What a wonderful debut novel and thank you for introducing me to Pumkin, I absolutely adored her. This is such a heartwarming read, with some heartbreak but also lots of joy and happiness. And the best part was the descriptions of the Jamaican recipes - I really want the coconut drops they sound divine. Definitely a book I’m going to recommend, thank you Michael Joseph for the early reading copy, it was such a pleasure to read and Pumkin is a heroine I won’t forget..

Thirteen year old Pumpkin adores her Auntie Sophie, who would do anything for her. Sophie dreams of leaving Jamaica for a better life in France and she wants to have Pumkin with her. However, alone with her mother in Jamaica, Pumkin has to draw on all her inner strength and resourcefulness to strive towards joining her auntie as obstacles seem to pile up in front of her. A coming of age story that is about finding your sense of self and being happy with who you are, this is a lovely story. At times heartbreaking but also packed with characters who show what human kindness and love really looks like, Pumkin’s story has you rooting for her throughout.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher, Michael Joseph, Penguin Random House for an arc in exchange for a review.

Pumkin lives in a small house half way between the near-slums and the good areas in Kingston, Jamaica, able to go to a good school because her Aunt Sophie pays her school fees, but feeling like she has to hide that she lives in a tiny house with her grandmother, her mother who wants little to do with her and resents Sophie and her sophisticated aunt who's also teaching her ways of hiding who you are, working at the French embassy and dreaming of moving to France.

When Sophie gets her dream, she promised to send for Pumkin, but Pumkin's mum turns on her and refuses to let her take the exam she needs, no good at standing up for her when things go wrong at school. But Pumkin has a secret weapon: two, actually - her ability to make friends and her ability to bake. Surrounded by found family and adding people to it, notably a rather scary teacher at a French language school she needs to attend to get her exam, she bakes her way to having the requisite savings and gathers folk around her who can help her when the going gets tough. Will she make it to France, and does she need to?

I was worried this was going to be a simple bootstraps out of shameful poverty story - but it's not, she sees the value in her roots, laughs at a posh friend who can't cope visiting her and is not ashamed of herself - or that she'd find a White boyfriend to help her - again, no, just a variety of different Jamaican friends, including older women and a lovely guy who's just a lovely guy and nothing else. There's an underlying strong message about colourism and class, Pumkin's mum having darker skin than Aunt Sophie and thus being less favoured, and class distinctions being harsh.

With some borderline distressing scenes (nothing as bad as in "The Girl with the Louding Voice") this was on the whole a lovely, positive read which was also realistic in the hard work Pumkin put in and the sometimes strained relationships with her friends and family.

I'll be reviewing this on my blog on 26 April here: https://librofulltime.wordpress.com/2024/04/26/book-review-ishi-robinson-sweetness-in-the-skin/

Sweetness in the Skin by Ishi Robinson

In 1990s Jamaica, 13-year old Pumkin lives with her neglectful and abusive mother but longs to move to France to join her beloved Aunt Sophie. To do so she must pass a French exam, but there are numerous barriers in her way, financial and familial, all of which Pumkin tries to overcome with her gift for baking and a group of wonderful supporters.

What a FABULOUS book, I absolutely devoured it! I loved the way the author brought Jamaica and Pumkin's community to life - wonderful! And Pumkin's challenges were dealt with in a sensitive way but also humorous, a real skill. This book deserves to be so successful and I'm sure everyone will fall in love with Pumkin. Very VERY highly recommended.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a proof of this book.

This was a beautiful story about learning to fit in, family, friendship and belonging. I found the class and race differences in 1990s Jamaica fascinating. Its not something I've ever really thought about.

I loved Pumkins determination to get what she wanted. Whatever obstacles were in her way she found a way around them. I'd like to be more like her!

It took me a while to get used to the writing style, but I soon found it quite natural. I liked the way it made me read different people's accents so the differences in their speech patterns and accents was clear.

I thought this was a fantastic story over all and thoroughly enjoyed reading it.

This book is thoroughly charming, and so is its main character Pumkin Patterson. She has had all the knocks that you can imagine in her thirteen years but she still has a deep belief that things will be ok and that there is good in people. This core value helps her to stay focused on her goal of raising enough money to take the exam that will enable her to join her aunt (more of a mother than her actual mother) in France, this having been the end goad for as long as Pumkin can remember.
The story shows that family, both blood and acquired, comes in many different shapes and that the only way to keep moving forward is to constantly accept and adapt...something that Pumkin does naturally, probably learned through necessity whilst living in a dysfunctional struggling family. There were so many moments when I thought that everything had fallen apart, only for an ally to appear or for a new idea to take root - it was so uplifting to see the sheer resilience and determination.
One of the key themes throughout the book is baking and the joy in feeding others and seeing their happiness for your creations. The descriptions of the local delicacies that Pumkin makes were totally mouth-watering and told so lovingly that it seemed that they must hold a nostalgic place in Ishi Robinson's heart.
Although not financially wealthy, the book showed that wealth can be measured in many ways and that the conventional way upwards and onwards may not actually be what your heart needs to be full. This story left me feeling energised and positive, it's as colourful and joyful as the cover that holds it.

This was a lovely coming of age story about Akisha, know as Pumkin by everyone and her life growing up in Jamaica, living with her grandmother, mother and aunt. Pumpkin has always had a dream of moving to Paris with her Aunt Sophie. After her Aunt moves to France and her grandmother passing away, we see Pumkin having to live with her uninterested at best, neglectful at worst mother. Her mother doesn’t actually want or have an awful lot to do with Pumkin but doesn’t want her sister Sophie to have her.

Pumkin has to pay for and pass a French exam to realise her dream but her mother won’t agree to it. What follows is the story of Pumkin’s attempts to raise the money to pay for the exam without her mother knowing.

The story definitely kept me interested although I confess to finding the phonetic description of the Jamaican speech really quite difficult at times. I really enjoyed reading this book as the author has a wonderfully descriptive way of writing.

A wonderful debut novel about a 13 year old girl from Jamaica who has her own hopes and dreams of living a life elsewhere. A brilliant cast of characters which kept me turning the pages until the end. A great absorbing read not to be missed.
Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for an ARC in return for an honest review.

It's a story about coming of age, discovering what we really want and made me travel to a different culture and meet fascinating characters.
These women are strong willed, not always nice but I loved them.
The story is thought provoking even if the tone is light. Good storytelling.
Recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this ARC, all opinions are mine

Really enjoyed the story of Pumpkin loved the descriptions of Jamaica and the characters I really felt for pumpkin.
This is a story you get really involved with and fast paced.
Thanks to NetGalley for a ARC for a honest review.

I felt such an immediate love for Pumkin, she's struggling in a house that's too small, caught in a complex power struggle between her grandmother, her mum and her aunt, with her big heart always bearing the brunt of the adults' bitterness, prejudices, and aspirations around her. Pumkins innovative and entrepreneurial spirit was so captivating, the grit to survive and find a way. I loved how along her journey of losing so much, she gained such fantastic friends, guardians and her own identity.

Absolutely brilliant, loved it. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me an advance copy, I will definitely be recommending.

Pumpkin is 13, lives in Jamaica in the poor part of town; her dream is to move to France with her aunt and open a bakery there. But reality gets in the way: an absent father, a hard and selfish mother and no money leave her struggling to find a way to make her dream come true. Wonderful debut novel, funny and touching, with a great protagonist.

Pumkin Patterson is a young girl who longs to leave her home in Jamaica far behind and spread her wings in Paris. Her beloved aunt has moved there through her work with the French Embassy and Pumkin is desperate to join her. She is a young girl who is apparently unwanted and unloved by her mother, and who leads a fairly sad existence in a very poor neighbourhood. This is a beautifully written story about a child and her journey into adulthood and I thoroughly enjoyed it. The author paints a really vivid picture of life for this amazing and strong character, and indeed of her whole family. Great book!

Huge thanks to the author and publisher for the opportunity to read this ARC, via NetGalley. Sweetness in the Skin is a great read.

Sweetness in the Skin is a wonderful debut which revolves around a teenage girl, Pumkin, who dreams of moving to Paris and starting a bakery with her Aunt Sophie.
When Sophie moves to France for work, Pumkin bakes a mouth watering range of puddings and cakes to raise money for her French exam and her ticket to France to join her.
She’s one really determined and resilient young lady who is destined to overcome her dysfunctional family and have a better life!!!
A great read!

I really enjoyed this book and the young narrator voice of Pumpkin. Very refreshing and different to other books I have read before. We are in Jamaica with innocent Pumpkin who finds herself alone when her Grandmother passes away and aunt Sophie who she is closest to, moves to France. We navigate this lonely time with her as she tries to continue with her dream of passing her French test and joining her Aunt. I loved the descriptions of the island , I could almost taste and smells the food and cake described! I loved the message of hope and resilience and was rooting for Pumpkin the whole time. I enjoyed the writing and flow especially the patois side, very authentic. I also enjoyed the characters and relationships especially the teacher, Boots and her schoolfriends. I will be recommending and looking for more from this author to read!

I have not enjoyed a book as much as this for a VERY long time! This has everything for me that I want from a book. I was transported to another country (Jamaica), immersed in a different culture, loved and empathised with the main character, and found the story to be perfectly paced. I was drawn into this book from the first page and couldn’t wait to see how Pumkin’s story unfolded. The author will have a huge reaction to this book - it is going to be very well received and her mum will no longer be the sole member of her fan club!. I loved this story and look forward to many more novels from his extremely talented author. Just wonderful!

This book ticked a lot of boxes for the perfect read for me. It centres around Pumpkin and her dreams in life to follow her Auntie to France to escape her rotten life. I just loved her drive to achieve her goals.

Set in Jamaica, she lives on the poor side with her unloving, uncaring, and often abusive mother. I ended up reading it in one sitting because I needed to know the ending. It's such a sweet story that you can't help but root for her.

The only downside to this book is that a lot of the dialogue was written as it's spoken. Unfortunately, I didn't understand a lot of it, so I didn't always know what was being said. Luckily, the storyline had me hooked, but I sometimes felt as if I might have missed something important. It felt frustrating.

Ishi Robinson’s uses a deceptively light touch to tell the story of Pumkin’s journey to self-knowledge with a brilliantly drawn array of characters around her. This was a pacy read.