Review: Sing, Unburied, Sing

Sing, Unburied, Sing by Jesmyn Ward
Publisher: Scribner
Publication Date: September 5, 2017
Pages: 285 pages
Genre: Adult Fiction
Rating: 4/5

Synopsis:

Jojo and his toddler sister, Kayla, live with their grandparents, Mam and Pop, and the occasional presence of their drug-addicted mother, Leonie, on a farm on the Gulf Coast of Mississippi. Leonie is simultaneously tormented and comforted by visions of her dead brother, which only come to her when she’s high; Mam is dying of cancer; and quiet, steady Pop tries to run the household and teach Jojo how to be a man. When the white father of Leonie’s children is released from prison, she packs her kids and a friend into her car and sets out across the state for Parchman farm, the Mississippi State Penitentiary, on a journey rife with danger and promise.

Sing, Unburied, Sing grapples with the ugly truths at the heart of the American story and the power, and limitations, of the bonds of family. Rich with Ward’s distinctive, musical language, Sing, Unburied, Sing is a majestic new work and an essential contribution to American literature.

Review:

"In the bright light of the day the shadows swallow him: cool dark bayou water, the color of mud - tepid and blinding. He moves and he is of a piece with the darkness."

Sing, Unburied, Sing is a novel that definitely deserves its rightful place in the realm of modern literature. If you are looking for a purely plot-driven novel that is fueled by action and unexpected twists, then don't anticipate much. However, if you want a complex, character-driven novel about a dysfunctional family (plus some ghosts), then you've come to the right place.

Sing, Unburied, Sing is a character study set in rural Mississippi during the twenty-first century. Ward touches on many issues that are very prevalent in today's societies. At the core, there is talk of race relations and tension. Leonie is African-American, while her significant other Michael is Caucasian. Together, they have sired two children - Jojo and Kayla. Michael's family, however, is not accepting of this situation and of the children, while Leonie's are. Nevertheless, her family has their own problems, as her mother is suffering through rounds of chemo to battle cancer.

Ward shifts the narrative through primarily two of the characters. The bulk of the novel takes place over a very short period of time. Right from the start of the novel, Ward showcases her command over her writing:

"He spits in the dry red dirt, and the wind makes the trees wave. It's cold. This spring is stubborn; most days it won't make way for the warmth."

There are no sugar-coated descriptions. Ward is blunt, and highlights the grittiness in every action each character performs with no filter. This works very well, as this book is truly a character study and there is no better way to portray such vivid characters than showing the honest truth about them, even if the truth is bitter and dark.

The characters have their own ghosts from the post, both figuratively and literally. Leonie is haunted by her murdered brother, Given, who comes to her in her drug hazes. She is called to get Michael out of prison, the main driving force behind the little plot that occurs in the novel. As a mother, she appears to care very little for her two children. She is very much aware of this and this tortures her, as painted through chapters written in her perspective, as well as her brother's death and her drug addiction problem.

"My attention is everywhere. Even now, my devotion: inconsistent."

The other primary perspective is from Jojo, Leonie's thirteen-year old son. He basically raises his little sister Kayla, and is more of a parent to her than Leonie and Michael are. He is aware of his mother's behavior, and is almost unfazed by it.

"'That's your mama?' he ask.

'No,' I say, and I don't explain."

Jojo, like his mother, is haunted by his own ghost, a boy named Richie from Jojo's grandfather's past, spent in a horrible prison.

This is truly a gripping book. Though dark and twisted, it shows characters in a way that makes them more three-dimensional and human. However, my only qualm with this book was that I do wish there was a little more plot. In retrospect, there was not a lot that actually happened - more of just learning about the characters, namely Leonie and Jojo. Nevertheless, I'll let this slide since this is more of a character novel. Otherwise, Sing, Unburied, Sing is a beautifully crafted and vivid novel that definitely lived up to its expectations.