The Time of Our Singing

Jonah, Ruth and Joseph are the children of mixed-race parents determined to raise them beyond time, beyond identity, steeped in song. Yet they cannot be protected from the world forever.

Even as Jonah becomes a successful young tenor, the opera arena remains fixated on his race. Ruth turns her back on classical music and disappears, dedicating herself to activism and a new relationship. As the years pass, Joseph – the middle child, a pianist and our narrator – must battle not just to remain connected to his siblings, but to forge a future of his own.

This is a story of the tragedy of race in America, told through the lives and choices of one family caught on the cusp of identities. [Goodreads]

"this book is not easily described in a few sentences. It offers perspectives on a number of complex issues concerning, time, memory, and change, while challenging the of the idea of race. It may be even more relevant in the current sociopolitical environment than in 2003, when it was initially published." [from a review by Joy D]