The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett

"At first, passing seemed so simple, she couldn't understand why her parents hadn't done it. But she was young then. She hadn't realized how long it takes to become somebody else, or how lonely it can be living in a world not meant for you."

          -Stella's thoughts, from the novel

This Page Turners' January selection was highly recommended by at least 2 members, and it did not disappoint. It was a family drama unfolding over about 20 years (1968-1988) and told from different perspectives. 

In a small black community in the South, we meet Desiree and Stella Vignes, twin daughters of Adele, all of whom are light skinned enough to pass for white. When the sisters run away at age 16, Stella decided to "pass over" while Desiree does not. Stella ends up marrying a wealthy white man and having a blonde, blue-eyed daughter, Kennedy. Meanwhile Desiree had wed a black man with very dark skin and has given birth to Jude, a daughter with her father's coloring. The twin sisters lose touch for almost 20 years, but their daughters fatefully connect in some interesting ways. (Almost incredibly so.) The chapters alternate in telling Desiree's, Stella's, Jude's and Kennedy's stories, making for a real page turner.

I finished this novel in the same week I saw 2 plays involving race issues. "Sweetwater Taste" was about a black man facing mortality who wants to be buried in the family cemetery which is segregated although the family tree has both black and white branches. "The Mountaintop" involves an intriguing (fictional) look at Martin Luther King, Jr.'s last night before his assassination at the Lorraine Motel in Memphis. I can only hope I am a bit more enlightened about the black experience.

I am rating The Vanishing Half a 5. It should provide a rousing discussion for our book club when we meet this week. More then....

There is a good chance I'll eventually read The Mothers by this author.

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I was forced to miss the meeting to discuss The Vanishing Half due to a COVID exposure. That was not easy! May have been only the second I have missed in 13 years.

I had 3 awesome helpers filling in the facilitator duties. Here is what was reported: 

The discussion centered on the characters in the book, their gender and racial fluidity and the all-consuming task of trying to be someone or something you are not.  The group had lively conversations related to some of the questions provided. 

The novel was well-received with an average rating of 4.3, mostly 5's and 4's. I'm so appreciative of folks carrying on without me! Hope that doesn't happen again for a longgggg time!