AdvertisementWriting Mississippi: Jesmyn Ward Salvages Stories Of The SilencedAugust 31, 2017Melissa BlockfacebookEmailJesmyn Ward poses for a portrait near DeLisle Bayou in DeLisle, Miss. Ward, 40, has chosen to return to DeLisle and raise her children there, despite her profound ambivalence about what the town represents. (Emily Kask for NPR)