NPR

Secrets Kept By The 'Gone Dead' Haunt The Living

Chanelle Benz's debut novel follows a woman digging into the death of her father, a celebrated African American writer who abandoned his family — and died in a mysterious accident not long after.
Source: Beth Novey

The Mississippi Delta is one of the most beautiful regions of the U.S., but it's also historically been one of the most troubled. Residents of the area — the birthplace of the blues — have had to contend with deeply entrenched racism, poverty and the effects of climate change that have made farming difficult. As one character in Chanelle Benz's explains, "This is all meant to be a flood plain. The Atchafalaya wants to swallow the Mississippi and the Mississippi

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