Cody

**__About the Author:__** Jesmyn Ward was born in DeLisle, Mississippi from a "mostly black, mostly poor, mostly uneducated community on the Mississippi Gulf Coast," (Bloomsbury; Ward) and still currently resides there. She received her Master of Fine Arts degree from the University of Michigan, where she also won five Hopwood Awards for several essays, drama, and fiction. She is currently an assistant professor of creative writing at the University of South Alabama. Her first major work (which was also her debut novel) is //Where the Line Bleeds,// which was published in 2008, and her newest work is //Salvage the Bones// published in 2011. She has a great critical reputation with many people including Ken Wells (author of //Meely LaBauve//) who said she "writes like an angel with a knife to your throat, compelling you with exquisite language and a clear voice to go where she goes, to see what she sees. //Salvage the Bones// is at turns unsettling and uplifting-- raw and honest as a dogfight, lyrical as a poem. It cuts through the cliches about poverty to arrive at a place of shocking recognition: that at the end of the day love and loyalty to family are all that sustain us."
 * //Salvage the Bones: //By Jesmyn Ward**  [[image:english10honorsf11/salvagethebones1.jpg width="200" height="295" align="left" link="@http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/salvage-the-bones-jesmyn-ward/1100650325"]] **__Content: __**  The book //Salvage the Bones// was written by the very reputable Jesmyn Ward, and was published in August of 2011. The setting of the novel takes place in the coastal town of Bois Sauvage, Mississippi during the summer of 2005. It is about how a once torn-apart African American family, that faced poverty, sexual abuse, and violence can rejoice and love once again after the terrifying events of Hurricane Katrina, and how this family, who could care less about anything in life can pull themselves together to keep on going, and appreciate the better things in life.

**__Characters & Conflict:__**  The main characters throughout the novel are:   - Esch (she is sexually abused at a very early age; narrator of the story)   - Skeetah (Esch's brother; obsessed with dog fighting)   - Randall (the oldest of the siblings)   - Junior (youngest of the siblings; follows what everyone else does.)   - China (Skeetah's pit bull, involved with dog fighting)   - Manny (friend who got Esch pregnant)   - Daddy (drunken, alcoholic dad)   Along with more friends including Big Henry, Rico, and Marquise.

The conflict throughout the story is that this family, that has been experiencing so much in their lives (sexual abuse, poverty, etc.) has not really been a loving, nurturing family, but when the storm arrives, and Esch is about to give birth, the family must reunite and find that missing love in order to get through the struggles they faced. 

Although families can fall apart over time, as people have their differences, one must reunite with that family in times of tragedy to love and cherish each other. **__DESTINY Book Review:__** This book is absolutely amazing! One of the best I've read in a long time, and I don't often enjoy fictional books, but this is absolutely great! The use of very descriptive imagery (although not always pleasant) enhances the audience's point of view on the story, and makes the reader feel as if they are experiencing these events first-hand. This is a very strong piece of literature (through the use of many stylistic elements,) and I can understand why this won the National Book Award, sometimes heartbreaking, sometimes filled with triumph, this book is guaranteed to be an unforgettable novel in the minds of many readers. //Salvage the Bones// truly does represent the meaning of love and loyalty to one's family. || __**Analysis of Style:**__ In //Salvage the Bones//, Jesmyn Ward uses unique diction, as well as vivid, clear imagery to portray what life was like for this family (especially the girl, Esch) living during the events of Hurricane Katrina. Their life was very difficult, facing sexual abuse, poverty, and much more, and Ward's unique way of writing portrays that, almost in a gruesome way occasionally.
 * **__Theme:__**


 * "And then he started touching me, and it felt good, and then it didn't, but then it did again. And it was easier to let him keep on touching me than ask him to stop, easier to let him inside than push him away, easier than hearing him ask me, 'Why not?' It was easier to keep quiet and take it than to give him an answer" (Ward 23).
 * "This would probably be the right place to mention that if you have a problem with dogfights, this might not be the book for you, Or girls having casual sex with their older brothers' friends at age 12, for that matter. Yet the story is told with such immediacy and openness that it may keep judgements at bay" (Kellogg).
 * "She (Ward) is a writer-of-conscience of the kind we see too few of these days" (Grooms).
 * "Ward's language teases out the inherent violence of this place-- both physical and psychological-- in brutal details" (Grooms).


 * Watch the Exclusive Trailer on //Salvage the Bones// with Jesmyn Ward!! Click on the link below. **
 * [|//Salvage the Bones// Trailer] **
 * Also, click on the link below to watch Jesmyn Ward read an excerpt from //Salvage the Bones// at the National Book Award Finalists Readings. **
 * Excerpt from //Salvage the Bones// with Jesmyn Ward **