The Vignes twin sisters will always be identical. But, after growing up together in a small, southern black community and fleeing at the age of sixteen, not only is the shape of their daily lives different as adults, but everything: their families, their communities, and their racial identities. Many years later, one sister lives in the same southern town she once tried to flee with her black daughter. The other appears to be white, and her white husband is unaware of her past. Despite being separated by thousands of miles and as many lies, the twins' fates remain intertwined. What will happen to the next generation when the stories of their own daughters intersect?

Brit Bennett creates a story that is both a riveting, emotional family story and a brilliant exploration of the American history of passing by weaving together multiple strands and generations of this family from the Deep South to California, from the 1950s to the 1990s. Looking beyond race, The Vanishing Half considers the long-term impact of the past on a person's decisions, desires, and expectations, as well as some of the various reasons and realms in which people sometimes feel compelled to live as someone other than their origins.