Crow Lake by Mary Lawson - Adult Paperbacks – Main Level – Lawson
Kate Morrison is a 26 year old zoologist and Assistant Professor of Biology at a Toronto university. She is in love with Daniel Crane who is the Professor of Zoology at the same university. She seems happy on the surface, but her family’s past always haunts her. When she receives an invitation to her nephew Simon’s 18th birthday party all of these memories from the past flood back into her mind.
The Morrison family suffers a great tragedy the summer of Kate’s 7th year. Her parents die in a car accident, and she and her little sister, Bo, are left to be raised by their older teenage brothers, Matt and Luke. Kate idolizes Matt who loves to study marine life with her in the many ponds near their home of Crow Lake.
The family struggles to make a living and find peace during the first year after their parents’ death. Eventually, their lives seem to get better until Matt gets involved with Marie Pye. Marie Pye is the daughter of the local farming family, the Pyes, who possess dangerous secrets. Once Matt becomes close to Marie, Kate and Matt’s relationship changes forever, and these events leave Kate bitter and un-fulfilled. Will Kate learn to confront and make peace with the past?
Crow Lake is a 2003 Alex Award winner which means it is an adult novel that will appeal to teenagers as well. Written in a mesmerizing fashion, Crow Lake by Mary Lawson is a fascinating portrait of one family’s life in Northern Canada. This novel switches between past and present so expertly that the reader is never left confused. In fact, once a reader starts Crow Lake, he/she will not be able to put it down until its conclusion!