The first substantial and focused critical study of Jesmyn Ward, now one of the most widely read, taught and studied contemporary authors Includes a co-authored introduction, twenty chapters and 'Afterword' Moves beyond existing Ward scholarship which focuses predominantly on two texts Gives space and attention to Ward's substantial body of non-fiction work This collection of essays provides a thorough and probing account of an author who is quickly becoming one of the most read, studied and taught contemporary writers, but whose work remains underrepresented in scholarship. It is broad and ambitious in scope, mirroring the richness of Ward's oeuvre, and it brings together a diverse and dynamic range of approaches that reflect the scholarly conversations in which Ward is embedded.