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ka_cam's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
Brutal and lyrical, follows a young woman born into US slavery and sold down the river after her mother and with, though quickly separated from, her lover. Spirit-ful and spiritual reflections on grief, intergenerational trauma, mother’s love, the connections between people, places and times. Good, heartbreaking, read
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racism, Rape, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Violence, Blood, Trafficking, Grief, Pregnancy, Injury/Injury detail, and Pandemic/Epidemic
mdinkle1's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
slow-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? It's complicated
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Racism, Sexual assault, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, and Classism
diamond627's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
inspiring
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Eating disorder, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Slavery, Violence, Death of parent, and Murder
lkjones19's review against another edition
dark
emotional
hopeful
sad
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? No
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racism, Rape, Slavery, and Violence
jkpiowa's review against another edition
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
It's hard to say I loved this when it is so heartbreaking, but I loved this. The parallels with Dante's Inferno, the fact that none of the slaveholders/etc. are named, the extremely beautiful and descriptive writing. Historical fiction isn't normally my thing, and sad books definitely aren't my thing - but I am so glad I gave this a shot.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racism, Slavery, Violence, and Grief
Moderate: Rape and Death of parent
burnourhistory's review against another edition
dark
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Rape, Slavery, Violence, Grief, and Death of parent
kell_xavi's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
medium-paced
4.5
Perhaps the most heartfelt writer I have read. Jesmyn Ward writes Annie and her mother, her companions, with strength and depth; she writes their daily struggles as the subjects of unending cruelty in sharp detail, from a character full of determination and despair, until both she and her reality are stark and fully imagined before us, until we are immersed in that dark place—and in the bloom of scents, the pain of cut palms, the seeping presence of spirits to watch and intercede. It is a hard story, because the history, the knowledge that these acts of enslavement, brutality, rape, starvation, torture and confinement were common and that thousands of people lived through them and bear their legacy. Ward reminds us, much like the spirit who records the names of those who cross the sea remembers, so the lives, the harms, and the fires can be felt in the land and the people we are among today. So that we can imagine what bodies were forced to bear, and the poetry and love that those extremely resilient people still found and shared, the will to live that carried skills and knowledge from person to person, and across generations unto freedom.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Physical abuse, Racism, Slavery, Terminal illness, and Torture
Moderate: Confinement, Incest, Pedophilia, Rape, Violence, Blood, Death of parent, and Pregnancy
christine_s's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
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? It's complicated
5.0
Loved the prose and writing style, completing drew me in from the beginning.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape, Sexual violence, Slavery, Violence, and Trafficking
Moderate: Gore, Hate crime, and Kidnapping
zemily83's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Slavery
Moderate: Violence
Minor: Rape
mugsandmanuscripts's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
sad
tense
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
It's hard to write a book about slavery that strikes the balance between a realistic portrayal of the brutality of the institution and the resilience of the human spirit. I think Jesmyn Ward mastered it in this book.
The violence of slavery—physical, emotional, and sexual—cannot be overstated (and should never be understated). For that reason, I was hesitant to read this book. As I work on decolonizing my bookshelves, I've been adding books that speak to the experience of being Black in America, and part of that is reading slavery narratives (both historical and fictional). These narratives are always heavy and never easy. But I keep reminding myself that if people experienced this violence, I have no excuse for not reading about it.
That said, Let Us Descend is heavy, but artfully crafted and beautiful in its portrayal of the human spirit. The book follows Annis (nicknamed Arese by her mother) on her harrowing journey from the plantation on which she was born (the product of the slaveowner and one of his slaves) to another plantation to which she is sold and beyond. It starts with her close relationship with her loving mother and follows the other relationships Annis cultivates in spite of (and because of) her status as a slave.
The relationships Annis develops—some more intimate/longer than others—form the heart of the novel and the life of our main character. Each relationship becomes a part of who Annis is. Along her journey, she becomes acquainted with several ancestral spirits, one in particular who has followed three generations of women in Annis's family line.
Over the course of the novel, Annis fights to develop her own sense of self, which is especially difficult given that she lives within the confines of slavery. The result is a beautiful story woven with strings of loss, strength, love, grief, oppression, resilience and self-discovery.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Racism, Slavery, and Violence
Moderate: Sexual violence