“She knew the years of isolation had altered her behavior until she was different from others, but it wasn’t her fault she’d been alone. Most of what she knew, she’d learned from the wild. Nature had nurtured, tutored, and protected her when no one else would.”- “Where the crawdads sing” by Delia Owens.

“Where the Crawdads Sing” is a murder mystery novel about Kya, the “Marsh Girl” who was abandoned by her family.  Being labelled as “dirty”, “marsh trash”, and “marsh girl”, she was isolated by the society and grew up in the remote marshlands on the coast of North Carolina.  Kya learnt to hide among the reeds and live with the creatures of the wild.  She encountered problems in her daily living and studying and suffered from poverty.  Drawn to two young men, Tate and Chase from town, Kya opened herself to a new and startling world.  The plot twist was the death of Chase.  Kya was under suspicion of murder.  She was then arrested and put on trial.  What was the cause of Chase’s death?  Was Kya the murderer?  Was there any witness or evidence?  The suspenseful story kept me hooked until the very last page. 

The story illustrated the seriousness of social discrimination and the importance of human interactions.  It described in detail the solitary life of Kya.  During her childhood, she did not receive parental care nor love from her family members.  During her adulthood, though Tate taught her how to read, the way to trust and love others, Tate failed to uphold his promise when he returned.  Kya felt so hurt since Tate was the first person who came to her mind.  She lost confidence in others that she knew “judgement had no place here. evil was not in play, just life pulsing on, even at the expense of some of the participants.” Later in the court proceedings, Kya refused to ask for help or input from other people.  She only started to communicate with her lawyer after seeing a book of artist renderings of shells.  The refusal to connect reflected the reality of the society: When people were being labelled as minorities, they would be isolated, faced differential treatment in accessing education and employment, or even more seriously, they would be attacked, just like the rumors, gossip and prejudice faced by Kya in the novel.

“Where the Crawdads Sing” was a New York Times Bestselling novel and was adapted into a movie in 2022.  If you wish to discover the secret of the marshland, please go to the Hong Kong Public Libraries for a copy.