Black Cake
When Benny and Byron Bennett sit down to hear the contents of Eleanor Bennett’s will, they discover that their mother has left more for them than a legal document: an audio recording of her life story and a single, frozen black cake. The cake transports them back to countless days baking and eating the delicious, fruit-filled dessert, and the recording reveals a story laden with secrets and tragedy.
As Eleanor’s tale unfolds, readers are introduced to strong, nuanced characters: Covey, whose girlhood in Jamaica is cruelly interrupted when she pays the price for her father’s debts. Bunny, Covey’s best friend who shares her love of the sea and has secrets of her own tucked away. Gibbs, the boy who Covey loves, who disappears from her life to pursue his own adventures. As their stories weave together and the timeline in Eleanor’s recording gets closer to present-day, Benny and Byron are left wondering whether they ever truly knew their mother.
Quote:
“These were Covey’s favorite days, when she was done with school and could kick off her saddle shoes and sit in the kitchen with the women, the radio dial turned up to calypso and rockabilly, the aroma rushing to their heads as they twisted open the jar of fruits soaking in rum and port. The grassy breeze mixing with the salt air, slipping through the louvers to cool their sweaty necks. The whispered gossip, the pips of laughter. Covey’s mother and Pearl, the family helper, had a small but popular cake business going. Most people they knew had common-law marriages, Covey’s own parents included, but a formal arrangement was more respected, and someone with money was always planning a wedding. On such occasions, a black cake was indispensible. And that’s where Mummy and Pearl came in.”
Author:
Black Cake is Charmaine Wilkerson’s debut novel, and her short stories have appeared in several anthologies. Originally from New York, she has also lived in both Jamaica and Italy.
Published: 2022
Length: 382 pages
Main Setting: California, United States and Jamaica
Secondary Setting: England