The Summer I Ate the Rich
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- Pre-Order
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- Expected Apr 22, 2025
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- $11.99
Publisher Description
Just add garlic, lemon, and a dash of the one percent.
This smart, biting novel explores what happens when a Haitian American girl uses her previously hidden zombie abilities to exact revenge on the wealthy elites who’ve caused her family pain.
Brielle Petitfour loves to cook. But with a chronically sick mother and bills to pay, becoming a chef isn’t exactly a realistic career path.
When Brielle’s mom suddenly loses her job, Brielle steps in and uses her culinary skills to earn some extra money. The rich families who love her cooking praise her use of unique flavors and textures, which keep everyone guessing what’s in Brielle’s dishes. The secret ingredient? Human flesh.
Written by the storytelling duo Maika Moulite and Maritza Moulite, The Summer I Ate the Rich is a modern-day fable inspired by Haitian zombie lore that scrutinizes the socioeconomic and racial inequity that is the foundation of our society. Just like Brielle’s clients, it will have you asking: What’s for dinner?
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Sisters and previous collaborators Maika and Maritza Moulite (One of the Good Ones) lean on Haitian folklore to examine class and racial inequality in this biting novel. While 17-year-old Haitian American Miami native Brielle dreams of being a chef, her primary focus is supporting her immigrant mother. Due to a workplace accident four years ago, her mother experiences chronic pain. Brielle, meanwhile, struggles to pay for her medication, developed by the affluent Banks family for whom she works. But their medical and financial challenges aren't the only things Brielle finds difficult to manage: Brielle, born a zombie, craves human flesh, an appetite that strains her relationship with her mother. When the Banks patriarch offers Brielle an internship at his company, she readily accepts. Upon uncovering the inequities between her world and the Banks', however, she utilizes her taboo zombie powers to devise a sinister plan to benefit her family. Her schemes are complicated by a romance with a member of the Banks family, and by the mystery behind her affliction and its ties to her ancestors' history. Though the pacing and plot structure feel stilted, Brielle's fluidly rendered narration and the novel's ambitious premise result in a captivating look at one immigrant family's experience via a fantasy lens. Ages 14–up.
