[October] Sing, Unburied, Sing, by Jesmyn Ward - Part 3 Chapter 7 to End (Spoilers)

[Katie]

Yay. You finished the book! I hope you enjoyed it.

1. Did you enjoy the book?
2. Do you think this book fit the ghost story topic?
3. What did you think of the end of the book? How did you interpret it? Does it clarify the title for you?
4. Ward selected a Eudora Welty quote as an epigraph: "The memory is a living thing--it too is in transit. But during its moment, all that is remembered joins, and lives--the old and the young, the past and the present, the living and the dead." How do you think this is an appropriate quote for this novel?
5. Many reviews link this book to Toni Morrison, William Faulkner, The Odyssey and the Old Testament. If you have ready any of these authors or books, do you think those are apt comparisons?
6. Free discussion spot: Discuss anything you want about the book, its characters, themes, comment on other members' answers, etc.
7. Answer the question posed by the person above you.
8. Ask a question for the person below you.

[Peter]

1. Did you enjoy the book?

I really enjoyed it. In fact it's one of the best books I've read this year.

2. Do you think this book fit the ghost story topic?

Absolutely. The way it is presented it is very much a "ghost's story" in the sense that Ritchie needed to both tell and hear his story. It is also a story about ghosts of the past both literal and metaphorical. It was executed very well.

3. What did you think of the end of the book? How did you interpret it? Does it clarify the title for you?

I liked the ending, but was definitely confused by some of it. As painful as it was, Pop and Ritchie's story came to a satisfying conclusion, and the author did a really great job connecting the past to the present. I guess to me the title seems to be talking about the "singing" that the spirits did. They were said to be singing in a indecipherable language more than once throughout the book. My thoughts are that the "unburied" is a reference to the people killed in violent acts of racism in the past; they were left in the trees, or left "unburied" and treated just as poorly in death as they were in life. Thinking about this, this may be why the spirit tree at the end has numerous ghosts in it. I'm still slightly confused as to why they all congregated in that specific tree; it seemed that Ritchie was stuck at Parchman until Jojo gave him a way to get to River, so I don't understand why the other ghosts are able to assemble there outside of symbolic reasons.

4. Ward selected a Eudora Welty quote as an epigraph: "The memory is a living thing--it too is in transit. But during its moment, all that is remembered joins, and lives--the old and the young, the past and the present, the living and the dead." How do you think this is an appropriate quote for this novel?

I think it is an appropriate quote - the book is about how the past can haunt the present and connects the present to the past in literal and symbolic ways.

5. Many reviews link this book to Toni Morrison, William Faulkner, The Odyssey and the Old Testament. If you have ready any of these authors or books, do you think those are apt comparisons?

I haven't read any of these authors, but I'm thinking I should seek out some of their books.

6. Free discussion spot: I had two big questions after finishing the book. The first is about Ritchie. He needed to hear his story to find closure and peace, and didn't want to move on until he heard the end of his own story. He needed Jojo to get the story from River and once he heard it, and had his closure, he was understandably upset and felt betrayed. What I don't understand is why, once he had his closure, did he not move on? The second question I was left with was why all the ghosts were gathered in the tree at the end. It seemed like Ritchie was stuck in Parchman until he found a way to get closure when Jojo visited. If Ritchie was stuck there until Jojo showed up, even if he was just stuck because he didn't know where he needed to go, how did all the other ghosts get to where Jojo is. Why are they all gathering where he can see them rather than being stuck near where they were killed or travelling to where they can get their own closure?

8. The way the book ended, it left Jojo and Kayla being able to see a number of ghosts gathered in the tree with Kayla seemingly calming them; Do you think there will be a sequel or followup book, possibly with Kayla as POV character?

[Tammy]

Really nice input, Peter. I finished this book on Sunday and I'll try to get in here before I forget the story.

1. Did you enjoy the book?

I enjoyed the book. It was a good 3.5 - 3.75 range for me. I really needed something fast and easy to read, as I've been in a slump, and I think I read this in a 24 hour period so it fit the bill perfectly!

2. Do you think this book fit the ghost story topic?

I'm in agreement with Peter on this one. Great pick for a ghost story. It wasn't scary in a typical ghost story way, but it was scary in a very human way. I was constantly terrified for Jojo and his sister's well being.

3. What did you think of the end of the book? How did you interpret it? Does it clarify the title for you?

The very end lost me a bit. I was fine up until the tree and the singing and I just felt it was not needed. I felt it was a way to tie it up quickly and it just kind of left me cold...like let's have all the souls up in a tree and have the girl sing to them.

4. Ward selected a Eudora Welty quote as an epigraph: "The memory is a living thing--it too is in transit. But during its moment, all that is remembered joins, and lives--the old and the young, the past and the present, the living and the dead." How do you think this is an appropriate quote for this novel?

Yes, the quote fits nicely with the book.

5. Many reviews link this book to Toni Morrison, William Faulkner, The Odyssey and the Old Testament. If you have ready any of these authors or books, do you think those are apt comparisons?

Toni Morrison and Faulkner are some of my favorites. I think their works deal with similar issues/settings but are a cut above this book. Morrison's writing and characters leave me spellbound.

6. Free discussion spot: I think Peter hit on some of the weak spots in the book. I think a tree in the south is a good symbol of race issues and that is why the spirits who met with violent ends congregated there. I tend to question why that was necessary because I would have preferred the book to end with Richie and Given and Mam.

7. If you could change a character or occurrence in the story, would you? If so, what would you change?

8. I believe the story is a one-off and will not have any sequel, though that is an interesting idea for a follow up book.

[Shelley]

1. Did you enjoy the book?
I can understand why people enjoy it but it's not for me. I'm a bigger fan of plot driven books to character. I could be that I just wasn't in the proper mood.

2. Do you think this book fit the ghost story topic?
It did fit

3. What did you think of the end of the book? How did you interpret it? Does it clarify the title for you?
The ending felt forced. There had been no mentions (that I caught) of other ghosts and then suddenly there was a huge group of them.

4. Ward selected a Eudora Welty quote as an epigraph: "The memory is a living thing--it too is in transit. But during its moment, all that is remembered joins, and lives--the old and the young, the past and the present, the living and the dead." How do you think this is an appropriate quote for this novel?
Definitely. The back and forth in time and the fact that the past is still being felt in the present and shaping the relationships and actions of the characters makes it fit.

5. Many reviews link this book to Toni Morrison, William Faulkner, The Odyssey and the Old Testament. If you have ready any of these authors or books, do you think those are apt comparisons?
Considering I'm not a Faulkner fan for similar reasons, yes! I'v e

6. Free discussion spot: Discuss anything you want about the book, its characters, themes, comment on other members' answers, etc.

7. Answer the question posed by the person above you.
I'm not sure if I would. Anything that comes to me would change the dynamic of the story. Peter and I had a bit of a conversation on the halfway point on Leonie's interaction with her children and while that's what I would like to change, I feel like it's a rather realistic portrayal of what would happen in her situation. She got pregnant in high school and probably resented the hell out of her children, but she still had Michael so didn't really care about them. When Michael went to prison she probably wanted to the love she was missing from her children, but Jojo and Kayla have found love with each other and have no need for her. Her jealousy then causes her to act terribly towards them. I think it's a very vicious cycle for her. Anyway, I hated her and pitied her and I'm not sure that I would change that.

8. Ask a question for the person below you.
Why do you think only the kids can see the ghosts? Do you think that Jojo and Kayla will continue to see ghosts for the rest of their lives or is this something that they will lose?

[Silvia]

1. Did you enjoy the book? Yes, I did! I was not happy about the choice because it was not a creepy ghost story, but at the end I thought it was a great choice :)

2. Do you think this book fit the ghost story topic? Yes, I do. There were ghost and persons who could listen or see them. It was not really scary, but still I think it was a great ghost story.

3. What did you think of the end of the book? How did you interpret it? Does it clarify the title for you? I really didn't like the end because it felt like another story. Richie suddenly changed from a quiet ghost to a terrifying one. It was a little confusing and the tree was kind of scary. It felt strange, but the title was clear.

4. Ward selected a Eudora Welty quote as an epigraph: "The memory is a living thing--it too is in transit. But during its moment, all that is remembered joins, and lives--the old and the young, the past and the present, the living and the dead." How do you think this is an appropriate quote for this novel? I think it fits fine. At the end, everyone, dead and living, are part of the whole story.

5. Many reviews link this book to Toni Morrison, William Faulkner, The Odyssey and the Old Testament. If you have ready any of these authors or books, do you think those are apt comparisons? I haven't read those books.... I know a little about the Old Testament, but I don't see how are related. I guess I should research about it.

6. Free discussion spot: Discuss anything you want about the book, its characters, themes, comment on other members' answers, etc. I really was expecting Richie coming back to give forgiveness and peace of mind to River, so I was really dissapointed when he went after Mam.

7. Why do you think only the kids can see the ghosts? Do you think that Jojo and Kayla will continue to see ghosts for the rest of their lives or is this something that they will lose? I don't think just the kids can. As I understood, sometimes in their family some could hear, some could see, Mam never could see, just listen and she was still listening at her age.

8. This book belong to a series call Bois Sauvage. After reading this, are you interested in the other books of the series?

[Bana AZ]

1. Did you enjoy the book?
- I did, mostly. There were a lot of interesting, messed up characters.

2. Do you think this book fit the ghost story topic?
- A little bit because there are technically ghosts, but since it's not scary, then it also stands out.

3. What did you think of the end of the book? How did you interpret it? Does it clarify the title for you?
- It seems like Kayla has way more power than previously thought. Yeah, it clarified the title, but I had a pretty good idea of what the title meant before I reached the ending.

4. Ward selected a Eudora Welty quote as an epigraph: "The memory is a living thing--it too is in transit. But during its moment, all that is remembered joins, and lives--the old and the young, the past and the present, the living and the dead." How do you think this is an appropriate quote for this novel?
- I think it's very appropriate, especially for Richie who was trying to remember how he died. His afterlife was tied up with River's memory.

5. Many reviews link this book to Toni Morrison, William Faulkner, The Odyssey and the Old Testament. If you have ready any of these authors or books, do you think those are apt comparisons?
-

6. Free discussion spot.
- Before Richie's POV, I felt like there wasn't much difference with the voices of Jojo and his mom. Does anyone else feel like this?

8. This book belong to a series call Bois Sauvage. After reading this, are you interested in the other books of the series?
- Yes, I would, but not in the way I usually am with series where I really must read the other books. This is more like, if there's an opportunity, I will. But I won't move my reading sched for the year for the other books.

8. My question: If you didn't know how you died, would you want to stick around like Richie to find out what really happened or would you be fine not knowing? Why?

[Chrissy]

I finished last night - I liked the book, but agree with some of the previous posters that the end didn't feel as strong as everything else. I'm not sure whether this book will stand the test of time and become a classic in the way that the compared authors have.

[MissLemon]

Late to the party as I chose Beloved Toni Morrison for my ghost story prompt and didn't think I'd have time, but saw it in the library and decided to go for it!
1. Did you enjoy the book? Yes, very much, gave it 5 stars (but see below) Agree with Peter, one of my favourite books of the year.

2. Do you think this book fit the ghost story topic? The prompt was my idea, and this definitely fitted my original idea of a story 'about' ghosts that wasn't necessarily scary or from the horror genre. I definitely think it fits, as does Beloved

3. What did you think of the end of the book? How did you interpret it? Does it clarify the title for you? I found scene with the death of Mam very moving and I thought the book should have ended there. The scene with the tree did help clarify the title, but I got it already! I feel the baby represented innocence, hope and a better future and that is why she could calm the ghosts. I felt sad that Richie was still there, he should have been able to leave with Mam.

4. Ward selected a Eudora Welty quote as an epigraph: "The memory is a living thing--it too is in transit. But during its moment, all that is remembered joins, and lives--the old and the young, the past and the present, the living and the dead." How do you think this is an appropriate quote for this novel? Yes, very.

5. Many reviews link this book to Toni Morrison, William Faulkner, The Odyssey and the Old Testament. If you have ready any of these authors or books, do you think those are apt comparisons? As I said , I've just read Beloved by Toni Morrison and there are some very similar themes going on there. I haven't read anything else by her or any of the other authors, but am very interested in reading more.

6. Free discussion spot: Discuss anything you want about the book, its characters, themes, comment on other members' answers, etc.
I did feel that Leonie and JoJo had similar 'voices' but then perhaps that was intentional ?I feel JoJo is the more mature voice as he is stronger. I could have read a whole book in Richie's voice!

7. Answer the question posed by the person above you.
Answering Ana A's question. I have every intention of coming back once I die, which I hope to be in my own bed whilst fast asleep! If I don't know how I have died then I will find out because I will be hanging around anyway. If it's gruesome I will have to look away, but I will help whichever amateur sleuth is looking in to my murder to solve it. And then make sure my daughter writes the screen play to the movie and gets very rich!

8. Ask a question for the person below you. I would have liked to have heard Pop/Rivers voice other than second hand through Jojo. Is there a character who's 'voice' you would have liked to hear?