crank.report

jesmynward

Image: the cover of Salvage the Bones by Jesmyn Ward

I’ve had Salvage the Bones by Jesmyn Ward on my read list since finishing The Fire Next Time.

This book is heartbreaking. It’s the story of family and love and mythology told through the eyes of a teenage girl as she and her brothers and father get ready for the storm that will be Hurricane Katrina. That we know how bad Katrina will be adds urgency. The physicality of Ward’s writing gives this book a searing intimacy. We feel, through touch, what the narrator feels. It is the best of literature, giving us intimate access to a complete world.

Other perspectives:

  1. Ron Carter in the Washington Post
  2. Carolyn Kellogg in the LA Times

Logistics: I checked the audio book out from the library and listened to while walking the dog on the Berkeley streets, while cooking dinner, and while driving short errands. Book 03 finished 8 January.

#read2022 #JesmynWard

Discuss...