The Vanishing Half
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- Create Date：2021-07-30 05:52:01
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：Brit Bennett
- ISBN：059319019X
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
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Summary
The Vignes twin sisters will always be identical。 But after growing up together in a small， southern black community and running away at age sixteen， it's not just the shape of their daily lives that is different as adults， it's everything: their families， their communities， their racial identities。 Ten years later， one sister lives with her black daughter in the same southern town she once tried to escape。 The other secretly passes for white， and her white husband knows nothing of her past。 Still， even separated by so many miles and just as many lies， the fates of the twins remain intertwined。 What will happen to the next generation， when their own daughters' storylines intersect？ Weaving together multiple strands and generations of this family， from the deep South to California， from the 1950s to the 1990s， Brit Bennett produces a story that is at once a riveting， emotional family story and a brilliant exploration of the American history of passing。 Looking well beyond issues of race， The Vanishing Half considers the lasting influence of the past as it shapes a person's decisions， desires， and expectations， and explores some of the multiple reasons and realms in which people sometimes feel pulled to live as something other than their origins。 As with her New York Times-bestselling debut The Mothers， Brit Bennett offers an engrossing page-turner about family and relationships that is immersive and provocative， compassionate and wise。
Reviews
Charlotte Sullivan
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Initially I hated 'The Vanishing Half' for being so unsubtly a combination of "Desiree's Baby" and "Streetcar Named Desire" - lazy naming and Stella working at Maison 'Blanche' was too much。 Hardly found any literature online linking the novel with the literary greats who have so clearly influenced Bennet and come before her - this annoyed me。 However， despite my reservations I did enjoy this Initially I hated 'The Vanishing Half' for being so unsubtly a combination of "Desiree's Baby" and "Streetcar Named Desire" - lazy naming and Stella working at Maison 'Blanche' was too much。 Hardly found any literature online linking the novel with the literary greats who have so clearly influenced Bennet and come before her - this annoyed me。 However， despite my reservations I did enjoy this 。。。more
charlotte
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4。75/5 starsthis was a captivating book and such a good read， definitely one of the best books i’ve read recently。 the only thing， i just didn’t feel that it came together。 even after having finished it， it still feels like there are too many loose ends。 also i didn’t like how many of the characters don’t have an arc / are quite one dimensional。
Lux
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Nigdy więcej poleceń Agory
Elizabeth Schroeder
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I probably would give this 4。5 stars if I could。 Brit Bennett is an amazing writer -- her command of the language is stunning at times。 Every now and then she'd use a phrase or even a single word that would stop me in my tracks， and I'd think， "That's。 So。 Good。" This story about light-skinned Black twin sisters from a town in Louisiana that's so small， it doesn't appear on the map。 They are not anomalies; their town is filled with lighter-skinned Black individuals and families。 What happens， ho I probably would give this 4。5 stars if I could。 Brit Bennett is an amazing writer -- her command of the language is stunning at times。 Every now and then she'd use a phrase or even a single word that would stop me in my tracks， and I'd think， "That's。 So。 Good。" This story about light-skinned Black twin sisters from a town in Louisiana that's so small， it doesn't appear on the map。 They are not anomalies; their town is filled with lighter-skinned Black individuals and families。 What happens， however， when someone leaves？ The book begins in the 1940s， and continues up until the 1990s。 It's about the Vignes sisters， but so much more。 It's about family， both blood and chosen; it's about colorism and the decisions that are made for survival， safety and opportunities in life; it's about gender and love and how people can be absolutely wonderful -- and unspeakably horrible and cruel。My only hesitation from granting the final half star was I felt like there was a bit missing from the end。 That's not to say it was an unsatisfying ending -- or perhaps it is; when I finished， I flipped back a number of pages， wondering whether I'd missed something。 I don't want to add any spoilers， but suffice it to say， I had a few， "Wait， that's it？" moments right before I finished。That aside， I highly recommend this book and can't wait to check out her other work。 。。。more
Miss CJ ODonovan
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An enjoyable read Took me a while to get into but once familiarised with the characters I found this a really easy and enjoyable read。 Didn’t blow me away but is a well written story that you can get lost in。
Jeni
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Listened to the audiobook。 Probably wouldn't have finished this book， but it was the selection for a Book Group I belong。 It's mostly a memoir with emphasis on racism， particularly amongst Blacks to the extent of the color of their skin。 Issues of sense of identity and social ostracism are also part of this story。 Listened to the audiobook。 Probably wouldn't have finished this book， but it was the selection for a Book Group I belong。 It's mostly a memoir with emphasis on racism， particularly amongst Blacks to the extent of the color of their skin。 Issues of sense of identity and social ostracism are also part of this story。 。。。more
Jennifer Green
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Would give 3 1/2 stars if I could。 Didn’t live the ended， a little vague and open ended。 Would make a great movie！
Julieta Tobon
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“She hadn't realized how long it takes to become somebody else， or how lonely it can be living in a world not meant for you。”This is an excellent book， about family， identity and racism， a story driven by very diverse characters and how each one of them， represents a different point of view and that we follow throughout their lives and how their decisions will affect the rest of the people around them。"Well， maybe that's your problem，"Kennedy said。"You tell yourself no before anyone even says it “She hadn't realized how long it takes to become somebody else， or how lonely it can be living in a world not meant for you。”This is an excellent book， about family， identity and racism， a story driven by very diverse characters and how each one of them， represents a different point of view and that we follow throughout their lives and how their decisions will affect the rest of the people around them。"Well， maybe that's your problem，"Kennedy said。"You tell yourself no before anyone even says it to you。"I loved this book but the ending for me felt a bit lukewarm， that's why I’m not giving it five stars， but apart from that， the writing is phenomenal， the characters are believable and each story was unique， complex and very very interesting。 。。。more
Terry
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It's been awhile since I read this。It was a well-written novel about race and identity。 It's been awhile since I read this。It was a well-written novel about race and identity。 。。。more
Mia Facchini
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This concept is not something I have explored before but I found it very intriguing。 Some of the character dialogue didn’t seem to add value to， in my opinion。 Since the novel covers such a span of topics （identity， race， gender， domestic violence， and more）， the book left me wanting a little bit more。 For me the biggest takeaway was the idea of nature vs nurture。 Every person is unique in so many ways - all of which are shaped by our experiences。 Even two people with nearly identical DNA can ma This concept is not something I have explored before but I found it very intriguing。 Some of the character dialogue didn’t seem to add value to， in my opinion。 Since the novel covers such a span of topics （identity， race， gender， domestic violence， and more）， the book left me wanting a little bit more。 For me the biggest takeaway was the idea of nature vs nurture。 Every person is unique in so many ways - all of which are shaped by our experiences。 Even two people with nearly identical DNA can make ONE different choice than their other half which changes their trajectory entirely。 。。。more
Janet
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Maybe it was the hype， but the book didn't live up to my expectations。 The story had momentum and I found myself flipping through the chapters， but was expecting something more to happen。 I really liked the sisters' characters， but overall， I was disappointed。 Maybe it was the hype， but the book didn't live up to my expectations。 The story had momentum and I found myself flipping through the chapters， but was expecting something more to happen。 I really liked the sisters' characters， but overall， I was disappointed。 。。。more
Carolyn Yeaton
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A good story， but difficult to imagine in reality， and it tends to distract from the real impact of racial discrimination
Rosalie Calloway
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 I think I would have enjoyed it even more had I read the book rather than listen to the audio version。 The story is intriguing and emotional。 A very interesting story line。
Eleanor Holroyd
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Really enjoyed this book。 Was beautifully written and loved how the characters storylines evolved and intertwined。
Camille Parker
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This book made me think。 About family dynamics， racism， determining one's own life。 Very well written。 I read it for a book club I'm hosting in August。 I can't wait for the discussion。 This book made me think。 About family dynamics， racism， determining one's own life。 Very well written。 I read it for a book club I'm hosting in August。 I can't wait for the discussion。 。。。more
Jillian Moody
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The characters and pacing of this book were spellbinding。 I'm coming to realize that I love generational storytelling。 It's so lovely to get to know a character through their main arc and also get to see them after their story is over through their children's eyes。 This story uses a unique vehicle， their hometown and twins， to dig into the the long lasting effects of racism on families， their friends， and their community。 Beautifully and seemingly effortlessly told。My only critique of this book The characters and pacing of this book were spellbinding。 I'm coming to realize that I love generational storytelling。 It's so lovely to get to know a character through their main arc and also get to see them after their story is over through their children's eyes。 This story uses a unique vehicle， their hometown and twins， to dig into the the long lasting effects of racism on families， their friends， and their community。 Beautifully and seemingly effortlessly told。My only critique of this book is the ending。 No spoilers， but I didn't think it should have ended on the character that it did。 。。。more
kathi
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wow， wow， wow。。。
Brenda
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Gosh， I just love Brit Bennett！ I became completely absorbed in this book。 I would have rated 5 stars but I felt a bit disappointed with the ending。
Johnna Layne
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Couldn’t finish it…The book was all over the place with the characters and difficult to follow。 I tried to hang in but got totally lost and uninterested。
Vicki Willis
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I enjoyed this book。 It had deep and interesting characters。 I can see why it got such high reviews。 I listened on audible and thought the narrator did a good job。
Franchesca
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Amazing read， really enjoyed diving into both lives and understand the difficulties which come with colourism
Michael Clifford
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Very entertaining book largely about race identity。 A pair of twins are from Mallard - a fictional town that is largely populated by light skinned African Americans。 The twins leave their town when they are about 18 and ultimately live very different lives - one returns to Mallard and the other lives a life in the white world。I can't decide if the central point of this book is to poke fun at how silly our binary classifications of race are or whether to point out how race is everything in this c Very entertaining book largely about race identity。 A pair of twins are from Mallard - a fictional town that is largely populated by light skinned African Americans。 The twins leave their town when they are about 18 and ultimately live very different lives - one returns to Mallard and the other lives a life in the white world。I can't decide if the central point of this book is to poke fun at how silly our binary classifications of race are or whether to point out how race is everything in this country - maybe it is both points。In any case， the book is an enjoyable read and thought provoking at the same time。 。。。more
Aqsaa Adil
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The Vanishing Half By Brit Bennett Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐/5 The Vanishing Half revolves around the deep connection between two twins， bold and fearless Desiree Vignes and conscious and quiet Stella Vignes。 Born and raised together， the twins grow up to be women with lives as different as people living on opposite sides of the world。 Each decision taken during their time together moulds their lives and makes them completely different personalities， leading completely different lives。 Beautifully discussing The Vanishing Half By Brit Bennett Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐/5 The Vanishing Half revolves around the deep connection between two twins， bold and fearless Desiree Vignes and conscious and quiet Stella Vignes。 Born and raised together， the twins grow up to be women with lives as different as people living on opposite sides of the world。 Each decision taken during their time together moulds their lives and makes them completely different personalities， leading completely different lives。 Beautifully discussing the complicated issues of race and transgenders， Brit Bennett weaves in and out of the story， following different timelines。 My favourite part of this novel was the clash of so many different personalities， all brought together and how they learn each others weaknesses and strengths。 A must recommended for everyone out there who wish to briefly understand how colour and race has affected history。 。。。more
Janice Beecraft
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Excellent read！ It was our book club selection this month， and made for a very interesting discussion。 Our talks branched out to the the indigenous discoveries at former residential schools that have come to light lately， and how racism is so evident in every culture。
Nona
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A rich， well-written story with excellent pacing。 Engrossing characters with complex relationships and an original plot line。 Very satisfying。
Tanja
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Interesting story that in my opinion never exploits it’s potential fully。 Considering that this is a goodreads choice awards winner， I honestly expected a bit more。
Carla Boniolo
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Delicately written。 An intriguing story about identity， deceit， sisterhood and mothering。 Poetic writing interwoven with gritty narrative。 Worth the hype。
Stacy Wolfe
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I really enjoyed this book， except for the ending which I thought was a let down。 The premise is this: twin girls leave their hometown， a traditionally light Black town。 One goes on to identify as white and one goes on to identify as black。 This book follows them through the years， and their daughters， to see the repercussions of these decisions。 It was fascinating and scary how much race affected all the decisions they each made and provided insight into the minuscule decisions we make every da I really enjoyed this book， except for the ending which I thought was a let down。 The premise is this: twin girls leave their hometown， a traditionally light Black town。 One goes on to identify as white and one goes on to identify as black。 This book follows them through the years， and their daughters， to see the repercussions of these decisions。 It was fascinating and scary how much race affected all the decisions they each made and provided insight into the minuscule decisions we make every day that are somehow unknowingly affected by our implicit biases。 。。。more
Elsa Sucipto
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It's been rollercoaster ride。 Very well writen。 It's been rollercoaster ride。 Very well writen。 。。。more
Anna
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Such a great novel！ Questions of race， sexuality and gender stand at the core of the story， all characters face these issues in their own way。 I loved the changes between differrent time periods and different points of view， it gave the story a lot more depth。 However， the ending felt a bit rushed， and I would have liked to get to know a bit more about how the characters ended up where they did （trying not to spoil anything here）。
Reference
google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=The Vanishing Half
hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=The Vanishing Half&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft
The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,The Vanishing Half&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0