light skin gone to waste is a collection of linked short stories by Toni Ann Johnson. The main character is Maddie, a middle-to-upper class child of Paul, a self-centered light-skinned Black father who is a psychologist, and Velma, a fiery darker-skinned mother. They have kin in Harlem but live in White neighborhoods where they often are the only Blacks. The time period spans the late 50s to the late 80s. The characters, and the supporting characters around them, are skillfully revealed in situations that come across as completely real. These are great stories, well-written, human, honest, and beautiful. I’m a big fan of this writer. If you only read one collection of short stories this year, read this one. Here’s what Los Angeles Review of Books says:
