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Misty's holler looks like any of the thousands of hollers that fork through the Appalachian Mountains. But Misty knows her home is different. She may be only ten, but she hears things. Even the crawdads in the creek have something to say, if you listen.
All that Misty's sister Penny wants to talk about are the strange objects that start appearing outside their trailer. The grown-ups mutter about sins and punishment, but that doesn't scare Misty. Not like the hurtful thing that's been happening to her, the hurtful thing that is becoming part of her. Ever since her neighbor William cornered her in the barn, she must figure out how to get back to the Misty she was before ― the Misty who wasn't afraid to listen.
This is the story of one tough-as-nails girl whose choices are few but whose fight is boundless, as her coping becomes a battle cry for everyone around her. Written by a survivor of sexual abuse, Every Bone a Prayer is a beautifully honest exploration of healing and of hope.
Paperback Original.
You can see the full discussion in our legacy forum here. This discussion will contain spoilers!
Some of the recent comments posted about Every Bone a Prayer:
Do you think that corporal punishment is ever justified for children? Besides the physical pain, what does Misty notice and remember about being whipped with the switch?
Corporeal punishment is never justified. Those who are physically abused abuse their own children. It is referenced in the discussion that Jem and Dolly have when the marks are noted on Misty. Culturally accepted still by some.
The other thing that... - joang
How did you feel after reading the introduction? How did knowing the author was an abuse survivor herself influence your reading of the book?
I totally agree with anni. It was obvious to me that the psychological pain misty felt was very realistic because it was experienced by the author. It brought to light the suffering and damage that is done to a child of sexual abuse. If the very act ... - irisf
How do you believe the book's setting in Appalachia affected the story? Have you visited or lived in that part of the United States, and if so, what was your experience like?
I thought the setting was key to the story. Appalachia feels so remote, different, and consequently magical that because the story was set there, it seemed more possible.
I did visit Appalachia when I was a young woman, as part of a church group ... - kimk
How do you feel Misty, Penny and William are each coping with the challenges of their families? Do you think they understand each other?
Each of them copes with extremely dysfunctional families. Misty withdraws and buries her deepest feelings sharing them only with nature and spirits. She is so unhappy and your heart breaks for her. Penny just wants to live elsewhere. William is very ... - dianeh
How does the environment interact with Misty's emotions? Do you feel like you have a special connection to anything in particular (nature, a specific place, animals, etc.), and if so, why do you think this is?
Nature is always changing but never opposing the change. Nature can just let things be and not have to "fix" anything...that is why nature can be so calming. There's an aspect of nature that you can rely on...it's there, it will always be there, it... - Jessica F
"If Southern Gothic masters Carson McCullers and William Faulkner were to…co-write a book, they might come close to this, but only just." - NPR
"Every Bone a Prayer evokes the magic of my favorite childhood stories—thrilling, but eerie—but it's also a painful, beautiful, and necessary examination of trauma and autonomy." - BuzzFeed
"[A] lyrical, hopeful story of healing." - POPSUGAR
"This searing story of sexual assault, healing, and hope tells an all-too-common story is a stunningly unique way." - Good Housekeeping
"Wonderfully terrifying, intimate, and magical." - Kiese Laymon, author of Heavy: An American Memoir
"A beautifully rendered coming-of-age tale for a wide range of readers." - Library Journal
"I couldn't stop reading Ashley Blooms' raw-boned language that carried me on young Misty's journey. While the weight on her skin threatened to take her under, the current of hope had me rooting for Misty to rise up. I can't wait to see this book shoot into the stratosphere." - Leah Weiss, author of If the Creek Don't Rise
"I have loved Every Bone a Prayer since I saw an early draft years ago; loved Misty, her family, her secret talents, and the way she sees the world around her, from the crawfish in muddy water to the ghostly trees she runs past in the night, to the trailer park where she and her family barely survive. This is a book and a writer I highly recommend." - Dorothy Allison, author of Bastard out of Carolina
"Ashley Blooms sings in an authentic mountain voice that reminds me of another great coal-country elegist: whatever the family Bible may record, she and Hazel Dickens are surely the closest of kin. Like a hawk over a hollow, Blooms both soars and sees all." - Andy Duncan, author of An Agent of Utopia
"Haunting and healing, Every Bone A Prayer is a powerful debut that will leave its mark on readers' hearts." - Kim Michele Richardson, New York Times bestselling author of The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek
"Ashley Blooms's debut novel, Every Bone a Prayer, is a brilliant and powerful book. Misty's story is full of magic and heartbreak, sorrow and strength. This is a vital story, beautifully written, and one I highly recommend." - Kat Howard, Alex Award-winning author of An Unkindness of Magicians
"There's magic in this book - and pain, and beauty, and horror - but the magic is what will keep you glued to the page, and have your heart singing the whole way." - Sam J. Miller, Nebula-Award-winning author of Blackfish City
"Every Bone a Prayer is beautifully written and absolutely harrowing from first page to last. It's unlike anything you've ever read before, and you will be mesmerized by it. Misty is among the most endearing characters I've met on the written page in a long while and I won't forget her anytime soon. This haunting debut announces the arrival of one of the most original and exciting new voices in literature." - Silas House, author of Clay's Quilt and Southernmost
This information about Every Bone a Prayer was first featured
in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.
Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.
Ashley Blooms was born and raised in Cutshin, Kentucky. She received her MFA as a John and Renee Grisham Fellow at the University of Mississippi. Her short stories have appeared in The Year's Best Dark Fantasy & Horror, Fantasy & Science Fiction, and Strange Horizons, among others. Her nonfiction has appeared in the Oxford American. She's been awarded scholarships from the Clarion Writer's Workshop and Appalachian Writer's Workshop, served as fiction editor for the Yalobusha Review, and worked as an editorial intern and first reader for Tor.com.
She currently lives in rural Kentucky with her partner and dog, where she is at work on a middle grade book.
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