Crows have a bad reputation. This is a notion just about everyone is raised with because of the roles assigned to them at Halloween and in horror movies. Too many people see the world in black and white, and this bird gets the blunt edge of this ideology. No one has stopped to consider what else they represent; like wisdom, adaptability, destiny, and fortune. I’m not trying to exclude the bad as they most commonly are known to symbolize death, but I think the public needs to know them for what they are. Morally gray, and a mix of both viewpoints. The book I’m focusing on today is Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo. This is a duology but I’ll only be talking about the first book. It is a high fantasy book following six teenage criminals who refer to themselves as “The Crows”. They are trying to accomplish an impossible heist with intricately thought out background details. Six of Crows is a life changing book I read this past year that I wanted to share with my peers. I’m going to first cover characters, followed by plot, then to links. One of the elements I loved most about this book was the hidden bits of reality that Leigh molded into her world and some genuine issues this book brought to light. Then lastly, some dynamics.
This book is multi-narrated and all six characters had their own perspective on the story which I really enjoyed. These characters all have key traits about who they are and what they stand for and represent. Being able to clearly express differences and similarities in a way where it’s not just said aloud is incredibly rare in fictional books. I loved reading between the lines in this book and I wanted to share a conversation that took place within one of the chapters that showcases this. “Kaz leaned back. ‘What’s the easiest way to steal a man’s wallet?’ ‘Knife to the throat?’ asked Inej. ‘Gun to the back?’ Said Jesper. ‘Poison in his cup?’ suggested Nina. ‘You’re all horrible,’ said Matthias.” This conversation, while a tad dark, sums up how the characters are portayed throughout the book. The trauma each character endured added another layer that makes one rethink whether they can be thought of as evil or just some teenagers doing what they have to do to survive. I’ll dive into traumas a little deeper later on because this was one of the parts that made the links to the real world so obvious. I hope I’ve made clear enough to my readers that the characters are deeper than just surface level; and after months of reading this, I still pause from time to time and uncover a hidden depth. Now we’ll move onto what made this book impossible to put down.
The premise of this book was one of a kind. There were so many different ideas that would play a major role later on, for example the opening chapter of the book. I will admit, the first 50 pages were a struggle to understand because of all the world-building, but it all falls into place. For a vague background of Leigh's world, I wanted to share a general idea of the powers and people. Most people born in Ravka, one of the main kingdoms, tend to have powers within three main groups; Corporalki - those who can manipulate the human body, Etherealki - those who can manipulate certain elements, and Materialki - those who use composite materials usually in the sense of inventing. The people in these three main groups are known as Grisha. This book takes place mainly in Ketterdam. It is another large country that is known for all the sketchy people that live there, which is very fitting to the characters of this book. Once someone starts reading these books the details will make more sense, but these are some common bits of knowledge I wish I’d known before reading. This story is split into five different sections. The spacing of this book was easy to follow and the made-up words because of this were easily understandable. There’s not anything else I wanted to cover with plot, so lets move forward to the links to reality.
An element of truth was hiding behind just about every character's background; from disabilities to parental neglect. Though it is unfortunate to say aloud, every person has had to deal with traumas that can stop them from something in the future. All of these characters have hit a roadblock that some are still trying to overcome. One of the characters backgrounds was connected to sex trafficking and it was quite obvious after a couple chapters from her point of view. This book also brought to life a phobia I wasn’t even aware of. Haphephobia is the fear of human contact. This is often a genetic thing passed down through families but it also is very common with sexual assualt survivors. This is not how this character developed it, but it leads back to the idea of worldly elements brought into the story. Stereotyping of some minorities were also noticeable in some chapters, mainly racism, but I would say it also showed a fair amount of how sexism is problematic too. The last comparison I will share is that of a disability. This book had so much inclusivity and it wasn’t even told in a word vomit kind of way, it all blended in so naturally. This was my second favorite thing about the duology, now onto the first, the different dynamics.
The different relationships in this book are so special to me. This book strongly has a “found family” feel to it that made it inevitably impossible to put down. A phrase said often is “No Mourners, No Funerals”. A statement and a response, and yet again while it seems morbid when actually reading it, it oddly turns into words of affirmation. Sort of like a good luck. All these characters have different connections with each other, from friendships, to dating, and to being practically family. The entire storyline shows how a big event or in this case, a heist, can bring a random group of people together. With every new page there is a new depth to a dynamic uncovered. All six characters have a certain connection with each and every other person there; this was definitely a big factor as to why this book is so popular. It showed true friendships that a lot of teenagers aspire to have. I also feel it's important to mention some relationships these characters have with parents, from estranged to inseparable, this book covers just about all of it. These are my main selling points as to getting my readers intrigued and I hope I did the job well.
I have zero complaints about this book. From the characters, the plot, the links to worldly elements, and the dynamics imbedded within the pages, it was impeccably written, and also amazingly accurate to real life situations. Six of Crows was perfect from cover to cover. From all the world building to the in depth characters, truly almost no stone was left unturned in the sense of relating to an audience. This story was surprisingly impactful. I came out of it dumbfounded because I simply wasn’t expecting so many different topics as plot points. I also loved the absolute irony of all the personality traits the characters actually shared being literally in the title. A crow is known to hold deep grudges and be fiercely loyal to family. A name well chosen and a time to appreciate Leigh Bardugo’s witt. Each character had their own skills and individuality, that I truly think so many people out there can relate to. I’m going to leave it with this, nothing in this world is black or white, and this book is a wonderful shade of gray.