Let Us Descend by Jesmyn Ward

A Five-Star Book Review

Jesmyn Ward is a two-time National Book Award winner, the only woman and only African American to achieve this accomplishment. Her accolades extend well beyond those two awards, and it’s no wonder. Her works are outstanding, as I found by reading Ward’s latest novel, Let Us Descend.

Summary of Let Us Descend (No Spoilers)

Let Us Descend is the story of Annis, a slave girl, who is sold by her sire and forced from his North Carolina plantation on an inhuman walk to New Orleans, where she is sold to another plantation where she endures even more searing brutality. That is the one-sentence plot summary; Let Us Descend is much more than that. As Annis bears the depravity of slavery, she is visited by the spirits of her ancestors and those of her community, which carry her through the sorrows and pain.

What I Enjoyed about Let Us Descend

Let Us Descend left me breathless because of Annis’s bleak, painful experiences. It’s difficult to say that I enjoyed this novel; appreciation is more of an apt description.

• The Writing: Ward is a gorgeous author. She puts words on a page like a pint to a majestic portrait. Let Us Descend is a complex novel, which spirits and sorrow overwhelming the story, but everything comes together because of Ward’s writing talent.
• Family: The most impactful relationship in Let Us Descend is that of Annis and her mother. Annis describes her mother as a loving but damaged woman who would do anything to protect Annis, and that bond is part of Annis’s journey.
• Ties to Inferno: While working in her sire’s house, Annis listened to her half-sisters’ lessons with a tutor, memorizing parts of Dante’s Inferno. Ward weaves Annis’s snippets of these passages into her experiences, creating a significant parallel to the hell that she is experiencing on earth.

My Final Thoughts about Let Us Descend

Let Us Descend is not for light reading. You must open the book with the knowledge that you are going on an austere, oppressive journey with Annis through her slavery. But it is an important, beautifully written, carefully crafted novel that should be read.