Swamplandia! = B+
I won’t even contrive an excuse for not blogging over the past couple of months. I’ll just jump back into it.
And I couldn’t think of a better book to start with!
I’ve read a lot of books…but none quite like this one. It didn’t start off smooth at all. I was extremely skeptical and not comforted by the first 30-50 pages. I began to doubt my ability in selecting a higher quality of reading material than your average grocery store mystery. But somewhere in between the exposition and climax, I’m happy to say that things turned around.
I think, in a lot of ways, Swamplandia is an experiment with your average ghost story. There are ghosts, seances, possessions…even an allegorical descent into the underworld. It has elements of a southern gothic too — with a rich environment that isn’t just picturesque –it’s alive. Your territory as the reader is just as murky and strange as it is for the characters. Yes, its mystical and dark, and features a surreal Floridian twist on reality. It’s also soft and curious and imaginative in a refreshing way. It really is the product of its time.
At first I wasn’t sure — because there really is no real introduction into what is believable and discernible in Russell’s strange world. She is counting on you to eventually get caught up and used to her characters’ neurosis and their strange way of living — a quacky kind of poverty. Everything is nostalgic and strange in Swamplandia! — even down to the Bigtree family museum that houses artifacts from the family’s Genesis. It really has the feel and sharp edges of a bumpy carnival ride into the backwaters of the Everglades…but essentially it is more than just the thrill and imagery — but an ode to devastating loss that is captured through a diverse writing style — a really unique imagery in a really unique setting.
There are two narrative conventions used in this novel. Half is 1st person narrative — Ava who is our main character and alligator wrestling champ. It’s her eyes that are the most wild and also skeptical. The other half is third person. The narrator observes Kiwi’s attempts to leave the swamp and assimilate with “mainland” culture.
The contrast really pushes the plot forward and is a refreshing change of pace. I have to say — the novel wouldn’t have worked JUST from Ava or Kiwi’s perspectives independently…but the interwoven pieces are much better at bringing a sense a believability and depth to the family dynamic that is the Bigtree family. I’ve read stories that used similar conventions…but there was something a bit outlandish here that really works and was quite interesting to read.
The mystical parts of the narrative revolve around Ava and Kiwi’s big sister Osceola’s sudden obsession with the occult, witchcraft, and talking with spirits. Her obsession is really mental illness – or is it? And with the Dredgman’s Revelation (one strange chapter) — I really started to question my own judgments I had made as a reader. I never really could land on one conclusion about TRUTH in this novel…and that is what is SO awesome about it.
All of it is tied to loss. Grief. All three siblings have lost their mother and experience that grief in different ways and through different paths. Each path is symbolic — Kiwi’s is quite sardonic, Ava’s is thrilling and horrifying, and Osceola’s is quite…well…Dante-ish for lack of a better term.
Osceola is the one character that didn’t quite get on my good side…but its’ not really ABOUT her. She is meant to be hard to grasp — a mirage for both Ava and Kiwi to make their own judgments in their pursuit to “save her.” Ava’s pursuit and kidnapping of the strange Bird Man character is both the high light and heart break of the story…but her resilience was in no way cliche –but quite brave of Russell. I really think it was a new way of looking at recovery — at maturity…and at overcoming your environment.
Overall — I would highly recommend Swamplandia! though I know not every reader will really appreciate or love it. I think that it is a nice twist on your southern novel. I do hope to give it another read and approach it from a whole new perspective one day — because it feels like one of those tales that always morphs and changes with the telling.
And I think that Karen Russell has proven that she is quite a different sort of story teller…in a good way.
If you enjoy a pinch of humor, a dab of mystical surrealism, and a hint of allegorical pilgrimages into the depths of hell and back again, then you will find something to like…and of course, you need to have a penchant for alligators.
Until next time!
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