A lifetime of secrets unfold in 'Black Cake'

NPR's Book of the Day

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Books, Arts

4.2 • 671 Ratings

🗓️ 30 June 2022

⏱️ 9 minutes

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Summary

Author Charmaine Wilkerson's new novel, Black Cake, is all about identity; who we are and how we fit into this world. Estranged siblings, Benny and Byron are left a recording by their late mother after she dies. The recording is full of secrets about their family that force Benny and Byron to reevaluate everything about their lives. Wilkerson told NPR's Kelsey Snell that even though Benny and Byron didn't know everything about their mother, she is still their mother who loved them very much, and that's also a part of their identity.

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Transcript

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0:00.0	Hey, it's NPR's book of the day. I'm Andrew Limbaugh. There's something special about the relationship between siblings. They're the only other people who know in their bones what it was like growing up with these weirdos who raised you. There's a shared language built around the things you know about your parents.
0:22.7	But that's not quite the right way to say it, right? Because it's more like the shared language
0:28.6	is built around the things your parents told you. It's a slight difference, but that difference
0:34.4	is the basis of today's book, Black Cake, written by Charmaine Wilkerson.
0:39.4	And in this interview with NPR's Kelsey Snell, she says that our lives, our identities,
0:43.7	are shaped by the stories we pass down from generation to generation.
0:48.1	Of course, who's to say if those stories are true?
0:51.1	In the U.S., national security news can feel far away from daily life.
0:55.8	Distant wars, murky conflicts, diplomacy behind closed doors. On our new show, Sources and Methods.
1:02.4	NPR reporters on the ground bring you stories of real people helping you understand why distant events matter here at home.
1:09.7	Listen to sources and methods on the NPR app or wherever you get your podcasts.
1:15.2	Eleanor Bennett, a widow and mother, concealed a life of heartache with half-truths and lies of omission,
1:21.1	but she did not want to take her secrets to the grave.
1:24.2	Instead, she left behind a recording for her son Byron, a famous oceanographer,
1:28.3	and her estranged and struggling daughter, Benny. You children need to know about your family,
1:33.4	about where we come from, about how I really met your father. You too need to know about your sister.
1:40.2	Byron and Benny look at each other, mouths open. B&B, I know this is a shock.
1:45.8	Just bear with me for a moment and let me explain.
1:49.4	In Charmaine Wilkerson's swarling new novel Blackcake, that explanation upends everything.
1:55.4	Byron and Benny thought they knew about their mother, their family, and themselves.
2:00.0	Charmaine Wilkerson joins us now. Thank you and
2:02.3	welcome. Thank you, Kelsey. It's wonderful to be here. I want to get this out of the way first.
	...

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