The Farming of Bones

Farming of Bones is a work of historical fiction by Edwidge Danticat. Edwidge Danticat starts off The Farming of Bones with narrator Amabelle Desir speaking of her lover Sebastian Onius. These two Haitians are later separated due to the beginning of the 1937 massacre. Amabelle starts off a long journey in pursuit of news of her love and along the way encounters various difficult obstacles. The title The Farming of Bones is alluded to in Chapter 1... more

Farming of Bones is a work of historical fiction by Edwidge Danticat. Edwidge Danticat starts off The Farming of Bones with narrator Amabelle Desir speaking of her lover Sebastian Onius. These two Haitians are later separated due to the beginning of the 1937 massacre. Amabelle starts off a long journey in pursuit of news of her love and along the way encounters various difficult obstacles. The title The Farming of Bones is alluded to in Chapter 10 when Amabelle refers to the cane life as “travay te pou zo,” or the farming of bones. Working in the cane fields prove to be dangerous and even life threatening as it scars and mutilates many of the workers. However, the farming of bones also refers to digging up the past. Inundated with references to the past, the story contains many instances where characters are unable to move on. For example, Amabelle constantly dwells upon not only memories of her dead parents, but also memories with Sebastien. In addition, Yves feels guilty for living... less