A page-turning generational saga about a young man’s search for the parent he never knew, and a moving portrait of motherhood, identity, and the truths we hide in the name of family
Jenry Castillo is a musical prodigy, raised by a single mother in Miami. He arrives at Brown University on a scholarship—but also to learn more about his late father, Jasper Patterson, a famous ballet dancer who died tragically when Jenry was two. On his search, he meets his estranged grandfather, Winston Patterson, a legendary professor of African American history and a fixture at the Ivy League school, who explodes his world with one question: Why is Jenry so focused on Jasper, when it was Winston’s daughter, Juliet, who was romantically involved with Jenry’s mother? Juliet is the parent he should be looking for—his other mother.
Revelation follows revelation as each member of Jenry’s family steps forward to tell the story of his origin, uncovering a web of secrecy that binds this family together even as it keeps them apart. Moving seamlessly between the past and the present, The Other Mother is a daring, ambitious novel that celebrates the complexities of love and resilience—masterfully exploring the intersections of race, class, and sexuality; the role of biology in defining who belongs to whom; and the complicated truth of what it means to be a family.
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“January LaVoy and William DeMeritt are well paired narrators for this audiobook…Both narrators capture all the characters’ humanity. Winner of the AudioFile Earphones Award.”
— AudioFile
“[A] singular and compelling story of family secrets.”
— Ms. Magazine“As suspenseful as it is touching…A queer generational saga set in academia? Sold.”
— NylonBe the first to write a review about this audiobook!
Rachel M. Harper is the author of several novels, including This Side of Providence, which was shortlisted for the Ernest J. Gaines Award for Literary Excellence. Her work has been nominated for a Pushcart Prize and has been widely published and anthologized. She has received fellowships from Yaddo and MacDowell and is on the faculty at Spalding University’s School of Writing.
January LaVoy, winner of numerous awards for narration, was named a Golden Voice by AudioFile magazine in 2019. She is an American actress best known for her character Noelle Ortiz on the ABC daytime drama One Life to Live. In addition to working extensively in narration and television, including roles on Law & Order and All My Children, she has worked on and off Broadway as well as in regional theater.