A review by triscuit807
The Secret River by Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings

3.0

3-3.5 stars.The edition that I read was the shortened 2011 re-issue with new illustrations that depict a black family. The Dillons' illiustrations are what really make this story; the actual story isn't without charm, but the text really doesn't convey the magic evident in the illustrations. The actual race of the characters is left vague; Rawlings deliberately wrote it without dialect (unlike her most famous book "The Yearling"). This is also her last work, published posthumously, so it's really unknown what her final intentions were. The story is somewhat dreamlike as it follows Calpurnia, a child poet; upon hearing that its's hard times (set Depression era) because her father can't find fish to sell, she sets off with dog Buggy-Horse (he has a sway back) to find the fish. Following the advice of Mother Albirtha she seeks out the secret river. This is where the story goes off into the realm of magical realism. The original edition was printed on beige paper that would convey the color of the characters without being explicit; I would like very much to read that original edition. I read this for my 2020 Reading Challenge (52 Wks "author's last name begins with same initial" - R) and my Newbery Challenge (Honor 1956).