The Other Mother

The Other Mother

Rachel M. Harper

Enjoyment: Quality: Characters: Plot:

A page-turning generational saga about a young man's search for a parent he never knew, and a moving portrait of motherhood, race, 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. Unfurling in the most surprising and satisfying of ways, revelation follows revelation as each member of Jenry’s family peels back layers of a story that is at once deeply familiar—of first love, betrayal, and the selfishness of youth, of the beautiful, complicated love between parents and children—and also compelling in its centering of queer lives and people of color.


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  • bookgang
    Mar 30, 2025
    Enjoyment: Quality: Characters: Plot:

    This emotional generational saga was a contender for this year's book club because it tackled important themes around race, identity, family, and forgiveness. Basically, it had the perfect recipe to bake up the perfect book club discussion.

    The Other Mother weaves over thirty years of two families' history together, opening with Jentry's first day of college. This school is notable because it is his mother's alma mater (who raised him alone) and his famous ballet dancer father (who he never knew). 

    The mystery for Jentry is why he never knew his dad and uncovering all the people who could have been a part of his life if they had been given a chance.

    The secrets, I believe, should be uncovered by the reader, and it brought into play some significant themes that would be so big and beautiful to unbox with a book club. I loved the elements of multigenerational storytelling; how it challenged readers to examine what it means to be family; I loved Jentry's earnest quest to find out who he was. 

    What didn't work for me was that the story meandered. The plot needed some tightening by about a hundred pages. Had this been trimmed, it would have easily been a five-star read. 

    Please read this for the themes, the challenging viewpoints, and the reminders of what it means to be family. When it moved me, it moved me deeply. So for these themes and emotions, it gave me, it remains on the contender list for next year.

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