Spring Sale: 20% off featured titles
Used, New, and Out of Print Books - We Buy and Sell - Powell's Books
Cart |
|  my account  |  wish list  |  help   |  800-878-7323
Hello, | Login
MENU
  • Browse
    • New Arrivals
    • Bestsellers
    • Award Winners
    • Signed Editions
    • Digital Audio Books
    • See All Subjects
  • Used
  • Staff Picks
    • Staff Picks
    • Picks of the Month
    • Book Club Subscriptions
    • 25 PNW Books to Read Before You Die
    • 25 Books From the 21st Century
    • 25 Memoirs to Read Before You Die
    • 25 Global Books to Read Before You Die
    • 25 Women to Read Before You Die
    • 25 Books to Read Before You Die
  • Gifts
    • Gift Cards & eGift Cards
    • Powell's Souvenirs
    • Read Rise Resist Gear
    • Journals and Notebooks
    • socks
    • Games
  • Sell Books
  • Blog
  • Events
  • Find A Store
McAfee Secure

Don't Miss

  • Spring Sale: 20% Off Select Titles
  • Must-Read Japanese Fiction Sale
  • Indiespensable #91: Gold Diggers
  • BOOX #25: The End Is Just the Beginning
  • Powell's Virtual Events
  • Oregon Battle of the Books

Visit Our Stores


Sarah Reif: Storytime Rhyme: 13 Perfect Collections for Poets of All Ages (0 comment)
Jack Prelutsky’s The Dragons Are Singing Tonight has lived in my head rent-free ever since it entered the storytime rotation for my brother and me sometime in the mid-90...
Read More»
  • Karen Cushman: Learning From Millie's World (0 comment)
  • Keith Mosman: Must-Read Paperback Releases of Spring 2021 (0 comment)

{1}
##LOC[OK]##
{1}
##LOC[OK]## ##LOC[Cancel]##
{1}
##LOC[OK]## ##LOC[Cancel]##

Swamplandia

by Karen Russell
Swamplandia

  • Comment on this title
  • Synopses & Reviews
  • Reading Group Guide

ISBN13: 9780307276681
ISBN10: 0307276686
Condition: Standard


All Product Details

View Larger ImageView Larger Images
$10.50
Used Trade Paperback
Ships in 1 to 3 days
Add to Cart
Add to Wishlist
QtyStore
12Burnside
6Cedar Hills
1Hawthorne
20Local Warehouse

Staff Pick

No, I never have read a book about an alligator-wrestling theme park before, but, boy, did I ever love this one! Thirteen-year-old Ava is faced with the task of not only wrestling gators, but also saving the theme park, her home, and her family. By turns hilarious, pensive, chilling, and redemptive, Swamplandia! starts out as a sort of swampy coming-of-age story, but, after wandering very far afield, ends up so much more. Truly wonderful. Recommended By Dianah H., Powells.com

Synopses & Reviews

Review

"Ravishing, elegiac, funny, and brilliantly inquisitive, Russell's archetypal swamp saga tells a mystical yet rooted tale of three innocents who come of age through trials of water, fire, and air." Booklist (starred review)

Review

"Quirky, outlandish fiction: To say it's offbeat is to seriously underestimate its weirdness." Kirkus Reviews

Review

"Absolutely irresistible....A suspenseful, deeply haunted book....A marvel." The New York Times

Review

"[Russell] has thrown the whole circus of her heart onto the page, safety nets be damned....Russell has deep and true talent." San Francisco Chronicle

Review

"Vividly worded, exuberant in characterization, the novel is a wild ride....This family, wrestling with their desires and demons...will lodge in the memories of anyone lucky enough to read Swamplandia!" The New York Times Book Review

Review

"The bewitching Swamplandia! is a tremendous achievement." Entertainment Weekly

Synopsis

Thirteen-year-old Ava Bigtree has lived her entire life at Swamplandia , her family s island home and gator-wrestling theme park in the Florida Everglades. But when illness fells Ava s mother, the park s indomitable headliner, the family is plunged into chaos; her father withdraws, her sister falls in love with a spooky character known as the Dredgeman, and her brilliant big brother, Kiwi, defects to a rival park called The World of Darkness.
As Ava sets out on a mission through the magical swamps to save them all, we are drawn into a lush and bravely imagined debut that takes us to the shimmering edge of reality."

Synopsis

New York Times Bestseller - Pulitzer Prize Finalist

"Ms. Russell is one in a million. . . . A suspensfuly, deeply haunted book."--The New York Times

Thirteen-year-old Ava Bigtree has lived her entire life at Swamplandia , her family's island home and gator-wrestling theme park in the Florida Everglades. But when illness fells Ava's mother, the park's indomitable headliner, the family is plunged into chaos; her father withdraws, her sister falls in love with a spooky character known as the Dredgeman, and her brilliant big brother, Kiwi, defects to a rival park called The World of Darkness.

As Ava sets out on a mission through the magical swamps to save them all, we are drawn into a lush and bravely imagined debut that takes us to the shimmering edge of reality.


About the Author

Karen Russell, a native of Miami, has been featured in The New Yorker’s debut fiction issue and on The New Yorker’s 20 Under 40 list, and was chosen as one of Granta’s Best Young American Novelists. In 2009, she received the 5 Under 35 award from the National Book Foundation. Three of her short stories have been selected for the Best American Short Stories volumes. She is currently writer-in-residence at Bard College.

Reading Group Guide

The questions, discussion topics, and reading list that follow are intended to enhance your reading group's discussion of Swamplandia!, the eagerly awaited first novel by Karen Russell, acclaimed author of the short story collection St. Lucy’s Home for Girls Raised by Wolves.

4.5 28

What Our Readers Are Saying

Share your thoughts on this title!
Average customer rating 4.5 (28 comments)

`
alibeale , January 02, 2013 (view all comments by alibeale)
this is the kind of book that is a pleasure to begin reading - you know you are in the hands of a good writer. the subject matter(crazy 'circus' family and their conflicts) is also a pleasure - i love idiosyncratic families, that are really like everyone else, only more so. kind of reminds me of john irving's fantastical morality plays, but not as preachy. i also like books that are filled with details about stuff i don't know about - like florida geography and folklore. i highly recommend this for anyone who likes a good yarn -

Was this comment helpful? | Yes | No

(2 of 3 readers found this comment helpful)
report this comment

`
leslee , January 01, 2013
Savory and masterful, Swamplandia is like nothing I've ever read before, and I can't wait to read it again!

Was this comment helpful? | Yes | No

(1 of 2 readers found this comment helpful)
report this comment

`
Madam Pince , October 25, 2012 (view all comments by Madam Pince)
I expected so much more from this novel: magical realism, Southern gothic, the kitsch of Florida. Instead I found a story that started off powerfully, but straggled into a tired, ordinary tale that overstayed its welcome -- by the time Ava makes her trip into Hell, the reader is already there. I expected much better from the author of St. Lucy's Home for Girls Raised by Wolves.

Was this comment helpful? | Yes | No

(4 of 7 readers found this comment helpful)
report this comment

`
h , August 27, 2012 (view all comments by h)
The writing here is beautiful, but there's something kitschy about the plot and characters. The magical can feel forced, quirky for its own sake. Read it for its creativity and prose.

Was this comment helpful? | Yes | No

(4 of 6 readers found this comment helpful)
report this comment

`
Anna Shumaker , March 01, 2012 (view all comments by Anna Shumaker)
Some may have been dissuaded by the obscurity of alligator wrestling but that was the aspect that enticed me most and also disappointed me. The writing was nice and clear but I just wanted more circusy things, maybe I'm a needy reader

Was this comment helpful? | Yes | No

(5 of 8 readers found this comment helpful)
report this comment

`
Julie Harris , January 30, 2012 (view all comments by Julie Harris)
I did not want to read this book - alligator wresting? - but I succumbed based on Karen Russell's previous novel and short stories. Swamplandia's delicious prose and humor, its fully drawn characters, plus a juicy story add up to the perfect read.

Was this comment helpful? | Yes | No

(2 of 2 readers found this comment helpful)
report this comment

`
Danielle M , January 23, 2012 (view all comments by Danielle M)
I read Swamplandia! almost a year ago and was immediately impressed by Karen Russell's unique voice and awkward, yet irresistible characters. After just a few chapters, I declared myself a devoted fan and, as soon as I'd finished the novel, went on to devour Russell's collection of short stories (St. Lucy's Home for Girls Raised by Wolves) which were equally as bright, wild, and entrancing. I've read many excellent books this past year, but none have evoked that same awe and delight I found in the worlds of Russell’s creation--worlds which are somehow simultaneously familiar and exotic, new and so very ancient. She is a true Storyteller and I can’t wait to see what beast (be it alligator or Minotaur) she tackles next.

Was this comment helpful? | Yes | No

(5 of 8 readers found this comment helpful)
report this comment

`
AnnetteLynnJohnson , January 20, 2012
Karen Russell has an imagination that goes beyond imagination! She is a brilliant writer who has an incredible grasp of language, art, plot, and voice. Her characters are so strong and intriguing that you never want a sentence to end. I read this book very slowly, as I dreaded the ending, not knowing when I would hear from Ms. Russell again. I fell in love with each character from sentence one. It is no wonder she was chosen New York Times Book Review's Ten Best Books of the Year, and NPR'S favorite. This novel is nothing less that Brilliant!

Was this comment helpful? | Yes | No

report this comment

`
sharon.york , January 19, 2012
A wonderful eclectic adventure. Great read!

Was this comment helpful? | Yes | No

report this comment

`
John Watson , January 19, 2012 (view all comments by John Watson)
With dreamlike and poetic language, Karen Russell draws surreal but utterly believable pictures of love, loss, family, and alligators.

Was this comment helpful? | Yes | No

report this comment

`
Alicia NMW , January 19, 2012
Utterly strange, completely believable, the best swamp ever made of words.

Was this comment helpful? | Yes | No

report this comment

`
Carol Stabile , January 14, 2012 (view all comments by Carol Stabile)
I just finished reading Swamplandia! and I finished it mainly because of all the buzz around the novel. But I have to say I was sorely disappointed. The novel may be beautifully written in parts, but at a certain point the narrative becomes an all too predictable and problematic one about sexual victimization and silence.

Was this comment helpful? | Yes | No

report this comment

`
tigger , January 13, 2012 (view all comments by tigger)
This is a great story for early teens and teens to personally relate with Ava, life, and all that is believed true through young eyes. In addition, the eyes of experience also find this action packed childhood story of family, self, love, life, control or lack thereof, one that they want to share and recount; finding it uniquely pertaining to their life too.

Was this comment helpful? | Yes | No

report this comment

`
kzmichels , January 09, 2012 (view all comments by kzmichels)
Swamplandia is an absolutely brilliant, thrilling ride. It is an engaging story in itself, but also pointed social commentary. Read it for fun, read it for cathartic effect. Fall in love with the characters and the setting and the ridiculous place names. Just read it!

Was this comment helpful? | Yes | No

report this comment

`
John Benschoter , January 04, 2012 (view all comments by John Benschoter)
Funny, surreal, heart breaking. An amazing first novel.

Was this comment helpful? | Yes | No

report this comment

`
Cynthia H Stern , January 04, 2012
Strange and very funny. Having lived in Florida and escaped to Montana I sometimes miss the stange people that have lived in the wilderness of Florida for generations.

Was this comment helpful? | Yes | No

report this comment

`
Yvonne Gittelson , January 04, 2012
Great characters, thoroughly engaging.

Was this comment helpful? | Yes | No

report this comment

`
Sarah Shaffer , January 03, 2012
I read this book several months ago, and the characters and places still tug at my imagination--Ava, Osceola, Kiwi, and the whole Bigtree clan fighting to stay a family in the midst of the beautiful and ruinous Everglades.

Was this comment helpful? | Yes | No

report this comment

`
Heldora , January 02, 2012 (view all comments by Heldora)
This expansive, inventive, delicious and poignant novel should be your first read in 2012! Dive in!

Was this comment helpful? | Yes | No

report this comment

`
Julie Blackman , January 02, 2012 (view all comments by Julie Blackman)
This inventive debut novel is ripe with all the things that make a great novel, including a juicy setting in the Florida Everglades, and a main character whose 13 yr. old voice exudes vulnerability and toughness. The book explores the classic ideas of death and change, through the voice of one of the most compelling characters I've come across in a long time.

Was this comment helpful? | Yes | No

report this comment

`
Eileen Fremont , January 02, 2012
Great story of a family trying to stay together and the mysterious Everglades.

Was this comment helpful? | Yes | No

report this comment

`
Elliott , January 01, 2012 (view all comments by Elliott)
Of all the books I read this year, Swamplandia was the one that stood out in my mind from all the others. Karen Russell's vivid writing and all of the details she used to create the world of this book, along with the character of the narrator, Ava Bigtree, are what made this my favorite read of 2011. Two of my favorite authors are Flannery O'Connor and Carson McCullers and I would add Russell to their company.

Was this comment helpful? | Yes | No

report this comment

`
Kathleen A. , January 01, 2012
Wonderful adventure, fabulous young protagonist and incredible history and natural history.

Was this comment helpful? | Yes | No

report this comment

`
Michael Greene , January 01, 2012
Quirky, engaging, poignant, and funny. Russell is never judgemental of her characters, characters who are beautifully and tenderly developed.

Was this comment helpful? | Yes | No

report this comment

`
bibliofilly , January 01, 2012
This one took me by surprise, I always consider a writer to be especially talented if they can take me to a place I would not have ordinarily found interesting (alligator theme park, who knew?)and so enthrall me that I couldn't put the book down, yet dreaded finishing it. Excellent combination of family drama, humor and a bit magical as well.

Was this comment helpful? | Yes | No

report this comment

`
Laura Booth , January 01, 2012
With lush, lyrical prose Russell weaves a rich tale of family, love, loss and coming of age in south Florida.

Was this comment helpful? | Yes | No

report this comment

`
elean0r , September 15, 2011
I wanted to like this so much more! It felt like a Louise Erdrich novel in a Tom Robbins dress...once you strip off the milieu and makeup, it's about a lonely precocious girl (sigh) with a dead mom and a grief-stricken father (mm hmm...) who isn't getting help from her similarly confused siblings (really?). She's been up nights reading George Saunders and Michael Chabon, but this novel could have (and may once have) been 3 or 4 short stories about lost teens--I hope her next effort is more concise.

Was this comment helpful? | Yes | No

(2 of 2 readers found this comment helpful)
report this comment

`
ksspdx , August 31, 2011 (view all comments by ksspdx)
Russell's debut novel is in a literary class of its own. Swamplandia! is a mystical, fascinating coming-of-age story told from the perspective of the charming 13-year-old Ava. I highly recommend this book!

Was this comment helpful? | Yes | No

(0 of 1 readers found this comment helpful)
report this comment

View all 28 comments


Product Details

ISBN:
9780307276681
Binding:
Trade Paperback
Publication date:
07/26/2011
Publisher:
Vintage Books USA
Series info:
Vintage Contemporaries
Pages:
400
Height:
1.20IN
Width:
5.10IN
Thickness:
1.00
Author:
Sarah Bruni
Author:
Kate Racculia
Author:
Karen Russell
Subject:
Literature-A to Z
Subject:
General Fiction

Ships free on qualified orders.
Add to Cart
$10.50
List Price:$16.95
Used Trade Paperback
Ships in 1 to 3 days
Add to Wishlist
QtyStore
12Burnside
6Cedar Hills
1Hawthorne
20Local Warehouse

More copies of this ISBN

  • New, Trade Paperback, $16.95

This title in other editions

  • Used, Hardcover, Starting from $8.50
{1}
##LOC[OK]##
{1}
##LOC[OK]## ##LOC[Cancel]##
{1}
##LOC[OK]## ##LOC[Cancel]##
{1}
##LOC[OK]##
{1}
##LOC[OK]## ##LOC[Cancel]##
{1}
##LOC[OK]## ##LOC[Cancel]##
{1}
##LOC[OK]##
{1}
##LOC[OK]## ##LOC[Cancel]##
{1}
##LOC[OK]## ##LOC[Cancel]##
{1}
##LOC[OK]##
{1}
##LOC[OK]## ##LOC[Cancel]##
{1}
##LOC[OK]## ##LOC[Cancel]##
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Pinterest
  • Instagram

  • Help
  • Guarantee
  • My Account
  • Careers
  • About Us
  • Security
  • Wish List
  • Partners
  • Contact Us
  • Shipping
  • Sitemap
  • © 2021 POWELLS.COM Terms

{1}
##LOC[OK]##
{1}
##LOC[OK]## ##LOC[Cancel]##
{1}
##LOC[OK]## ##LOC[Cancel]##
{1}
##LOC[OK]##
{1}
##LOC[OK]## ##LOC[Cancel]##
{1}
##LOC[OK]## ##LOC[Cancel]##
{1}
##LOC[OK]##
{1}
##LOC[OK]## ##LOC[Cancel]##
{1}
##LOC[OK]## ##LOC[Cancel]##
{1}
##LOC[OK]##
{1}
##LOC[OK]## ##LOC[Cancel]##
{1}
##LOC[OK]## ##LOC[Cancel]##