Listen free for 30 days

Listen with offer

Preview
  • Sugar Town Queens

  • By: Malla Nunn
  • Narrated by: Bahni Turpin
  • Length: 9 hrs and 35 mins
  • 3.0 out of 5 stars (1 rating)

£0.00 for first 30 days

Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection - including bestsellers and new releases.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, celeb exclusives, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
£7.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

Sugar Town Queens

By: Malla Nunn
Narrated by: Bahni Turpin
Try for £0.00

£7.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

Buy Now for £12.99

Buy Now for £12.99

Pay using card ending in
By completing your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and authorise Audible to charge your designated card or any other card on file. Please see our Privacy Notice, Cookies Notice and Interest-based Ads Notice.

Summary

From Los Angeles Times Book Prize Award winner and Edgar Award nominee Malla Nunn comes a stunning portrait of a family divided and a powerful story of how friendship saves and heals.

When Amandla wakes up on her 15th birthday, she knows it's going to be one of her mother's difficult days. Her mother has had another vision. This one involves Amandla wearing a bedsheet loosely stitched as a dress. An outfit, her mother says, is certain to bring Amandla's father back home, as if he were the prince and this was the fairy-tale ending their family was destined for. But in truth, Amandla's father has long been gone - since before Amandla was born - and even her mother's memory of him is hazy. In fact, many of her mother's memories from before Amandla was born are hazy. It's just one of the many reasons people in Sugar Town give them strange looks - that and the fact her mother is White, and Amandla is Black.

When Amandla finds a mysterious address in the bottom of her mother's handbag along with a large amount of cash, she decides it's finally time to get answers about her mother's life. What she discovers will change the shape and size of her family forever. But with her best friends at her side, Amandla is ready to take on family secrets and the devil himself. These Sugar Town queens are ready to take over the world to expose the hard truths of their lives.

©2021 Malla Nunn (P)2021 Listening Library
activate_Holiday_promo_in_buybox_DT_T2

Listeners also enjoyed...

When the Ground Is Hard cover art
Darling Girl cover art
Into the Woods cover art
Time Zero cover art
The Water Thief cover art
A Girl Called Rumi cover art
The Improbable Life of Ricky Bird cover art
The Wren Hunt cover art
The Liar's Daughter cover art
Take What You Can Carry cover art
The Almost Sisters cover art
Silent Child cover art
When I First Held You cover art
Sparks Like Stars cover art
We Were Sisters: An Absolutely Gripping Psychological Thriller cover art
The Separation cover art

Critic reviews

A 2022 Bank Street Best Children’s Book of the Year
A 2022 YALSA Best Fiction for Young Adults Pick
A 2022 NCSS-CBC Notable Social Studies Trade Books Pick
An Amazon Best Book – August 2021

“Amandla uncovers the painful secrets of her mother’s past with the help of supportive, intergenerational friends and family. She also gains the courage to confront violent ­misogyny and racism in a post-apartheid South Africa, coming to accept herself as a biracial, intelligent individual. This descriptive, fast-paced ­narrative is a compelling read that is difficult to put down and will likely fly off library shelves.” —School Library Journal, starred review

“Nunn grounds her tale in Amandla’s convictions and embrace of her life and neighbors in Sugar Town. Complexities of race and racism in Mandela’s freed South Africa are handled with realism and strength . . . but it is the resilient community that is front and center in Nunn's unique and detailed setting. Readers will cheer Amandla as she discovers who she is and where she came from in this captivating book.” —Booklist, starred review

Nunn’s evocative storytelling will make you ache for Amandla. She is a complex creation whose circumstances are sensational but whose journey is relatable. Nunn surrounds Amandla with a diverse cast of characters who are similarly interesting and strongly developed. The novel’s hard truths about race and class are more than balanced by the love of all types that Amandla experiences. These supportive relationships are the most rewarding part of Sugar Town Queens, the glue that holds it all together.” —BookPage, starred review

What listeners say about Sugar Town Queens

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 3 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    0
  • 4 Stars
    0
  • 3 Stars
    1
  • 2 Stars
    0
  • 1 Stars
    0
Performance
  • 3 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    0
  • 4 Stars
    0
  • 3 Stars
    1
  • 2 Stars
    0
  • 1 Stars
    0
Story
  • 3 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    0
  • 4 Stars
    0
  • 3 Stars
    1
  • 2 Stars
    0
  • 1 Stars
    0

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

Enjoyed it but wanted a little more

Very much enjoyed this book, especially its setting in a South African township, but I found myself wanting a little more from the plot and also the sense of resolution. However, I'm glad this book is published and in the world.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!