I’m excited that Whatever Happened to Interracial Love, a short story collection about race and love by Kathleen Collins, is the first book that I will feature on Storied Eats. This book is officially one of my favorites. Each story is rife with a longing that is unique to every character.
The collection’s title story, “Whatever Happened to Interracial Love” is one of my favorites. The reader follows a young interracial couple as they struggle to challenge Jim Crow and protect their relationship against societal pressures. Their parents are always present and struggling with balancing their children’s happiness and orchestrating opportunities for their children’s security.
“Togetherness came back in style. People got along for a while. Inside the melting pot.” — Kathleen Collins
The tension between parental expectations and reality appears a number of times in the book. As well as depictions of new and dying love, isolation, and self-discovery.
Whatever Happened to Interracial Love inspired me to bake Smitten Kitchen’s Double Chocolate Banana Bread. Though it took me a long time to choose a “flavor,” I knew I wanted to make bread because of its shareable quality. Very much like the experience of finding love. Adding cocoa and chocolate chips to the mix was a delightful twist. Similar to how Collins plays with the format of the stories. In fact, she brilliantly uses light as a narrator in “Exteriors.”
Storied Eats 