What do readers think of The Waters by Bonnie Jo Campbell? Write your own review.

I recently read The Waters by Bonnie Jo Campbell. Although the writing was good, I found the reading to go slow as the story didn't hold my attention. I struggled to make my way through the book. The story follows a family of women and the lives they live in a marsh on the outskirts of a Michigan town. Their primitive life seems difficult to comprehend. Their struggles with love and identity are very real. I found myself feeling very sorry for the younger members of the family as they deserved better than being sequestered away from the world only to safeguard them from the bad behaviors of the men in town. I will not be recommending this book to my book club friends.

This is a lush, sensual novel set in the rural swamps of northern Michigan. I really tried to get into the story but found it a slog most of the way. I think if you are interested in herbal medicine and nature, especially snakes, it would be enjoyable as Campbell is a good writer. It definitely picks up speed in the second half but not enough for me to not be very glad when it was over. Think this one will have limited appeal to the general reading audience.

I love the cover of this book and the title, "The Waters" is very inviting. When i rea the synopsis of this book I thought it was my kind of book, engaging prose, generational, with a touch of fantasy. I found it confusing from the beginning with the characters having many names and nicknames. I felt like I spent too much time trying to keep everyone straight with their crazy names. I am not a snake-liking person and although she did a great job describing the snake he was just not my cup of tea. The characters weren't likeable. I will not be recommending it to my friends but I'm sure it will be a great read for many people.

This book started off rather slowly but it did pick up as it went along. An interesting and well-written story with a setting that is almost like a character itself … rather lyrical in its style. I thought the pacing was off during parts of the story, so that was a bit of a drawback for me. 3.5 star rating