Jesmyn Ward grew up in rural Mississippi during the 70's, 80's and 90's. Her father was incapable of being faithful, although he loved his wife and wanted to support and care for his children. Her mother eventually kicked him out, and raised her, her brother, and two younger sisters alone, working as a housekeeper for wealthy white families. It was a life of unrelenting poverty, racism and hopelessness.
One of her mother's employers asked to send Jesmyn to a private school when he found out she was being bullied in her public school. Her mother agreed, wanting at least one of her children to have a chance to work her way out of their dismal circumstances. Jesmyn went on to get a master's degree in fine arts, and became a writer, winning a National Book Award for Fiction, and an Alex Award.
After writing two novels, she began writing this memoir, trying to make sense of the deaths of five young men in her life over a five year span of time. Suicide, accidents, a shooting; all five, including her brother, died in different ways, but the fact of their deaths seemed to be a symptom of the desolate lives they were living in this small southern state.
As I read, I kept thinking about the events in Ferguson, and that the life the author was describing explained much about the explosion of emotions that erupted after the killing of Michael Brown. Mississippi is dead last in the nation in so many measures of poverty, and Missouri is close on its heels. If we want to understand why these things happen, this book can help.
Not an easy book to read, but highly recommended.
270 pages
