As a kid, did you ever fantasize about running away from home? Ever dream about escaping to a place where no one could tell you what to do? Imagine for a moment that your fantasy came true but in reverse. Your parents ran away from home, leaving you to your own devices before you could even count to 30 — before you literally knew what number came after 29. It’s an age where you reasonably expect no one will ever leave you without food, guidance, and protection, and yet there you are, without the natural affection afforded to even the feral animals around your feet. Sobering, no?

Owens writes the world of Kay, our protagonist, with striking vividness. Through economical prose and an unpretentious vocabulary, she brings to life the colors and sounds experienced by a six-year-old girl, abandoned by her own in the marsh of North Carolina in the 1950s. While reading this book, the air around you will smell of buzzing micro-ecosystems and land wet with forgotten waters from the Pacific Ocean. More than anything, you’ll feel the numbing pain of Kay’s loneliness as if it’s your own.

Before we dive into Where the Crawdads Sing, we’ll get real about loneliness and depression: What battles have we had with both, and how does one cope?

Welcome to the first episode of Lit Society. Let’s get LIT!