Student Book Reviews

Through my whole life, I constantly heard about this book. I always heard my parents quoting it - but I never got around to reading it. I would have my head in a different book whenever I thought about reading it. I didn't even know what the book was about. But one night, I came to my family with the complaint of having nothing to read, and my mum suggested that we read To Kill A Mockingbird together. I agreed with little thought about the proposition and found myself sitting in bed, flipping to the first page. After weeks of getting attached to the characters and story, we finished - and I immediately wanted to read more. This was easily the best book I've ever read. The book is set in Maycomb County, Alabama, and is written in the words of a young girl called Scout. Her father is a lawyer who takes on a case where a black man is accused of attacking a white girl. What Scout doesn't know is how this case would change her life forever. This is the most gripping, powerful book and I recommend it to anyone and everyone.

Twenty years ago, Aaron Falk was run out of Kiewarra by the grieving father of his childhood friend, and the unforgiving suspicions of local residents. Now another of his friends has died in circumstances just as devastating as that long ago death.

Luke Hadler might have been struggling to keep his farm and family afloat during the terrible drought, but no one expected him to give up. So when he, his wife and his son’s bodies are found in an apparent murder-suicide, everyone is shocked.

When Falk reluctantly returns from Melbourne, Luke’s father asks him to look into the situation. And, given their shared history, Falk can’t refuse – no matter how much he may want to.

In her debut novel, Jane Harper has crafted a ruthless world, both in environment and society. One where the court of public opinion is more damning than that of the truth – or the law.

The one element that I thought I’d hate in The Dry, I ended up loving. The struggling regional town is the perfect backdrop for the events of this novel. Rather than coming off as a worn, go-to setting for the Australian novel, the atmosphere, heat, and town environment combine to become a force so palpable that tragedy seems inevitable. The small-town mentality, with all of its gossip, secrets and flaws, drive the events – both current and past.

While most of the events stay rooted in the present, there is a tangible feeling of nostalgia about The Dry. Falk is connected to two tragic incidents – both with lingering questions. The contrasts between the two cases are compelling. One death causes a father to drive Falk away, the next causes a father to bring him back. Falk’s first dead friend had every reason to want to die, but the town saw the death as murder. The second friend had no obvious reason to kill himself, but the town is almost too willing to accept the death as such. Ultimately, though, the incentive to keep turning pages comes from the friendship Falk, Luke, Gretchen and Ellie shared.

The simplicity of The Dry is both wonderful and refreshing. Unlike a lot of crime novels, it doesn’t read like a magic trick. There’s no obvious authorial sleight of hand, directing reader attention one way while the truth lies elsewhere. The truth still managed to elude me until the final pages, but there were no elaborate schemes to mislead readers. The Dry is an unparalleled novel, built on a solid premise, brilliant setting and painfully relatable characters.

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