Notes About The Poem
Written on 23rd July 2026.
Inspired by the movie 'Where The Crawdads Sing' and the novel of the same name by Delia Owen's.
Listen to poem:
Where The Crawdads Sing
The Clark family lived in the coastal swamp of Nth Carolina
The youngest of the Clark children was a girl called Kya
Their father Jackson was a veteran who'd fought in WW2
He was a moody and violent alcoholic and an abuser too.
Young Kya was only six years old when her mother left home
Her four older siblings left soon after leaving Kya all alone
She kept out of her Pa's way because of his abusive mood
When she was only ten, he upped and left their shack for good.
She went to the local school, but other kids treated her mean
Called her the 'Swamp Girl' so she never went back there again
She had to fend for herself and took a great interest in nature
And fished in the local creek and sold mussels to sustain her.
She befriended Jumpin and Mabel at the local town store
Who bought her catches; sometimes giving her a little more
She started drawing pictures of the local fauna and wildlife
Met a boy called Tate and dreamed of being with him for life.
He helped Kya to read and write and helped her to write a book
Royalties soon came flooding in; she couldn't believe her luck
But then Tate went off to college without even saying a goodbye
To take off like that without a word Kya couldn't understand why.
Kya was nineteen years old when she met a boy; Chase Andrews
Chase was the popular boy in town that many girls would choose
He started seeing Kya and he often told her that she was his girl
Kya saw in the local news he was engaged to a girl called Pearl.
Older brother Jodie who'd been in the army returned to see Kya
Brought news that their mother had passed away with leukaemia
He said he'd seen one of her books in his town at the local bookstore
But had lost contact with their siblings and heard from them no more.
One day Kya and Chase went to the beach; he tried to have his way
Kya was left shocked but fought him off and managed to run away
She’d once loved him and had given him a scallop shell necklace
And had dreamed of being together and having their own place.
Kya contacted Chase and said that she wanted to meet up to talk
At the old fire tower in the swamp and perhaps go for a long walk
He arrived at the old fire tower, and Kya was waiting for him there
Kya said "Let's climb up to see the views, but it's rusty take care".
Next day two boys out riding bikes discovered Chase's dead body
They found it at the base of the old fire tower all battered and bloody
Some witnesses had heard Kya saying that she'd kill Chase one day
For physically attacking her she had vowed that she'd make him pay.
The Barkley Cove gossips pointed at Kya and she was duly arrested
"I've done nothing wrong; I’m innocent it wasn't me" she protested.
The police forensic team had found some red fibres on Chase's jacket
They searched Kya's shack and found the same fibres on her red hat.
Kya was read her rights and charged with his murder in the first degree
She was represented in her trial by Tom Milton her appointed attorney
The prosecution attorney who was acting for Chase's wealthy family
Couldn’t prove the case against Kya and she was acquitted by the jury.
Tate Walker returned from college, and they made up and lived together
Kya didn't want to get married but said that they’d be together for ever
Many years later at the age of sixty-four Kya passed away peacefully
Her wish when her time came was to be buried where she’d been happy.
Many of the townsfolk from Barkely Cove attended Kya's burial
Many felt guilty for condemning and ostracising her at her trial
Along with friends and Tate's relatives and Jodie and his family
They laid Kya’s body to rest in the marshes beneath an oak tree.
Some days later Tate came across a scallop shell necklace
He froze when he remembered that she had given it to Chase
And it was said that he'd been wearing it on the day that he'd died
And he began to wonder if Kya when questioned, had in fact lied.
He decided that he'd dispose of it and hoped that he wouldn't regret
And that the dark memories of what he'd done he'd one day forget
He struggled to accept that Kya could have done such a terrible thing
And thought it was best hidden and buried where the crawdads sing.
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