{"product_id":"sweetness-in-the-skin-a-novel","title":"Sweetness in the Skin: A Novel","description":"\u003cp\u003e“A delightful coming-of-age story set in Jamaica, amid heartbreak, hopefulness, and mirth.”—Charmaine Wilkerson, New York Times bestselling author of Black Cake\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“Poignant and emotional, with touches of both humor and sorrow. . . . This book makes you think about what it means to be a mother, and what it means to be a good mother.” —Julia Quinn, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Bridgerton, on Today.com\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eA winning debut novel, this coming-of-age story is about a Jamaican girl determined to bake her way out of her dysfunctional family and into the opportunity of a lifetime.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003ePumkin Patterson is a thirteen-year-old girl living in a tiny two-room house in Kingston, Jamaica, with her grandmother (who wants to improve the family’s social standing), her Aunt Sophie (who dreams of a new life in Paris for her and Pumkin), and her mother Paulette (who’s rarely home).\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eWhen Sophie is offered the chance to move to France for work, she seizes the opportunity, and promises to send for her niece in one year’s time. All Pumkin has to do is pass her French entrance exam so she can attend school there. But when Pumkin’s grandmother dies, she’s left alone with her volatile mother, and as soon as her estranged father turns up—as lazy and conniving as ever—the household’s fortunes take a turn for the worse.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003ePumkin must somehow find a way to raise the money for her French exam, so she can free herself from her household and reunite with her beloved aunt in France. In a moment of ingenuity, she turns her passion for baking into a true business. Making batches of sweet potato pudding, coconut drops and chocolate cakes, Pumkin develops a booming trade—but when her school and her mother find out what she’s up to, everything this young entrepreneur has worked so hard for may slip through her fingers. . . .\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eSweetness in the Skin is a funny and heartbreaking piece of multicultural fiction about a young girl figuring out who she is, what she is capable of—and where she truly belongs.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Ishi Robinson","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":45729283637421,"sku":"9780063349858","price":18.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0609\/6954\/9997\/files\/9780063349858.jpg?v=1770837286","url":"https:\/\/thirdspacereadingroom.com\/products\/sweetness-in-the-skin-a-novel","provider":"ThirdSpace Reading Room","version":"1.0","type":"link"}