Karen Russell became the child prodigy of the Pulitzer world when she almost won for this debut novel in 2011. Set in the Florida Everglades during the rise of the swamp-and-small-attraction-eating theme park, Swamplandia! follows the Bigtree family saga in the wake of star ‘gator whisperer Hilola’s death by cancer. Told by 13-year-old Ava, Swamplandia! is creepy, funny, strange, and sad, and resonant with the disconnection every family experiences between its own ideas of “normal” and the expectations of the outside world.
Enjoy a discussion of Swamplandia! with us at our spring Book Club.