I Love Reese Witherspoon, but Here's the One Book Club Pick She Got Wrong

First let’s chat about Owens’s past: Owens is linked to the 1995 death of an African poacher, detailed in a 2010 New Yorker article by Jeffrey Goldberg. After living in Africa, Owens and her then-husband Mark Owens, wrote about their clashes with elephant poachers in a 1992 memoir. They were then approached by ABC News to film a short documentary episode for Turning Point, which aired in 1996 and included the filmed execution of a man alleged to have been a poacher. As reported by IndieWire in 2022, there’s no statute of limitations on murder in Zambia and Zambian authorities are still investigating the case, with Mark, Delia and Mark’s son, Christopher Owens, currently wanted for questioning. (In the New Yorker article, Delia Owens denied knowledge of as well as involvement in the killing.)

Real-life issues aside, the book has been rightfully chided for its stereotypical characterization of Black characters—specifically Kya’s neighbors Jumpin' and Mabel. In a review, feminist lifestyle and art history blogger The Feminist Gadabout wrote, “I was honestly kind of shocked to read such blatant stereotyping in a novel published in 2018, albeit written by a white woman who grew up in 1950s Georgia. If Mabel isn’t written to fulfill the ‘Mammy’ stereotype, I don’t know who is.”

To be fair, I have no idea what Witherspoon knew about Owens’s past when she chose Where the Crawdads Sing in 2018, but regardless, it’s a rare misstep for the star’s normally aboveboard book club. (I, personally, was never a fan of Crawdads—I wrote about my inability to even finish the novel a few years ago—but I digress.) All of this is to say: With 99 other Reese’s Book Club picks to add to your TBR list, might I suggest opting for a title that’s not mired in controversy? (I’m particularly fond of Sankofa by Chibundu Onuzo and Tom Lake by Ann Patchett).