Grievers by adrienne maree brown

This novel is so good. I read it in two days. The story takes place in Detroit, where a sickness called H-8 kills only Black people. Patient zero is Dune’s grandmother. While most people flee the city, Dune chooses to stay, teaching herself to survive on the abandoned community gardens. She encounters and documents individuals gripped by the early stage of the disease, frozen in place and mumbling their last few words over and over again. Dune begins to wonder if the sickness is caused by trauma, heartbreak & grief. The book offers no resolution, leaving the reader to consider what it means to touch death and the need to process our grief and rage so they do not paralyze and kill us.

Review by Julie, Bookseller & 2020-2023 Book Board Member