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A review by tm400
The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
so glad i picked this book up at my local bookstore
detailing the story of two black twin sisters, the two run away from home (in rural louisiana) in the 1950s and lead separate lives into adulthood. one of the twins stays in their black hometown of mallard while the other starts passing as a white woman living a life of luxury in los angeles. colorism within the black community is one of the main themes of the book, and the negative repercussions of it are brought up throughout the novel in both the twins' lives and their daughters' lives as well.
this was a beautiful story about sisterhood and identity, how being black is an intrinsic part of the self, regardless of how you choose to present yourself. the story is definitely character driven, which is a nice change of pace from the books i've been reading recently. speaking of pace, i was not the biggest fan of the way the story was told; there was a lot of jumping back & forth in time from part to part, but also from chapter to chapter and sometimes within the chapter itself. it was slightly confusing to have the setting/time change so frequently, but i thoroughly enjoyed this book !! 4.5/5 stars
(my copy also had 389 pages yay)
detailing the story of two black twin sisters, the two run away from home (in rural louisiana) in the 1950s and lead separate lives into adulthood. one of the twins stays in their black hometown of mallard while the other starts passing as a white woman living a life of luxury in los angeles. colorism within the black community is one of the main themes of the book, and the negative repercussions of it are brought up throughout the novel in both the twins' lives and their daughters' lives as well.
this was a beautiful story about sisterhood and identity, how being black is an intrinsic part of the self, regardless of how you choose to present yourself. the story is definitely character driven, which is a nice change of pace from the books i've been reading recently. speaking of pace, i was not the biggest fan of the way the story was told; there was a lot of jumping back & forth in time from part to part, but also from chapter to chapter and sometimes within the chapter itself. it was slightly confusing to have the setting/time change so frequently, but i thoroughly enjoyed this book !! 4.5/5 stars
(my copy also had 389 pages yay)
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racism and Racial slurs
Moderate: Death of parent
Minor: Dementia and Sexual harassment