Synopses & Reviews
Synopsis
A novel of fractured family and the search to protect-or discard-what unites them, this story traces one older woman's decision to uphold the wishes of those who have departed over her sisters' objections.
When Pearline abruptly leaves her life in Brooklyn and returns to her childhood home in Jamaica to care for her dying father, Rupert, she leaves her grown daughter to cope, overwhelmed, with her granddaughters back in Brooklyn.
But Pearline isn't prepared for Rupert's puzzling deathbed wish that she find siblings she hasn't seen in 60 years. What is revealed in the wake of Rupert's death is the secret that splintered the family. Moving through time and place, The House of Plain Truth charts the family's traumatic past in Cuba, where Rupert had sought a better life and where three of Pearline's siblings remained when the rest of the family left for Jamaica. Everything Pearline learns challenges what she knows about her family and the place she has always called home.
In lush, lyrical prose inspired by the author's own family story, this novel explores the divided loyalties within a family, the true meaning of home, and what one woman has to sacrifice to get what she ultimately wants.
Synopsis
A lyrical, lush, evocative story about a fractured Jamaican family and the daughter determined to reclaim her home.
Middle-aged Pearline unexpectedly leaves Brooklyn to return to her childhood home in Jamaica, leaving behind her daughter and grandchildren; her father, Rupert, is dying. But Pearline isn't prepared for Rupert's puzzling deathbed wish that she find the siblings she hasn't seen in 60 years--or the family secrets that soon emerge.
Moving through time and place, from Cuba to Montego Bay and from Brooklyn to Havana, The House of Plain Truth delicately exposes one woman's reconciliation with what she knew and what she learns about her family of origin.
Inspired by the author's own family story, this exquisitely-told novel explores the divided loyalties within a family, the true meaning of home, and what one woman must sacrifice to get what she ultimately wants.
Synopsis
A lyrical, lush, evocative story about a fractured Jamaican family and a daughter determined to reclaim her home.
With news of her father's passing, Pearline abruptly leaves her daughter and grandchildren behind in Brooklyn to return to her childhood home in Jamaica. But Pearline isn't prepared for her father's puzzling deathbed wish that she find her siblings--whom she hasn't seen in 60 years--and discover the secret that tore her family apart.
Moving through time and place, from Cuba to Montego Bay and from Brooklyn to Havana, The House of Plain Truth traces Pearline's reconciliation of what she thought she knew about her family and the truth of their origin.
Inspired by the author's own family story, this delicate, incisive novel explores the divided loyalties within a family, the true meaning of home, and what one woman must sacrifice to finally get what she wants.
Synopsis
A lyrical, lush, evocative story about a fractured Jamaican family and a daughter determined to reclaim her home.
When Pearline receives grave news about her ailing father, she abruptly leaves Brooklyn for her childhood home in Jamaica. But Pearline isn't prepared for a tense reunion with her sisters or for her father's startling deathbed wish that she repair their long-broken family legacy and find the sister and two brothers no one has seen in more than 50 years.
Moving through time and place, from modern-day Brooklyn and Montego Bay to 1930s Havana and back again, The House of Plain Truth is a journey through generational secrets and a family coming to terms with its past.
Inspired by the author's own history, this soulful novel explores a fascinating story of immigration, divided loyalties, and what one woman must sacrifice in her attempt to find home.