Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

Based on the reviews, and the sample pages I previewed on my kindle, I really wanted to like this book. And some of the writing was beautiful, particularly descriptions of nature. But...this is not a compelling read. The plot is beyond belief in many aspects, about a child virtually raising herself from the age of five, then her learning proficiency in reading from lessons from another child a few times a week over a course of month, to the main character’s brother all of a sudden showing up after many years (in spite of his apparently living close by). There are many plot holes. For example, Kya drives an unlicensed boat around the swamp for many years. Even back in the 60’s, boats had to have an annual license. Another: we find at the end of the book that she’d received mail for many years after the reader is told that all that was ever in her mailbox was advertisements. There are several others. Many characters are stereotyped caricatures, and the dialogue was often contrived or predictable. Hard for me to understand how so many have given this five stars. Weak plot. One dimensional characters (other than Kya— but you have to suspend considerable disbelief to relate to her), and poorly written (and sometimes unnecessary) dialogue.