane-man. I will be thinking about this book for a long time.
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