The Crane Wife

by Patrick Ness

Shortlisted for the 2013 National Book Awards UK Author of the Year.

One night, George Duncan - decent man, a good man - is woken by a noise in his garden. Impossibly, a great white crane has tumbled to earth, shot through its wing by an arrow. Unexpectedly moved, George helps the bird, and from the moment he watches it fly off, his life is transformed.

The next day, a kind but enigmatic woman walks into George's shop. Suddenly a new world opens up for George, and one night she starts to tell him the most extraordinary story.

Wise, romantic, magical and funny, The Crane Wife is a hymn to the creative imagination and a celebration of the disruptive and redemptive power of love.

• ISBN10: 0857868713
• ISBN13: 9780857868718
• Publish Date: 4 April 2013
• Publish Status: Out of Print
• Out of Print: 5 September 2014
• Publish Country: GB
• Imprint: Canongate Books
• Edition: Main
• Format: Hardcover
• Pages: 320
• Language: English

Reviews

[nannah]

Here I was at the beginning of the book, throughout the middle, and even 3/4, thinking this would be a solid 3 stars and with an ehhhh slipping out of my mouth, and then I got to part V.

Ok, on the surface, The Crane Wife tells the story of a family growing older and losing and finding love. But then there's also a lyrical myth about a 'lady' and a 'volcano' intertwined with this narrative that just seems confusing at first. Trust me, keep going, because it all makes sense at the end.

The story told between chapters is something of an age-old war between two forces, named the 'lady' and the 'volcano'. They both love and hate each other. The volcano destroys, and the lady forgives. The only way to end this feud is for them to end each other's lives--but of course, they can't bring themselves to do it.

What makes this book great is how the contemporary story and the myth combine (and for me, I really only got it in part V). These characters each become the lady or the volcano, and play out the roles, continuing the myth on and on and on. Basically, the myth itself was searching for people who had the capacity to fulfill its ending, and had been recycling through different people until it found the right ones--which happened to be the ones in this book.

So, though I never really got the whole picture till the end, that whole picture was beautiful and I really can't help but love it.

[kimbacaffeinate]

3.5
The tale is told from multiple perspectives and begins when we meet George an American living in London. He awakens to strange noise in the middle of the night. He discovers a beautiful Crane in the backyard. The Crane has been shot in the wing with an arrow and the two share a moment as George helps the creature. The next day a woman named Kumiko arrives at his shop and asks for help with her artwork. George finds himself falling desperately in love with this secretive woman. We also meet Amanda, George’s twenty-five year old daughter who has an incredible knack for finding and losing friends. The tale that unfolds is strange, beautiful, simple and yet complicated. There weren’t many characters and I liked this uncomplicated aspect. George is a likable enough character. He is very ordinary; a hard working divorced stiff who never quite made a relationship last. Kumiko is mysterious and perhaps only two-dimensional, but I think that was the author’s intent. Mehmet, the shopkeeper, is a hoot, and he added lightness to the tale. Amanda is a colorful character who is quite the misfit. I enjoyed her tale and found myself sympathizing with her. She trudges through life to the beat of her own drum and sadly it keeps her out of the “inner circle” with regards to friendships. She has a foul mouth and is quite open in sharing her opinions. I found her to be hilarious and outrageous at times. Her opinions are not wrong per se but different from those of her gender. For example, she loathes The Wizard of Oz.

The Crane Wife was unique with lyrical passages and beautiful prose. I found myself rereading parts and becoming mesmerized in the rightness of the words lying before me. Yet at other times I felt Ness repeated himself especially with regard to how nice a guy George was. I get it! George is nice and good. But I am still not impressed. I absolutely loved the thread regarding the artwork that George and Kumiko created and how it interlaced with the story itself. This was very clever and added a little suspense to the tale. While reading, I was reminded of novels such as the Snow Child and Lost Lake. However, I felt those were executed more smoothly and will appeal to a much broader readership. Despite that, Ness had me suspending belief and accepting all that was set before me. The tale is presented in pieces almost as if Ness is showing us parts of his newest painting. As the book draws to a conclusion we are presented with this completed picture and his message is clear. While not perfect for me, it was an easy read and one whose messages I shall ponder.

Copy received from publisher in exchange for unbiased review that originally published @ Caffeinated Book Reviewer

[KitsuneBae]

This review was first posted on Thoughts and Pens.

The Crane Wife is weird and I’ve never encountered this type of storytelling. I’m not sure if I’ve read this book right but I think it has a lot of symbolisms used which unfortunately I’m still struggling to understand. And I don’t think I’ll understand them any time sooner.

In The Crane Wife, we get to meet George Duncan, a 48-year old divorcee who for some reason couldn’t keep a relationship even if he’s one of the best guys who existed on this planet. While generally contented with his life, he’s very lonely deep down never understanding why all his relationships failed. Entwined into the story is an account of his daughter’s life and a Japanese myth that revolved around the mysterious Kumiko.

The first pages of The Crane Wife frustrated and at the same time, impressed me. Please know that The Crane Wife is my first Ness read and the reason why I requested it from NG is because I’ve been hearing a lot of good things about his work. So when I dove into it, I was high with expectations only to be annoyed instantly. Clearly, Patrick Ness has a way with words and they were hauntingly beautiful but what got me all riled up was that there was unnecessary story telling about George’s life to the point that I kept on pausing and wondered whether I am reading a biography. Flashbacks, while a good strategy to give a solid background for a character, didn’t work well in this book. It made George some sort of an ADHD person who cannot focus on a single thought for a significant period of time. Every time he’s on reflection mode, he would immediately go down to a very long trip down memory lane. The only reason why I kept on going is I was instantly inlove with Ness’ way with words. It was part poetry and part lullaby.

Once I conquered the major obstacle—the terrible beginning that is—the story started to gather speed. The Crane Wife is absolutely unique because it has the feels of a contemporary when in fact, it’s obviously a fantasy. Patrick Ness is a master story teller for his ability to constantly change the atmosphere of The Crane Wife without inducing dizziness. One moment, I was in the present then the next, I was in a mythical place in Japan watching Kumiko’s story unfold. I couldn’t deny the fact that the contrasting tone of The Crane Wife is one of its strongest points aside from Ness’ enchanting prose.

The characters were also believable and I’m certain that I would’ve loved George even without the pointless, long-winded back stories. George is some sort of a pushover and I was surprised that I actually liked him for that. It certainly put a lot of space for him to grow as a character throughout the story. I understand his insecurities and his need to belong… needs that actually pushed him to cheat on Kumiko later on. At first, his action appalled me but I couldn’t totally lay the blame on him. Kumiko chose to be distant even with their shared intimacy. Thus, I understand why he sought out another woman to get assurance and to belong. Really, it did leave a very modern touch to the story.

Another character that stood out to me is Amanda, George’s daughter. She’s bitchy, bitter and she’s unconsciously hellbent on pushing away all the people around her. And I must admit that she reminded me of myself during the days when I woke up on the wrong side of my bed that I found it easy to connect with her. Even the second characters were fully fleshed out particularly Rachel who’s annoying and at times, amusing especially with the way she talks.

Another plus for this book is the plot that is a web of three different stories, George’s, Kumiko’s and Amanda’s. It wonderfully told a story of a melancholic Japanese folk tale without losing the modernesque feel. Not including the very slow beginning, The Crane Wife is highly entertaining and intriguing with it probing into the issues of depression, betrayals and forgiveness. It was hard to get bored since the three sets of interconnected stories were dexterously crafted and had left me wanting for more. And the paper cuttings, man. The paper cuttings that didn’t only bring Kumiko and George together but also brought a positive change to the lives of the people who saw them particularly Amanda and George.

In an overall assessment, The Crane Wife is certainly a unique way of retelling an old folk tale. And like Kumiko’s art, it gave me a feeling that I just want to cry for no apparent reason. It’s a very sad story peppered with tragic elements that would haunt you for days. It may not be a story for everyone but I suggest that you should still try it if only for the reasons that you’re an art lover and that you want to experience Ness’ gaudy writing style.

Note: A free ARC was provided by the publishers via Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review. Thank you!