Sugar by Bernice L. McFadden
TW: assault, sexual violence
Sugar tells the story of a two women in a small Southern town, both with tragic pasts, who bond with one another despite the judgemental townsfolk. Sugar is a young prostitute who is new to town, whilst Pearl is a mother whose daughter was the victim of a traumatic murder. Together, the two of them navigate loss, stereotypes, and pain.
This book explores the difficult journey Sugar has been through during her life, and depicts the beautiful friendship formed between the two women. This book is a must-read, although it deals with themes of sexual violence and murder, so take that into account before reading.
Girl, Woman, Other by Bernadine Evaristo
TW: domestic abuse, sexual violence, racism, misogyny
Girl, Woman, Other was a joint winner of the Man Booker Prize 2019, and is every bit deserving of the accolade. Telling the stories of 12 different women who are all different, yet connected in may different ways, this book explores race, womanhood, class, and many other issues. Transcending time and spanning generations, Evaristo’s novel has something for everyone, and with so many different points of view, there will be at least one character that resonates with you.
The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett
TW: domestic violence, racism
The Vanishing Half follows the lives of the Vignes twins, who run away from their small, rural, Black community in the South. Years later, one of the twins, Desiree, returns to the town with her daughter, whilst the other, Stella, lives with her husband and child, pretending to be white. The next generation of Vignes’ somehow manage to find their lives intertwined and Stella’s lie, and the life she has built off of it, becomes threatened.
This book has you hooked from the get go as you desperately want to find out how the twins, who were once inseparable, ended up with such different lives. Bennett does a brilliant job exploring the character’s motivations and how their environments shaped the people they become.
Silver Sparrow by Tayari Jones
Silver Sparrow tracks the childhood and adolescence of Dana, a young girl who is part of the ‘other family’ of her father James, a bigamist. His other daughter, Chaurisse soon comes into the picture and we watch as the two girls connect in their middle-class neighbourhood. This book is gripping, and you cannot put it down as you wait to find out when James will finally be forced to face the web of lies he has created for himself. You root for Dana, sympathise with both girls, and feel as though you truly are part of the setting, 1980s Atlanta, as Jones paints such a rich background.