Sing, Unburied, Sing
Jojo is thirteen years old and trying to understand what it means to be a man. He doesn’t lack in fathers to study, chief among them his Black grandfather, Pop. But there are other men who complicate his understanding: his absent White father, Michael, who is being released from prison; his absent White grandfather, Big Joseph, who won’t acknowledge his existence; and the memories of his dead uncle, Given, who died as a teenager.
His mother, Leonie, is an inconsistent presence in his and his toddler sister’s lives. She is an imperfect mother in constant conflict with herself and those around her. She is Black and her children’s father is White. She wants to be a better mother but can’t put her children above her own needs, especially her drug use. Simultaneously tormented and comforted by visions of her dead brother, which only come to her when she’s high, Leonie is embattled in ways that reflect the brutal reality of her circumstances.
When the children’s father is released from prison, Leonie packs her kids and a friend into her car and drives north to the heart of Mississippi and Parchman Farm, the State Penitentiary. At Parchman, there is another thirteen-year-old boy, the ghost of a dead inmate who carries all of the ugly history of the South with him in his wandering. He too has something to teach Jojo about fathers and sons, about legacies, about violence, about love.
Source: https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Sing-Unburied-Sing/Jesmyn-Ward/9781501126079
Keywords/Themes
Racism, historical trauma, family, generational pain, death, the supernatural, addiction, neglect, coming of age, responsibility.
Book Review & Recommended Use in Classroom
A very compelling writing style leads through a story that begins as a portrayal of a family struggling, generation after generation, with racial injustice, drug abuse, and abandonment. But soon, elements of magic take over, and the story takes a mystical turn, unveiling a world populated by the ghosts of the collective trauma of the southern United States. History, violence, nature, and magic interlock in one vivid picture.
I think this novel could work well in upper school because it combines realistic elements with a magical component, allowing students to approach difficult topics from a broader perspective. One could analyze the novel’s characters guided by a set of general questions, such as: How does drug abuse affect not only users but also their families? How do history and systemic violence affect people over generations? Are we a product of our society, or can we determine our own destiny?
(Alexandra, April 2025)
Sensitive Content
This book contains mature themes including strong language, depictions of violence, racism and racially injustice, police brutality, substance abuse, domestic violence, traumatic loss, incarceration and references to sexual violence.
About the Author
Jesmyn Ward, born on April 1, 1977, in Oakland, California, is one of the most celebrated writers of the 21st century, known for her lyrical and authentic portrayals of poor African American communities in coastal Mississippi. Raised in DeLisle, Mississippi, after her family returned from California following Hurricane Camille, Ward experienced economic hardship and was deeply influenced by her mother’s resilience as a house cleaner. An avid reader as a child, she later attended a private Episcopal school on a scholarship, becoming its only Black student. Ward went on to earn both a BA in English and an MA in media studies from Stanford University. She made literary history as the first woman and first Black American novelist to win the National Book Award for fiction twice, in 2011 and 2017.
