ralovesbooks's review against another edition
4.0
I hate to break my 5-star streak with Jesmyn, but it didn't help for me to read her debut last of all. I can see the bones of what her writing will become, but this one was so rough in comparison. Still good! Just not AS good, which is totally understandable.
"Ma-mee let the memory slide from her shoulder like a slipping sheet."
"Ma-mee let the memory slide from her shoulder like a slipping sheet."
booksandbecoming's review against another edition
3.0
This was really a 3.5 star book. It has Jesmyn Ward's characteristically beautiful writing and character development, but this is her (or one of her first?) first book and her writing had not yet evolved into the way it is in her most recent, National Book Award winning books. Still, she portrays the relationship between the two brothers in a touching way reminiscent of her portrayal of families in her other books, and it was enjoyable to read. I think the main reason this wasn't as good for me as her other books is that many chapters focus heavily on Christophe's buying and selling of weed, and the ins and out of that (he begins to sell out of desperation when he doesn't get a job), and that wasn't as interesting for me. But if you're a fan of Jesmyn Ward's this book is worth reading.
lizmart88's review against another edition
3.0
Jesmyn Ward writes so beautifully. The descriptions always get me! Story of two twin boys in the summer after they graduate HS. Joshua gets a job at the docks but Chris does not. So Chris begins selling weed. As they both struggle through the summer, we follow their encounters with their absent parents circling their lives.
Excellent read!
Excellent read!
scarlet_begonia21's review against another edition
4.0
4.5 stars
Wow. I love Jesmyn Ward. Her writing is just so infectious. I recently finished ‘Sing, Unburied, Sing’ and knew I had to read the other novels in the unofficial “Bois Sauvage” trilogy. Set in the same rural town on the Mississippi coast, ‘Where the Line Bleeds’ is the first book chronologically written by Ward in this series. All the novels are unrelated but have threads and themes similar to each other, and all take place in this fictional town which I’ve learned is French for “Wild Wood.”
In this novel, twins Joshua and Christophe are about to graduate from High School and begin looking for jobs in town. They are raised by their grandmother- their mom lives in Atlanta and their father hangs out around town as a local drug user but hasn’t been a prominent part of their life for many years. Resentments abound as we watch the brothers begin adult lives this summer after graduating. While the story meanders around seemingly nothing, it all builds toward a climax toward the end.
The story opens with the brothers about to jump into a river and ends with probably the most beautiful passage I have read in a while- perhaps even more beautiful than the ending of ‘Sing, Unburied, Sing,’ and I re-read that passage (or re-listened to it on audiobook) about half a dozen times. This ending invokes the sea- there’s a great fish metaphor as the brothers and their cousin are fishing at the end and throwing back the small fishes, and Christophe wonders if the fish they throw back ever survive. Ward dives head-on into this metaphor, which I believe mirrors the brothers, about how they would survive, “battered and cunning,” warning the other fish of the metal hooks that scar their mouth, and how they’ll go on swimming until they get bigger and fatter. It ends with beautiful lyrical prose of how these fish disintegrate into the very foundation that lines the bottom of the sea in the Gulf of Mexico, a testament to hope and a way forward, and of belonging to something permanent and special. This was a story that kept you emotionally close to these characters and their trials and tribulations, and I really enjoyed reading it. I’m looking forward to reading the next book (in between this one and the masterpiece ‘Sing’) and would recommend it to anyone who loves her blunt yet lush writing style. While for a while I felt like not much happened, the end really ties it together so beautifully. I will try to read these ending lines every once in a while, just because of how gorgeous they are.
Wow. I love Jesmyn Ward. Her writing is just so infectious. I recently finished ‘Sing, Unburied, Sing’ and knew I had to read the other novels in the unofficial “Bois Sauvage” trilogy. Set in the same rural town on the Mississippi coast, ‘Where the Line Bleeds’ is the first book chronologically written by Ward in this series. All the novels are unrelated but have threads and themes similar to each other, and all take place in this fictional town which I’ve learned is French for “Wild Wood.”
In this novel, twins Joshua and Christophe are about to graduate from High School and begin looking for jobs in town. They are raised by their grandmother- their mom lives in Atlanta and their father hangs out around town as a local drug user but hasn’t been a prominent part of their life for many years. Resentments abound as we watch the brothers begin adult lives this summer after graduating. While the story meanders around seemingly nothing, it all builds toward a climax toward the end.
The story opens with the brothers about to jump into a river and ends with probably the most beautiful passage I have read in a while- perhaps even more beautiful than the ending of ‘Sing, Unburied, Sing,’ and I re-read that passage (or re-listened to it on audiobook) about half a dozen times. This ending invokes the sea- there’s a great fish metaphor as the brothers and their cousin are fishing at the end and throwing back the small fishes, and Christophe wonders if the fish they throw back ever survive. Ward dives head-on into this metaphor, which I believe mirrors the brothers, about how they would survive, “battered and cunning,” warning the other fish of the metal hooks that scar their mouth, and how they’ll go on swimming until they get bigger and fatter. It ends with beautiful lyrical prose of how these fish disintegrate into the very foundation that lines the bottom of the sea in the Gulf of Mexico, a testament to hope and a way forward, and of belonging to something permanent and special. This was a story that kept you emotionally close to these characters and their trials and tribulations, and I really enjoyed reading it. I’m looking forward to reading the next book (in between this one and the masterpiece ‘Sing’) and would recommend it to anyone who loves her blunt yet lush writing style. While for a while I felt like not much happened, the end really ties it together so beautifully. I will try to read these ending lines every once in a while, just because of how gorgeous they are.
walkerct's review
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
alicja_p's review
dark
emotional
medium-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
mc235's review
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5