The Sable Cloak

Memoirist Grant (At the Elbows of My Elders), who died earlier this year, makes her posthumous fiction debut with the stirring tale of an influential Black family in St. Louis. In 1914, Jordan Sable founds a union for his fellow railway coach cleaners. He goes on to open a successful undertaker business and become a political operator, securing Black votes for the Democratic Party. His influence draws ire from the city’s Republican mayor, who attempts to have him assassinated in 1923. Jordan survives the attack and marries Sarah, and they have a daughter, Vivian. Afterward, Sarah becomes the face of their business, buying an elegant mansion for them to live in and run the funeral parlor out of. The family’s idyl ends abruptly in 1941, with another shocking attack. Grant presents an evocative view of affluent Black life prior to the civil rights era, showing how her characters’ wealth and influence can’t shield them from racial violence. It’s a rich family saga delivered with style and heart. (Feb.)