Where the Crawdads Sing is both a coming-of-age novel and a crime drama in which Owens explores the complex circumstances that Catherine “Kya” Clark must endure as she grows up. Kya—a poor, young white girl—navigates the violence of an abusive father and eventual abandonment by her family in the marshland of North Carolina. Despite her young age and lack of education, she adapts to her environment and learns to fend for herself, drawing strength and personal inspiration from her natural surroundings.

The little guidance young Kya receives from her father consists primarily of his knowledge of the lowland coastal environment in which they live. The fictional setting of Barkley Cove, North Carolina, is embedded throughout the novel, and while this setting is the origin of many of Kya’s problems and trials in life, it is also simultaneously a place of refuge, beauty, and comfort during the many stages of Kya’s lonely development. Having experienced so much abandonment in her life, Kya’s relationship with and dependence on the marsh grants it a significance akin to that of a close friend or family member. When Kya is charged with murder and put in jail, she keenly misses living in the marsh, and she disturbed by the feeling of being unconnected to the wildlife, the land, and the water during her time away.

The domestic violence and abandonment Kya experiences early in childhood has a lasting effect on her personal relationships later in life. She develops romantic relationships with both Tate and Chase, yet there is a sharp contrast between the two men—a contrast that is displayed through both their motives and actions. Tate is positive, nurturing, and encouraging toward Kya, while Chase's behavior is predatory and seductive. Kya has problematic experiences with both men and ultimately feels abandoned in some way by both of them: Tate leaves Kya and the marsh behind to attend college, and Chase lies to Kya and marries another woman. Kya ultimately becomes a knowledgeable naturalist and a successful author, but because of her past with Tate and the formative time they spent together in the marsh, their romantic relationship may seem rooted in Kya’s dependence on him rather than on their union as equals. The arcs of Kya’s romantic relationships are muddled with inconsistency, misunderstanding, and deceit, and although Tate and Kya find their place together in the end, it may seem that Kya’s most constant and truly nurturing companion is the marsh.