Silver Sparrow

What does the "other woman" represent in the nightmares of women everywhere?. The mere thought of an "other woman" existing is terrifying, horrifying, humiliating and for many, beyond imagination. What if the "other woman" had a child? What if she lived in the same town and neighborhood? What if the "other woman" was not a passing fancy, but existed in the husband's life for decades - visiting her for dinner, giving her money to support herself. What if the husband's friends and family knew about her? Is the "other woman" to blame? Is the child? How does the child of an "other woman" grow up emotionally healthy when she knows she is living in a shadow? When she knows that she is a secret? What kind of man, husband, father would live this sort of double life? And which family would he choose if his secret was exposed. Silver Sparrow explores the very complicated walls and paths drawn around the hidden life that a bigamist lives and that of his secret second wife and their child. The main portion of the story takes place during the 1980s in Atlanta, and is told from two points of view. The book begins with Dana, the bigamist's secret daughter. The unfolding of the story with Dana's point of view, immediately put Dana as the sympathetic character. And as Dana told the story, I almost was able to believe that the father may have been doing somewhat right by her. Ms. Jones is such a skillful writer, in that she allowed me to buy completely into their life. The second half of the book focuses on Chaurisse, who is also a daughter of the bigamist's, but by his first marriage - and thus his public relationship. From the beginning of Chaurisse's point of view, it becomes clear that what Chaurisse has is a true father and a much truer family experience.; poor Dana has the cast-offs. The contrast between each girl's life becomes starker as the story unfolds. We learn that, incredibly, both Dana and her mother are invested in protecting the bigamist's secret; they are invested in protecting their life in the shadows. I saw incredibly, because at some point shouldn't they become frustrated with being pushed to the side? At some point will they have a need to bring it to light? And how does the "first wife" not guess about the duplicity? Does she not wonder why her husband is gone every single Wednesday? Does she not notice that money is missing? Both wives have their own careers and truly are able to support themselves and their daughters. They are not in a situation where they are dependent on their man - the bigamist - to support them financially. So where does the emotional dependence come from? Why stay? The story does not explore these points directly asked, but they are explored implicitly. Dana and Chaurisse are the same age, however both girls do not possess the same level of knowledge about each other or about their father. Dana and her mother know all about Chaurisse and her mother; they live in their shadow. Every choice and step that Dana and her mother take is tempered by whether Chaurisse and her mother will be there or choose to do something similar. Dana is truly a "second". Chaurisse and her mother have no idea that Dana exists. But Chaurisse "gets" her father on a daily basis, she lives with him and has the intimacy of a father-daughter relationship. Dana does not have any of this. Her father, while a weekly visitor, is a mystery and almost an intangible. Through the telling of the story by Dana and Chaurisse, readers are also taken back in history and treated to a story telling of the adults' lives as children. The characters in Silver Sparrow are richly developed, not only Dana and Chaurisse, but also the ancillary characters that assist in creating (and maintaining!) this situation - the mothers, the father, and the father's best friend. Through the interplay of the various characters, readers are pulled into this beautifully told story. And let me tell you, it is an entertaining immersion, you will not regret it, but it is painful as well. There are some truly heartbreaking scenes where the characters hurt each other - hurt in a deep emotional way. Hurt in a way that as a reader, I did not know how they could survive such pain. This is a wonderful story, a beautiful book and I highly recommend it!

Ms. Jones took me on yet another roller coaster ride, the very first ride being “An American Marriage.” This story is actually MUCH more fulfilling than AAM and I was on edge from beginning to end! I even had to stop at one point and take a break for a minute (some months) because the storyline gave me so much ANXIETY! That within itself is my own concern, buuuut anyway—to the story! SPOILER-FREE, of course: I appreciate the format of the story and the way Tayari tells an entire tale from all the different perspectives that she did, even though the book was split into only ”Dana” and “Chaurisse” parts. The plot, the character development/revelations, the beautiful style of prose and her particular choice of words—whew! ALL OF IT! It gave me life! It killed me inside! It did ALL of this and more! But...unfortunately, the only thing that’s stopping me from giving this book a full 5-stars is...the EPILOGUE. I swear, I don’t know if it’s just me but...once again, I feel like the Epilogue made the story fall absolutely FLAT, just like in AAM. Now, the falling flat wasn’t as severe as in AAM because THAT ending was an 100% obnoxious letdown. Here though, I can see more of a completion of the tale, but...I feel like it was odd how Tayari only told an epilogue from Dana’s perspective rather than both her AND Chaurisse. Though some blanks got filled in, I still would have liked a bit more of what happened and how it happened to both Dana and Chaurisse. It felt like it simultaneously filled in blanks, but left so much out if that makes sense. All in all, I’m satisfied with this story. 🤷🏾‍♀️

Where can I begin? The author says this book is a “love letter” to her half-sibling, to her half-sister that she shares her father with. She explicitly states that her father was not bigamous. Yet concerning the number of single mother households in America today, there are many families that have been torn asunder or affected by bigamy in more ways than one. This book has deeply affected me, and although several readers of this book have posted reviews saying this book is pointless and that it was “disappointing” to them because it didn’t really progress from the sensation that bigamy is, or that the storyline didn’t lead to anywhere, are clearly missing the point here. The point is to show the effect of big on their lives. The subject of bigamy is so hard to write about. It’s a stagnant situation that reeks, can never fully be corrected without hurting anyone and it never really leads anywhere. It’s like being stuck in a rut. If you’ve ever had to make a difficult choice in whom to love, and live your life according to it, you’d probably relate. Love in real life, is not the Corinthians kind of love, it is not patient and kind. Love in real life is heartbreak. Although the ending of the book was a bit dramatic (and most real life bigamous stories don’t always end like that), the concept of a bigamous marriage as depicted in this book really hits home. So, this book was a tear-jerker, I didn’t just cry but it drew a very deep part of my soul that I didn’t know existed. It was a part of me that had remained walled off, it was numb, cold and unfeeling, and this story by Tayari Jones gave it life, emotion and a heartbeat. I loved this book. Tayari writes with great feeling and sensitivity, something that she is able to expose us to. I could sense the pain, joy and the heartbreak of the author, and the emotional proclivity it probably took to imagine and write something of this magnitude. I also love the author’s way with words, and the way she transports us to not just read but live that feeling. I would’ve loved more of Dana and Chaurisse. In going through what they went through, and persevered, Dana and Gwen are both strong characters to me and I admire them. Dana was the most likeable character in this book to me, after which her mother Gwen was a close second. And they were constantly singled out. I would’ve loved to read more from their perspective, I think there need to be more mother-daughter books that explore similar topics, it would make for a great feminist book, one that I’d love to read. Another thing I’d have loved to read of would be the probable love story, of what could’ve been if Gwen had given Rayleigh a chance. I think that was happiness but a lot of women who have been singled out tend to reject happiness and follow the path of pain, and loneliness. I regard Tayari Jones as the black equivalent of Elizabeth Gilbert. Tayari literally made me “Eat, Pray, and Love” with this book of hers: a tribute to her siblings. It is very sweet and yet so dark in the most mysterious of ways, it points to human infallibility, that strength lies within and the fact that blood runs thicker than water... regardless of whom we choose to call family, and our toes to them despite our circumstance, and ourselves. I read this book months ago on kindle but I am ordering the paperback version on Amazon just so I can reread it again, and feel every bit of emotion course through my bones again, as I cozy up on my couch with a cup of hot chai and my thoughts. I may order pizza and sniffle into my pillow as I course through the book with raw emotions, and I might just yet call my friend and cry about the book if I feel like. Or I might find renewed strength just like Scarlett O’Hara in Gone With The Wind, “I’ll think of it tomorrow” and pretend that I will deal with the harshness of the world tomorrow, while feeling the desolation of today. Tayari, I have only read a few pages of American Marriage but I read Silver Sparrow because it was so easy to read and relatable to me, I’m sure you have touched many sisters lives by writing this and putting bits of your own life story into this, if any. Love, Z

It was pleasant, easy read.

I really liked the story lines, author’s style of writing and her way of showing you the different types of family and what goes on behind close doors. Reading is uncomplicated, easy. Anyone will enjoy this book

'My father, James Witherspoon, is a bigamist.' I think everyone's review starts with this sentence and rightfully so because what the hell?! From this, the very first line of SILVER SPARROW, Tayari Jones makes it known that she is coming for scalps and souls! James Witherspoon has two families: one public, the other secret. In stories like this, you'd expect everyone but James to be in the dark, but this book highlights that in a close Black middle-class space like the 1980s Atlanta community in which Jones' novel is set, a complex infrastructure of complicity is needed to sustain such a grand deception. At least one of the women has to be a willing participant. Jones' choice to tell the story from the perspectives of sisters Dana and Chaurisse, rather than their duplicitous father, foregrounds the effects of his choices rather than his own motivations or any notions of "guilt". Her subtle, poignant narration avoids relying simply on a rich-girl, poor-girl dichotomy; each girl's voice is coloured by their experiences - Dana (whom I adore) is a little hardened by the weight of the secret she is forced to carry from early childhood, Chaurisse's ignorance renders her naive, both are incredibly vulnerable. There's something to be said for giving away the novel's central conflict at its start & still captivating the reader throughout. Inclusions of real historical details like Al Green & Mary Woodson remind us that there's always a person behind gossip. I love the way she explores Black girlhood and consent. There are also things I think Jones tells us without actually telling us, like why Chaurisse isn't invited to the sweet sixteen party and who Marcus was in trouble with the first time round... James is undoubtedly the waste man of this tale. He's so oblivious to the feelings of others and is allowed (by the women but also "good guy" Raleigh, his chief enabler) to get away with so much, as though his daughters should be grateful that he was ever there because some girls don't have dads at all. Furthermore, nothing about the way he's described suggests any of the chaos he creates is justified. In conclusion, men are trash. Even the "good guys".

Ce roman méritait les 5 étoiles jusqu'à la fin de la première partie. Tayari Jones nous scotch véritablement dés la phrase d'ouverture du roman. Le récit de Dana la fille illégitime est émouvant et captivant à la fois. à travers ses yeux nous apprenons à connaitre les autres personnage et apprécier grâce à cela sa force de caractère et à lui pardonner ses quelques erreurs de jugement. La deuxième partie était moins intense, j'ai eu du mal à m’apitoyer sur le sort de Chaurisse et par moment j'ai même pensé que l'auteur ne voulait aucunement que l'on s'attache à cette fille gâtée qui ne mesure vraiment pas l'étendue de ses bénédictions. Dana malgré tout ce dont elle est privé demeure une battante, rien ne semble la mettre à terre même pas la lâcheté de son géniteur que j'ai fini par détester au final. C'est la fin du récit qui lui a couté son étoile, elle est trop brusque, précipitée, pas travaillé. Je n'avais pas d'attente particulière mais j'aurais aimée que Dana nous parle d'avantage à la fin.

One of my favourite authors and one of my favourite books.