Black cake by Charmaine Wilkerson is about family, love, pride, tradition, and lies. It is the debut novel from Charmaine Wilkerson. The story is engaging, the characters are fascinating, and it feels very intelligent. The first 50 percent of this book had me totally engaged, however somewhere in the final 50 percent, I wound up questioning what could remain when it seemed like the story was wrapping up. We are introduced with another person who’s vital to the story around the mid-point, but I found it difficult to pull together my thinking toward another direction.
The story of “Black cake” starts in the 1960’s in the Caribbean, went to England, than to New York City and at last to California where their parents finally settled. When Eleanor Bennett passed away, her two kids, Byron and Benny, were left with a Caribbean dark cake and an audio message. Over the course of those times, their mom’s Black Cake is something that holds that bond back from dissolving totally for Benny.
At the point when they are reached by their mom’s friend, the two of them need to make arrangements to visit her, together, to listen the recording by their mom. Long enough that more than one visit is required to hear the story their mom hid from them for such a long time. As they pay attention to their mom’s story, they understand how mysterious she truly was, and the sort of sacrifices she and their dad needed to make to build a life together. Since she’s gone, they need to choose what to do with the information they’ve acquired, and when to eat their mom’s last black cake.
Black cake by Charmaine Wilkerson truly was an incredible story. It has love, survival, and preserving traditions, but I think most importantly, it showed the courage of a lady who lost everything only to restructure her entire life while keeping her real identity a secret. The one piece of Eleanor’s past that she clutched (other than her first love) was the custom of making the black cake and I love the wonderful way that was connected into the story.
Some sections of this novel dragged on a bit, so it took me a little longer to finish than I expected, but all in all, I really enjoyed it and highly recommend it!
Also Read: Reminders of Him By Colleen Hoover is a Real Heart Wrenching Read
Book Review Podcast (Black Cake by Charmaine Wilkerson)
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