The Waterbearers: A Memoir of Mothers and Daughters by Bonét, Sasha

The Waterbearers: A Memoir of Mothers and Daughters

A powerful new voice, telling the American story through three generations of Black mothers. "The Waterbearers is...
$45.71 AUD
$45.71 AUD
SKU: 9780593536087
Product Type: Books
Please hurry! Only 1506 left in stock
Author: Sasha Bonét
Format: Hardcover
Language: English
Subtotal: $45.71
The Waterbearers: A Memoir of Mothers and Daughters by Bonét, Sasha

The Waterbearers: A Memoir of Mothers and Daughters

$45.71

The Waterbearers: A Memoir of Mothers and Daughters

$45.71
Author: Sasha Bonét
Format: Hardcover
Language: English
A powerful new voice, telling the American story through three generations of Black mothers.

"The Waterbearers is one of the most beautiful and truthful books I've ever read." --Imani Perry, National Book Award-winning author of South to America

"An epic love song and remarkable ballad of generations." --Leslie Jamison, author of The Empathy Exams

Sasha Bonét grew up in 1990s Houston, worlds removed from the Louisiana cotton plantation that raised her grandmother, Betty Jean, and the Texas bayous that shaped Sasha's mother, Connie. And though each generation did better, materially, than the last, all of them carried the complex legacy of Black American motherhood with its origins in slavery. All of them knew that the hands used to comb and braid hair, shell pecans, and massage weary muscles were the very hands used to whip children into submission.

When she had her own daughter, Sofia, Bonét was determined to interrupt this tradition. She brought Sofia to New York and set off on a journey--not only up and down the tributaries of her bloodline but also into the lives of Black women in history and literature--Betty Davis, Recy Taylor, and Iberia Hampton among them--to understand both the love and pain they passed on to their children and to create a way of mothering that honors the legacy but abandons the violence that shaped it.

The Waterbearers is a dazzling and transformative work of American storytelling that reimagines not just how we think of Black women, but how we think of ourselves--as individuals, parents, communities, and a country.

Author: Sasha Bonét
Publisher: Knopf Publishing Group
Published: 09/16/2025
Pages: 320
Binding Type: Hardcover
Weight: 1.27lbs
Size: 9.42h x 6.51w x 1.25d
ISBN: 9780593536087


Review Citation(s):
Kirkus Reviews 07/15/2025
Publishers Weekly 07/28/2025
Booklist 08/01/2025

About the Author
SASHA BONÉT is a writer and cultural critic based in New York City. Her criticism and essays have appeared in The Paris Review, Aperture, New York Magazine, Vogue, and BOMB, among other publications. Bonét is a professor of creative writing for Columbia University and Barnard College.

Returns Policy

You may return most new, unopened items within 30 days of delivery for a full refund. We'll also pay the return shipping costs if the return is a result of our error (you received an incorrect or defective item, etc.).

You should expect to receive your refund within four weeks of giving your package to the return shipper, however, in many cases you will receive a refund more quickly. This time period includes the transit time for us to receive your return from the shipper (5 to 10 business days), the time it takes us to process your return once we receive it (3 to 5 business days), and the time it takes your bank to process our refund request (5 to 10 business days).

If you need to return an item, simply login to your account, view the order using the "Complete Orders" link under the My Account menu and click the Return Item(s) button. We'll notify you via e-mail of your refund once we've received and processed the returned item.

Shipping

We can ship to virtually any address in the world. Note that there are restrictions on some products, and some products cannot be shipped to international destinations.

When you place an order, we will estimate shipping and delivery dates for you based on the availability of your items and the shipping options you choose. Depending on the shipping provider you choose, shipping date estimates may appear on the shipping quotes page.

Please also note that the shipping rates for many items we sell are weight-based. The weight of any such item can be found on its detail page. To reflect the policies of the shipping companies we use, all weights will be rounded up to the next full pound.

Related Products

Recently Viewed Products