The ASCENDANT.

Item request has been placed! ×
Item request cannot be made. ×
loading   Processing Request
Read Online Read More Add to Saved list
  • Author(s): COOPER, LEAH FAYE (AUTHOR)
  • Source:
    Vanity Fair. Dec2023/Jan2024, Vol. 66 Issue 1, p108-111. 4p. 1 Color Photograph.
  • Additional Information
    • Subject Terms:
      HISTORY of New Orleans (La.); NATIONAL Book Awards; ENSLAVED persons; SUGAR plantations; RADIO programs; SLAVE trade
    • Subject Terms:
      NEW Orleans (La.); LOUISIANA
    • Abstract:
      Jesmyn Ward, a double National Book Award winner and bestselling author, has returned to fiction with her haunting and beautiful novel, Let Us Descend. The idea for the novel came to Ward while listening to a radio series on the history and culture of New Orleans, where she was shocked to realize the erasure of the city's role in the American domestic slave trade. Let Us Descend tells the story of Annis, a young enslaved woman who is brutally sold to a sugar plantation in Louisiana. Ward aims to challenge misconceptions about slavery and the passive slave narrative, believing that every enslaved person has a story to tell. The novel explores themes of grief, love, and resilience, and is dedicated to Ward's late brother and husband. Despite her success, Ward remains grounded and continues to write from her small-town Mississippi home, drawing inspiration from the people and experiences around her. [Extracted from the article]
    • Abstract:
      Copyright of Vanity Fair is the property of Conde Nast Publications and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)