Each one was meticulously organized—birthdays, anniversaries, Christmas—and all of the edges were worn from years of rereading. He entered the Jesuit novitiate in 2015 and currently teaches biology and chemistry as a first year regent at Gonzaga College High School in Washington D.

For the majority of her life my grandmother belonged to that church and lived within 30 minutes of that church. My father was kind and deferential, and my grandmother saw what great love he had for my mother and brother, and so she (slowly) accepted my family. I never considered being labeled as an “other,” but now that my boyfriend is white, the apprehension is different. Rachel says she will allow him to do what he wants so long if he gets her pregnant he has to marry her immediately.They fell in love and eventually decided to get married knowing that my grandparents would be irate and that her marriage could cause my grandfather to lose his job at the family church, she did not invite (or even notify) them. Washington admits that she will need to find a way to get the young man to show her his drill bit, in hopes that he will be able to fix a problem that has been haunting her. However, it was not very far in the past where interracial marriage was illegal in South Carolina, and frowned upon in the upper-class white suburb in which he grew up. This was more than my mom knew; she didn’t even see a black person in real life until she was 18 years old. How could the notes from the very man who nearly caused my grandmother to drop her own daughter have become such precious mementos over those years?

I would not recommend this book for the rest of you who are looking for a great story-line, character development and all that comes with an engrossing read! Rachel is a 58 black woman, mother to 2 daughters, grandmother to 4 grandchildren and 3 great grand-children. Clarence and Irene changed because there was a greater, stronger force holding our family together than the divisions that destroy so many families and friendships, and which threaten to tear our country apart.It was as swift as it was hurtful: My grandmother was outraged that my mom married a Black person (and that she wasn’t invited).