The Where the Crawdads Sing novel has grown extremely popular in the last couple of months due to the thrilling film that came out in July.

The mystery novel written by Delia Owens follows the coming-of-age story of a young girl, Kya Clark. Kya grows up after her family abandons her and discovers a love for nature and the swamp that surrounds her. With the plot being set in the Outer Banks of North Carolina in the 1950s and 60s, Kya faces many hardships trying to survive as a young girl on her own. Most of the story focuses on her ability to love after her family abandoned her so young. The audience is taken on a journey with Kya to find her happiness. Along the way, love interests are introduced, and Kya adapts to the new life she has to live. The plot takes a sharp turn, however, when Kya’s primary love interest Chase Andrews is reported dead and she becomes the main suspect. 

Kya’s life turns into a constant fight between her, Chase’s parents, law enforcement, and her own morality. But Kya was used to this kind of humiliation that she faced because, for her whole life, everyone called her the “marsh girl” because she was an outsider who lived in the marsh instead of the nice neighborhoods of Barkley Cove. Her only saving grace are her many drawings and nature knick-knacks that she collects. Kya is then taken to trial with a lawyer she doesn’t even know, hoping for the best. 

Kya was always perceived as a poor, “marsh girl” to the rest of her small town. When the trial comes up, everyone judges her and assumes that she killed Chase. The main idea behind this is rather cliche: never judge a book by its cover. Even though all of Barkley Cove judged her, Kya still continued on through her life, becoming stronger than ever. 

The book was originally published in August of 2018, so it is safe to say that super fans of the book were yearning for the movie to be released. The book gained immense popularity when it was put on Barnes and Noble’s Reese Witherspoon Book Club table and the film made over 127 million dollars in theaters. It is now available for streaming on Amazon Prime Video and Google Play. Since its release, the novel climbed to the top spot on USA Today’s List in 2019. The book continued to skyrocket in 2020 with over 1,132,973 copies sold, and then in 2021 as well, and is now named The New York Times No.1 best seller in 2022. 

Where the Crawdads Sing was Delia Owens’ first novel. Growing up in Georgia, Owens was used to this kind of Southern life. Actress Reese Witherspoon produced the movie working with Owens. Witherspoon grew up in Tennessee and can relate to the commonality of that southern lifestyle. Along with the newer actress, the three made the film truly admirable. 

Daisy Edgar-Jones (Kya Clark), is a relatively newer actress who has been on Hulu’s Normal People and more recently, Under the Banner of Heaven. The young actress fit the role perfectly in my opinion. She was quiet and sweet yet strong at the same time.