Black Cake by Charmaine Wilkerson
What's It About?
“Black Cake is a satisfying literary meal, heralding the arrival of a new novelist to watch.” — Associated Press“At turns delightfully juicy and then stunningly wise, Black Cake is a winner.” — Taylor Jenkins Reid, New York Times bestselling author of Malibu Rising
“So beautifully written I’m struggling to believe it’s a debut … the scenes are so well drawn I could almost taste the cake, feel the warm sea on my skin.” — Nikki May, author of Wahala
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I loved Charmaine Wilkerson‘s Black Cake (Ballantine Books), this story of family, parenting, young love, hidden secrets and sibling relationships coming full circle. Byron and Benny, estranged brother and sister, are brought together when their mother passes away. They have a lot to work through between the two of them, and in addition, they have a lot to learn about where they come from. Their inheritance includes a black cake, made from a traditional recipe from their Caribbean heritage, and a voice recording from their mother that reveals her secrets of the past, including who she really was, her relationships and even an unknown relative.
Buried secrets of the past that take us from an island in the Caribbean to London to California, are revealed as Byron and Benny listen to their mother recount her life and loves. Some big decisions cannot be taken back, having an impact that lasts a lifetime, and as the siblings process their mother’s past, we wonder if they will fulfill their mother’s wishes and share the black cake when the time is right. From trauma to racial identity to forgiveness … I highly recommend Black Cake.
