Customer Reviews

Where the Line Bleeds

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(12)
3 star:		(7)
2 star:		(7)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I really enjoyed Where the Line Bleeds. This book is about choices made growing up in a poor part of America. Christophe and Joshua are fraternal twins, fresh out of high school. When the story opens, they are ready to seek jobs. The future is unclear, if wide open.

They are surrounded with family members whose own lives are either guideposts or hazards. Their father, Sandman, is largely absent because of addiction to drugs. Their mother has left for Atlanta and a series of decent jobs working retail. She provides the brothers with material needs, but she is woefully absent as a caregiver.

Instead, the twins are really cared for by their grandmother, Ma-Mee, and a cousin, Dunny.

Sandman, in particular, is a strong character. Easily he is one of the most pitiable figures in a book that I have read in a long time. For the author to make a person who is an absentee father and an addict into such a person takes a lot of doing. He is a ghost to the reader for a while, but by the end, I felt bad for him.

This book has a strong sense of place. It is set in a small town on the shore line of the Mississippi River. There is not a lot of opportunity in Bois Sauvage, or even in its sister community of St. Catherine's, where the white families live. The soil is full of clay. You need 10 acres to grow enough, so back when it was an agricultural community for African-Americans retreating from New Orleans, the people settled in a very spread out fashion. It is after Katrina. The economy is limited. The port has good jobs. Most jobs are in gas stations or fast food, though.

It was that sense of place that made me like this book so much. There is a lot of detail here that testifies to a way of life: what to get at the store if you want to boil shrimp, the code of conduct among kids playing pick-up basketball, the joy of wearing a nice outfit on the Fourth of July.

"Where the Line Bleeds" is an intriguing story that looks at fraternal twin brothers, who though they have shared a womb, share very little besides that. Joshua and Christopher pursue drastically different paths - one a straight-laced, hard worker; the other making his mark on the street.

These brothers respond extremely differently to a life without the loving guidance of a mother or father. The author presents may sides to the tale, making it an intriguing read with a little something for many readers.

Fraternal twins Christophe and Joshua struggle toward adulthood following their high school graduation. The Mississippi Gulf-Coast setting and limited economic opportunities are vividly drawn here, immersing the reader thoroughly in the boys' world and their difficult choices.

So alike when the story begins, the brothers soon begin drifting apart when one finds a job and the other doesn't. Their differences expand as time goes on. Drug-related opportunities and downfalls are always lurking at the edges of this story; the boys' father is a local crackhead known as "Sandman," who's had no more a part in raising them than their self-centered mother (who ran off to Atlanta when the boys were five).

The twins are tied to the area by loyalty to the grandmother who raised them; her blindness and diabetes mean she needs them as they needed her all those years before. They cannot leave her or each other, and being trapped changes which choices still remain.

The version I read was pre-release, with occasional typos. That doesn't explain the roughness of some of the point-of-view shifts, however, the sense of which persists even though the POV is resolved. The narration moves between all three main characters, primarily the twins, but it was the grandmother's character whose perspective was most unexpected and refreshing, particularly her memories of her late husband.

The language and description convey real affection for this Creole region and its people, and an understanding of the emotional prison of abandoned children who can never stop chasing the love of the parent who left them.

This,

"Ma-mee dimming like a bulb, his parents' places unknown and orbiting them like distant moons..."

is the world that awaits the boys.

This slow, rich story details how they come to deal with it.

The Plot Briefly: Twins Joshua and Christophe have just graduated from high school. Neither even thinks of going to college or moving away. That would mean leaving behind Ma-mee, the grandmother that raised them. They both want to get jobs nearby to support her. However, being in a rural area, there aren't many jobs. After some weeks, Joshua lands a job at the docks. Christophe is jealous since he's the more confident, dominant twin. If only one of them got a job, he thought it'd be him. He starts his drug-selling career reluctantly as his pride and his love of Ma-mee demand that he earn money for their household.

Some Thoughts: Where the Line Bleeds covers the events of one summer. I was expecting more of a weighty story that covered half a life span or so, but this is more realistic. As the author mentions, drug dealers in their area don't last in the business for long. They're either arrested or become drug addicts themselves. I'd describe the novel as a coming of age story. It's the summer that will shape Chris and Josh's lives.

The Warning: There is drug use, discussion of drug paraphernalia, and details about the preparation of drugs for selling in this novel.

The Compliments: Where the Line Bleeds is very well written. It's delicate in its artistry and never blatant. If it were a painting, I'd call it a watercolor. The author displays the close relationship between Joshua and Christophe with every touch or gesture. Many times it seems as if they are an extension of one another. Likewise, you feel the conflicted relationship the boys have with the parents who abandoned them.

The Criticisms: There were times when the author seemed to get lost in a description of how hot it was or just in describing the area. The scenery can practically count as a character in this novel. Maybe it was intentional? I thought it was a bit much at times. Once or twice would have been enough, but it's continual throughout the novel.
The shifts from point of view of one character to another were confusing and come from paragraph to paragraph with no breaks to indicate the change.

Would I recommend it? I struggle to answer this question. I found it difficult to put down and in the end, I think it helped me to better understand why someone would be driven to selling drugs. I found interesting parallels between the story and my own life. I doubt it'd be that way for all readers, but I think the character portrayal would make it a worthwhile read to many.

The year is 2005, and twins Christophe and Joshua have just graduated from high school. The next thing on their agenda is to get a job, so after graduation, they go into nearby towns and begin filling out job applications. There are not many jobs to choose from; fast food restaurants, gas stations, Walmarts and the dockyard. Soon, Joshua is called for a job at the docks, while Christophe anxiously await a call from an employer. When no job is forthcoming within the next couple of weeks, cousin Dunny offers Christophe a chance to make some money by selling weed. Not only is the employment situation for the twins weighing on their minds, there is also the appearance of their absentee parents. Cilla, who moved to Atlanta when the twins were five years old and now has returned to their hometown of Bois Sauvage, not really to visit them, but to attend the Blues festival. Sandman, their father,who ignored them after their sixth birthday, returns after he finishes a stint in rehab.
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The idea and premise for this novel made it seem like it was going to be a good read. My local book club picked it based on the flap description, but found the reading to be laborious and frankly,boring. The general concensus was it was overly descriptive, characters were not very well developed, the different storylines were not tied together and the ending was anti- climatic. On a positive note, I believe the author very accurately described rural gulf coast Mississippi. Not only in describing the scenery, but also in describing the day to day doldrums of those who seem to lack ambition and the will to make positive changes in their lives.

Jeanette
Motown Review bookclub

What I liked best about Where the Line Bleeds was the dialogue. Jesmyn Ward has a good ear for speech in the Mississippi bayou. The characters use few words, but those words convey a lot. Take this from a dice player as the scene gets ugly: "This is what you two ... don't understand. I won the game. I take the money. Game over."

In contrast to this tight verbal style, the author drowns the book in sloppy prose and irrelevant details. I found myself repeatedly annoyed by passages such as "the light caught her jewelry and lit it like a cool, clean metal chain." Oof.

No need to adjust your set: that is a "red and white Budweiser can in his hands." As opposed to what, a purple and yellow one? I'm surprised the author didn't mention the black and blue lettering. Isn't there a touch of gold? And what about the concave bottom and the brushed aluminum top with the tab cocked like an ear to the wind? It's as if colorful description equals good prose. Oh, and the trees are green.

"The iron barrels they used as garbage cans were rusting along the rims. Nobody had bothered to line them with black garbage bags since the last time ..." Or brown garbage bags. Or white or green. Wouldn't it read better as "Nobody had bothered to line them since the last time"?

I think this book would have benefited by stronger editing and another rewrite.

I thought this was a good book for the author's first effort. You can feel her finding her voice and the manner in which she writes is sometimes awkward, but you know that deep down she has a story worth reading. Perhaps the uncorrected copy I read had awkward moments and the edited version weeded them out. I hope so because I believe she has talent and deserves to be read. The story begins slowly with brothers Christophe and Joshua graduating from high school, and then trying to find jobs in an economically depressed area. Then one of them gets a job offer and the other doesn't and that's where their paths begin to diverge as the one who doesn't get the job offer begins to associate more with his drug-dealing cousin. The introduction of the boys' deadbeat dad also offered high drama, and I thought the author brought out several salient points about the effects on boys being raised without a father and in Christophe and Joshua's case, even a devoted mother. Sad at times, ebullient at others, this was a solid read. And I'm looking forward to the author's future novels.

A vivid story, WHERE THE LINE BLEEDS introduces readers to Joshua and Christophe DeLisle, fraternal twins who reside in Bois Sauvage , Mississippi . It's summer, the twins are graduating and they are anticipating the remainder of their lives. As soon as they graduate they are on an immediate job search. The boys, who are grateful for Ma-Mee, their maternal grandmother, who wants to provide a better life for all of them. Things take an immediate dive when Joshua is called for a job. The twins, who have a close knit relationship and usually communicate without words, are off balanced. Christophe is filled with jealousy and anger and refuses to be dependent on Ma-Mee's disability and Joshua's job. Christophe's desperation leads him to a different road. Will making his money by selling drugs make a difference?

WHERE THE LINE BLEEDS sheds light on an impoverished family, their love, heritage and addictions. Jesmyn Ward's vivid descriptions easily make the Gulf of Mississippi a character in the story and allows readers who may have never been in this part of the world to feel as if they are actually there. My concern is at times, the story doesn't seem to have the same flow; and while I love the flamboyance of the setting, it was overwhelming. Also, the story just ends with you pretty much in limbo.

"Where the Line Bleeds" by Jesmyn Ward is very intriguing novel that paints a very vivid picture of the struggle of two young, black fraternal twins, Christophe and Joshua, who are graduating from high school and are trying to find their way as adults. Abandoned by both their mother, Cille, and their addict father, Sandman, the twins were raised by thier grandmother. The novel illustrates the hardships that the twins endure living in a poor, rural town, with very little opportunities for them.

Not only does she embed an eloquent picture in your mind, but also with her fierce descriptions, Jesmyn keeps you engaged in the novel from beginning to end. With action, humor, and a sense of mystery included, this novel truly does not lack in any area. I definitely recommend "Where the Line Bleeds" to everyone!

.....for me was to get through this book. Extremely slow tale about two African-American twin brothers from the bayou....abandoned by their selfish mother and drug-addicted father, they are raised by their beloved grandmother, Mah-mee, who is legally blind but determined to keep her grandsons safe from harm. It is truly a story about the struggle, and what it means to be poor, male, and African-American, especially in certain areas of this country...even today. The twins, although extremely close and loyal to one another, face challenges never before experienced as they graduate from high school and must now begin living a different type of life; one where people get jobs to earn money to make a way in the world. When only one of the brothers is successful in landing a job in a town with limited or no opportunity, the other struggles with temptations to earn a living outside the boundaries of legality....
An extremely boring read to me, made even more confusing by the propensity of the author to switch the focus of the story by paragraph; one is told through the eyes of Joshua, the other from the position of Christophe. Two stars because I think the author can definitely write...but this story does not lend itself, in my opinion, to the joy of reading. Far from intriguing.



DYB