This was a pretty good read. What made it not quite the right fit for me is that I didn't connect with the mystical/ghost elements of the story. Those aren't things I generally choose in my reading life, and had I known that was the focus I might have passed. The wandering and lonely ghosts were so sad and made for a depressing outlook on death, though, to be fair, the ghost element may follow a story-telling tradition of which I'm unaware. For me, the supernatural element took away from the already tragic family story unfolding around 13-year-old JoJo and his younger sister Kayla. 
 I felt there were a lot of stories going on, making for a lot to follow: the strange journey to collect father Michael in prison (also, I wish there was more explanation as to why Kayla was so sick--that was a big, worrisome part of the trip; maybe I missed the explanation), the story of JoJo and Kayla's mother Leonie and the tragic experiences of her brother, as well as Pap's time at the prison/labor camp. Though I understood things in the end, I found the plot a bit far-reaching. I'm probably at a 3.5 star for this, but Jesmyn Ward's creative and haunting prose has me rounding up. I'd possibly read something by her again.