THE SOUND OF A WILD SNAIL EATING by Elisabeth Tova Bailey

THE SOUND OF A WILD SNAIL EATING by Elisabeth Tova Bailey **** - Maybe I need to set clearer standards for my star rating system, every book I read ends up being four stars! I think I just get too invested in the books I’m reading and by the end of them, I decide they’re either almost perfect or not too bad, and it defaults to four stars.

Well, in any case, The Sound of a Wild Snail Eating was a high four-star read in my eyes. A delightfully quick-reading memoir that outlines a year in the life of the author. Bedridden due to a mysterious illness, Elisabeth spends this year observing a pet snail - brought to her by a friend to keep her company during this difficult and lonely time. The author perfectly weaves together scientific explanations of the snail’s behavior and natural environment, and a personal telling of the feelings she experienced when her only company was that of a tiny woodland creature. A witty, sweet, dainty slice of life that had me yearning to take a walk in the damp outdoors, this book was a welcome relief to the stress of everyday life.

What I loved: I don’t typically go for short books when I reach onto my bookshelves, but I had just finished Little Women and I was yearning for a quick-read, something to cleanse my palette between classics. This certainly did the trick. The writing was delicate and intriguing, gently offering the reader interesting facts about the life of a snail, and wise words about the difficulties that come with chronic illness. A surprisingly hopeful little book, I loved learning that snails are almost completely blind, that they send cupid’s arrows into their mating partners, that they can smell with the ends of their antennae. I found myself poking my boyfriend’s shoulder to tell him a new fun fact every other chapter.

What I didn’t love: Honestly - not much. This was a lovely read, and I can’t think of much to criticize about it. I think in my eyes it doesn’t deserve five stars simply because most of my five-star books have earned that rating because of the beautiful and epic stories they’ve told. This story was not on that level of storytelling, but it was certainly a beautiful snippet of a memoir worthy of anybody’s reading.