The Vanishing Half - Book Review
Genre: Fiction | Historical fiction | Contemporary fiction
Author: Brit Bennett
Year: 2020
Pages: 352
Content warning: Racism, violence, domestic abuse and sexual abuse
The premise of The Vanishing Half really intrigued me. Twin sisters Desiree and Stella live in the small town of Mallard, Massachusetts, where the townsfolk pride themselves on their whiteness despite their coloured history. After the twins decided to leave town for good, they become separated. Desiree lives her life as a black woman, on the run with her daughter from her abusive husband while Stella lives her life as a white woman, her family having no idea of her coloured background. But everything begins to change when Desiree and Stella’s daughters meet.
As the focus of the story changes from one sister to another, I found myself empathising with both despite the vast different in their choices regarding the recognition of their race. The two sisters are both impacted differently by a certain event, resulting in one wanting to run away from the suffering she has to endure and the other embracing it. The character growth, no matter the character, is what makes this a compulsively, unputdownable read.
Bennett interweaves multiple stories and timelines within the novel. Normally, I would find this quite jarring but Bennett does it so flawlessly.
The Vanishing Half certainly exceeded my expectations. I loved it so much that I went out and bought Bennett’s debut novel, The Mothers. The Vanishing Half is a beautiful story that connects past, present and future so skilfully and explores the impact of the choices we make on our lives and those around us.
Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★.5