Let Us Descend

Let Us Descend is beautifully and lyrically written. It is a story filled with magical realism that is set during American slavery that follows the life of Annis, a young Black woman who was born into slavery.

I was intrigued by the historical aspect because I read a lot of historical fiction set within this era of American history and was eager to see how Ward would weave a story set within that time frame. The first thing that will hit readers is Ward's powerful and very lyrical prose. Ward fills pages with descriptions of time and place, particularly during Annis' journey from a rice plantation in the Carolinas to the slave markets of New Orleans which took up much of the first third of the book. This style of writing will appeal to many readers, but it was too much for me. 

I loved the descriptions of the strong and enduring bond between mother and daughter but felt disconnected from the story which I felt got lost in the prose and the magical realism. I enjoy some magical realism, but it was overpowering in this case and too often took me out of the historical aspects.

This is an instance of good book, wrong reader. I am an outlier with my feelings and know this book will find its readers who will devour this book. My takeaways from this Let Us Descend are the bond between mothers and their daughters, the strong connection people have to their culture and the long-lasting impact of grief.

Disclaimer: My sincere thanks to Scribner Books for the complimentary copy of this book which was provided in exchange for my honest review.

My Rating: 3 stars

Author: Jesmyn Ward

Genre: Historical Fiction, Magical Realism

Type and Source: Trade Paperback from publisher

Publisher: Scribner  

First Published: October 24, 2023

Book Description from GoodReads: From Jesmyn Ward—the two-time National Book Award winner, youngest winner of the Library of Congress Prize for Fiction, and MacArthur Fellow—comes a haunting masterpiece, sure to be an instant classic, about an enslaved girl in the years before the Civil War.

“‘Let us descend,’ the poet now began, ‘and enter this blind world.’” — Inferno, Dante Alighieri

Let Us Descend is a reimagining of American slavery, as beautifully rendered as it is heart-wrenching. Searching, harrowing, replete with transcendent love, the novel is a journey from the rice fields of the Carolinas to the slave markets of New Orleans and into the fearsome heart of a Louisiana sugar plantation.

Annis, sold south by the white enslaver who fathered her, is the reader’s guide through this hellscape. As she struggles through the miles-long march, Annis turns inward, seeking comfort from memories of her mother and stories of her African warrior grandmother. Throughout, she opens herself to a world beyond this world, one teeming with of earth and water, of myth and history; spirits who nurture and give, and those who manipulate and take. While Ward leads readers through the descent, this, her fourth novel, is ultimately a story of rebirth and reclamation.

From one of the most singularly brilliant and beloved writers of her generation, this miracle of a novel inscribes Black American grief and joy into the very land—the rich but unforgiving forests, swamps, and rivers of the American South. Let Us Descend is Jesmyn Ward’s most magnificent novel yet, a masterwork for the ages.