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A Novel
by Sarai Johnson
In this stunning debut novel, four generations of complex Black women contend with motherhood and daughterhood, generational trauma and the deeply ingrained tensions and wounds that divide them as they redefine happiness and healing for themselves.
Erudite Evelyn, her cynical daughter Charlotte, and Charlotte's optimistic daughter Corinna see the world very differently. Though they love each other deeply, it's no wonder that their personalities often clash. But their conflicts go deeper than run-of-the-mill disagreements. Here, there is deep, dark resentment for past and present hurt.
When Corinna gives birth to her own daughter, Camille, the beautiful, intelligent little girl offers this trio of mothers something they all need: hope, joy, and an opportunity to reconcile. They decide to work together to raise their collective daughter with the tenderness and empathy they missed in their own relationships. Yet despite their best intentions, they cannot agree on what that means.
After Camille eventually leaves her mother and grandmother in rural Tennessee for a more cosmopolitan life in Washington, DC with her great-grandmother, it's unclear whether this complex and self-contained girl will thrive or be overwhelmed by the fears and dreams of three generations she carries. As she grows into a gutsy young woman, Camille must decide for herself what happiness will look like.
In masterful, elegant prose, debut novelist Sarai Johnson has created a rich and moving portrait of Black women's lives today.
"A deeply satisfying multigenerational saga of a Black family... . Johnson brings new life to the age-old theme of a family's cyclical dysfunction, and the narrative is packed with stunning self-reflections... . This is a revelation." —Publishers Weekly (starred review)
"An absorbing debut ... . The story takes a lively tour of the complexities of family... . It is wise to class markers and human contradiction... . A vivid line of women inches toward a place where it isn't always the mother's fault." —Kirkus Reviews
"Grown Women took my breath away. A skillfully written story about the complexities of love, control, motherhood, and trying your best even when you think your best isn't good enough, it's heartbreakingly honest, emotionally immersive, and painfully poignant. A master class in depicting the overt and the subtle effects of generational trauma and the self-strengthening power of forgiveness." —Jessica George, New York Times bestselling author of Maame
"Beautifully rendered, intricately delving into the bonds of multi-generational relationships with raw honesty, great emotional depth, and skillful storytelling. Johnson expertly weaves together the complexities of love, forgiveness, and self-discovery; creating a narrative that is both heartbreakingly real and profoundly moving." —Abi Daré, New York Times bestselling author of And So I Roar
"A whirlwind of a story that serves as an invitation to consider all that makes a family, all that breaks a family. Four generations, four remarkable women, four stunning stories of heartbreak, commitment, and courage. You will want to root for them all, but more importantly you will root for forgiveness, root for love." —Lauren Francis-Sharma, author of 'Til the Well Runs Dry and Book of the Little Axe
This information about Grown Women was first featured
in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.
Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.
Sarai Johnson grew up in the South, primarily in Nashville, Tennessee. She studied journalism and English at Howard University, and later earned a Master's in Literature from American University. She has taught writing at both her alma maters and with several nonprofit writing programs in the DC area. She lives in Alexandria, Virginia, with her husband, daughter, and dog.
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