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Sweetness in the Skin by Ishi Robinson (Hardback)
£16.99
Available
Product Ref. (e.g. ISBN, SKU)
9780241643037
Published:
11 Apr 2024
Format:
Hardback
Number of pages:
368 pages
Dimensions:
222x142x33mm
Weight:
0.470kgs
Author:
Pumkin Patterson dreams of a life beyond her Jamaican hometown. But what we dream of and where we belong aren't always the same thing. For Pumkin Patterson, family is complicated. There's her mother Paulette, who only sees Pumkin as a nuisance. There's her beloved Auntie Sophie, who has always talked of she and Pumkin travelling to new horizons. And there's her grandmother, who has always favoured Sophie over Paulette. When Sophie moves to France for work, she promises to send for her niece in one year's time. All Pumkin has to do is pass her French entrance exam. But when Pumkin's mother finds out, she's determined that her sister won't get her own way this time. Now forced to raise the money for her exam in secret, Pumkin turns to her loyal friends to help her secure her way out - while evading her mother's suspicions.
SHORTLISTED FOR THE 2025 OCM BOCAS PRIZE FOR CARIBBEAN LITERATURE
Pumkin Patterson dreams of a life beyond her Jamaican hometown. But what we dream of and where we belong aren't always the same thing…
This heartfelt and uplifting story is for fans of The Girl With the Louding Voice and The Reading List
'An engaging coming-of-age tale' THE TIMES
'The word-of-mouth sensation that's making waves . . . Luminous' IRENOSEN OKOJIE, STYLIST
'Will linger in your heart long after the final page. An absolute must-read' ABI DARÉ, author of The Girl With the Louding Voice
'A delightful story set in Jamaica, amid heartbreak, hopefulness, and mirth' CHARMAINE WILKERSON, author of Black Cake
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For Pumkin Patterson, family is complicated.
There's her mother Paulette, who ignores her. There's her beloved Auntie Sophie, who her mother resents. And there's her grandmother, who has always played favourites.
Whenever tensions rise, Pumkin retreats to the kitchen - creating the Jamaican bread puddings and coconut drops that have always given her comfort.
When Sophie moves to France for work, she vows to send for her niece in one year's time. But in order to follow her aunt, Pumkin has a mountain to climb. Starting with the question of how she'll manage to escape her mother, and make enough money to get to Marseille.
Inspired by her skills in the kitchen, Pumkin turns to her community in the hope that she can sell enough sweet treats to bake her way out. But when her school and her mother discover her plan, everything she's worked so hard for may slip through her fingers . . .
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'A dazzling coming-of-age novel set in the 1990s with an unforgettable heroine' RED
'An ode to the families we create for ourselves . . . Pumkin is a wonderful main character you are willing to succeed' GLAMOUR
'A treat from start to finish' SARAH HAYWOOD, author of The Cactus
'I read this book with my heart in my mouth, hoping all of Pumkin's dreams would come true' BREANNE MC IVOR, author of The God of Good Looks
'A tender exploration of familial love, both the family you're born to, and the one you find along the way' CHARLENE CARR, author of Hold My Girl
'A story so rich and resonant I never wanted it to end' JULIETTA HENDERSON, author of The Funny Thing About Norman Foreman
READERS ARE LOVING SWEETNESS IN THE SKIN
'This. Was. Amazing! I was hooked from the very first page.' Reader review
'Absolutely charming. I read it on one sitting, I just couldn't peel myself away from the story of Pumpkin!' Reader review
'I enjoyed reading it and was rooting for Pumkin to find her way on her journey to herself' Reader review
'Funny and heartwarming. Highly recommend adding to your wish list of books to read next year' Reader review
'I have not enjoyed a book as much as this for a VERY long time! This has everything for me that I want from a book' Reader review
About the Author: Ishi Robinson was born and raised in Kingston, Jamaica. She has lived in Bern, Toronto, Rome, London and now lives in Berlin with her Czech husband. Her first published work was a short story in Jamaica's national newspaper when she was eleven years old. At seventeen, she sent a letter to her father from Switzerland that he thought was so funny he sent it to the other national newspaper, which snagged her a weekly column on teenage life in Kingston. She also previously wrote a weekly column on life as an expat in Rome for a now defunct online magazine. She got back into fiction writing in Berlin, from where she has published short stories in several online publications and one anthology. Sweetness in the Skin is her first novel.
| Number of pages | 368 |
|---|
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| EU | £15.00 | £30.00 |
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