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lminique's review against another edition
4.0
This was a beautifully written book about a black family living in Mississippi and their struggles with poverty, racism, drug abuse, lack of parenting skills and dealing with the supernatural. The story alternates between Jo Jo and Leonie. Leonie, the mother of biracial children Jo Jo and Kayla, is a drug addict who has no parenting skills and sees her brothers dead ghost when she is doing drugs. Thirteen year Jo Jo seems to have taken on the role of caring for his little sister Kayla. Jo Jo and Kayla are both able to see ghosts as well. The end of the story was kind of confusing to me as it had so much going on with the ghost of the past that I had to reread it a couple of times, but overall it was a very good read and I will definitely be checking out more from Jesmyn Ward.
dianashadel's review against another edition
3.0
I understand the value of this perspective, but it was one of those books that to me felt like very little plot with a lot of stressful situations. I think it leaned too heavily on the stressful situations rather than developing the characters fully.
peaknit's review against another edition
2.0
I think my review is unpopular, I am seeing so much positive about this book. I just did not like it, the language, etc. I struggled with this one.
rebekahstuive's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
inspiring
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
clairecath's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
ashamb's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
hartmancb's review against another edition
challenging
dark
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I’m not sure why I didn’t like this book that much, the writing itself was a beautiful style and the content was important, but I just couldn’t get into it. At the beginning, I just felt like I had a hard time differentiating the characters and was confusing Given and Richie and by the end felt that it came together, but Mams passing was chaotic and frustrating. Although I grew to feel for Jojo and Kayla the most, I still don’t feel a huge connection to them.
jess_mango's review against another edition
4.0
beautiful, heart-wrencing. Reflects on many of the issues facing families in modern day America: drug abuse, grandparents raising their grandchildren, father/son relations, race relations.