Tokarczuk's narrator, an eccentric woman of advancing years named Janina Duszejko, is a delight. As a narrator she is both very charming and very interesting, and much of the book's appeal lies in seeing the world through the prism of her rather idiosyncratic assumptions and beliefs. Mrs. Duszejko (for she abhors her first name) makes for a doubly sympathetic figure in that she is continually distraught by the wider world's obliviousness to what she considers a grave injustice (the killing of animals) and in that she is acutely conscious of the extent to which her convictions are brushed aside on account of her identity (her age and her gender) -- both are experiences with which many can relate. Placed in the hands of such a strong narrator, I was extremely ready to forgive the slow-to-develop story, as well as to grant an unusual level of credence to her sometimes off-kilter perspectives.

The Guardian praised the novel for its "anarchic sensibility". For me, this anarchic sensibility comes across in an exploration of ad-hoc, transient communities. Mrs. Duszejko seems to draw in "the sort of people whom the world regards as useless", finding joy and companionship in these awkward, makeshift, impermanent "families". The formal institutions of police and government are not objects of outright hostility, but seem almost irrelevant; a curious afterthought far removed from the daily worlds of those they ostensibly oversee. I appreciated this treatment of community and kinship, and its political implications, while remaining far from certain about other features of the novel's moral vision --

to what extent, ultimately, are we supposed to pass judgement on Mrs. Duszejko's actions, whether to exonerate or to condemn?

 

Misc thoughts: 
- I'm of two minds on some of the astrological concepts on which Mrs. Duszejko muses. On the one hand, I did feel that some of her reflections were somewhat opaque to readers (such as myself) without a solid grasp on western astrological tradition. On the other hand, her belief in astrology is so central to her worldview that I do think her unique voice would have been watered down or made to feel less authentic if things were changed. 
- This book contains some very lovely nature writing, including descriptions of seasons/flora/fauna in rural Poland. Also, some quite humorous observational writing about the people. 
- While "mystery" and "crime/thriller" and so on are accurate labels for this book, be aware that it reads much more like litfic (it goes without saying that this was one of the things I liked about it)