Hungry Crow Babies – October 2024

A novel by Daria Hilton and illustrated by Leonel Lazcano Real

This novel is filled with good and accurate details such as;  “the old girl leaked too much oil to park in the garage,“ in reference to the protagonist Morrigan´s 1976 Volvo. When she, “bumped onto Mission Street.” Written with the authority of San Francisco´s famous storyteller, Amistad Maupin´s, Tales of the City, where the environment of San Francisco is as important a character as it´s people and in this case the storyteller adds crows which can be found in abundance alongside the city´s inhabitants and seagulls. However, crows are intelligent, perceptive and are possessed with character, of which there are both a number of crows and characters in this novel. Perhaps a few more characters than are actually needed, but then this reader could not decide which extraneous character to delete as each scene required the character selected by the author. The narrator, Morrigan, does an excellent job of keeping the interest of this reader as our character wound her way through friendships, boyfriends, drinking, recreational drugs, family entanglements, work requirements (she is a meter reader) and life in a big city. This is the story of conflict, a family in conflict, secrets, guilt and redemption. However, the journey that the character takes the reader through to get to the end is worth the time, and very little effort, to arrive at a satisfying conclusion. Morrigan, is a paradox, which ensures a good read, as a narrator Morrigan shows her readers what they need to know. Yet, as all good writers Hilton only allows her protagonist to dribble out information while on walks with her damaged brother, while taking a road trip and camping with her cohorts. The reader participates in smoking and drinking to better understand the protagonist´s character and her troubled yet, mysterious personal story and that of her damaged family. The journey is at time both alluring and a bit dark. What makes the brother abandon his family and turn to alcoholism? What is the basis for the conflict between the mother and her children? What motivates our narrator, who seems to be intelligent and fairly well balanced, drink, smoke marijuana and is unable to keep romantic relationships? The reader does not tire of reading about Morrigan´s escapades, but like a good mystery the answer does not come until the end, and then is it not a surprise. It is just that this reader failed to decipher all the clues when they were presented.

I urge everyone to listen to Daria Helton read from her novel, Hungry Crow Babies, Tuesday, October 15 at 2 PM at Gallo Gallery, 113 Hidalgo, Carreters Chapala/Ajijic, Riberas de Pilar and then buy Daria´s wonderful book to read for themselves.