Sing, Unburied, Sing by Jesmyn Ward

Jojo and his younger sister are being raised by their maternal grandparents in a poor coastal town in Mississippi.  Their mother Leonie is too overwhelmed by life and drugs to pay attention.  Their white father is about to be released from prison so Leonie takes the children to bring him home.  In the times it takes them to make the journey, a world of hurt is revealed.  The grief is all real but Jojo is also visited by the ghosts of Leonie's brother who died a early tragic death and a young boy with an early connection to his grandfather.  This book is a beautiful and eloquently written window into a life from which my white privilege with forever protect me.  I wish it was historical fiction but unfortunately it is not.  Winner of the 2017 National Book Award.