A review by zakcebulski
The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett

challenging emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

 

This is one of the easiest 5/5s I have ever given. This book is an absolute masterpiece in my eyes. It is truly one of those books where I finished reading it and I just reflect on how I am so damn glad that I am able to read as trite as that sounds.
The story of this book is multigenerational. The central characters are Desiree and Estelle (Stella) Vignes who are identical twins. They are black but are light skinned. One day the twins decide to up and disappear from their small town in rural Louisiana of Mallard which is a town which most of the townspeople are black, but, are very lightskinned.
The twins go on to live extremely different lives with Desiree living and identifying as a black woman, eventually returning to Mallard and Stella passing as a white woman and living a very affluent life.
The story also tackles the lives of each woman's respective daughter- Kennedy who is Stella's daughter and who, like her, looks nearly white and lives as such and Jude who is many times talked about being "blueblack".

The main theme of this book which is impossible to ignore is the theme of lying to one's self. This comes out mainly in Stella's character as she is so extremely closed off and guarded out of fear of her true self being discovered that even her daughter and her husband don't know much about her. This is tragic as the instilled fear of being discovered as a POC in a highly affluent white neighborhood forces Stella to hide her true identity so that she does not risk losing the life she has lied to attain and maintain. Having to forgo one's true identity in the pursuit of material wealth, or, to escape the abhorrence of racism is so sickening to think about. I think that Bennett's portrayal of Stella, in this regard, is exceptional. You get the feeling from reading her story that she is truly just barely holding everything together.

I thought that the complexity of the issues of things like colorism, which is something that I am by no means an expert on, were exceptionally well implemented as parts of the story. This is an aspect of the black culture which I do not know a great deal about, but, it is something that I am inspired to learn more about in the pursuit of being more knowledgeable and inclusive.

This book seamlessly weaves through chronological gaps and hyper complex familial ties while seeming effortless. The story is so compelling as there is a tension of "who will be found out?", "what will happen if these people cross paths?". There is so much nuance to each of the characters that it is hard to not empathize with them, and to truly want to see the best outcome for all of them. There are instances of extremely sickeningly racist behavior, and instances of white people being ignorantly racist, and, these moments are especially poignant, as they are times where a simple conversation would go to minimize so much hurt.
 
Each of the characters is so believable to the point wherein you can start to think about their actions and why they are doing something. I found the characters to be some of the best which I have read recently. When they experience highs, lows, trepidation, despair, worry- you feel all of that with them. 

I think that Brit Bennett is an absolutely exceptional author, and is one who I am more than comfortable in saying I would read anything which she writes. 
This book discusses a swath of highly important issues and the commentary offered on the concepts of colorism, racism, sexism, inclusivity, are all well portrayed and well written. 
This book gets so much better the more I think about it. We are lucky to live in a world where Brit Bennett writes. 


 
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