“But ironically, amidst the wide range of inequalities that America shoulders – inequality is the great equalizer for Blacks. No one cared that I was born in a different country… In one glance, it was easy to deduce I was just Black – an equal part to one blanket “Black” race and one social status.” – Rowana M. Abbensetts-Dobson, Departure Story
The experiences of Black immigrants are largely invisible to Americans, despite their growing numbers – 4.2 million throughout the country (The Immigrant Learning Center, 2020).
In her debut novel, Departure Story [Published June 1], Rowana invites us into the world of Celestine Samuels, a young Guyanese woman arriving in the U.S. for college, carrying the hopes of generations before her, while imagining new opportunities for personal growth.
Celestine’s studies are interrupted with devastating news - her beloved Uncle, a Guyanese politician, has been murdered as a result of rising turmoil within the government. She feels lost and homesick, but turns that grief into action, and joins the Student Council Diversity Committee, advocating for Black creatives on campus. Eventually, Celestine meets resistance from the administration, and so-called friends alienate her. All the while, “home” haunts her dreams, and eventually leads Celestine to investigate unforgivable family secrets, and uncover answers she may not want to know.
“Departure Story is my love letter to the Diaspora,” Rowana says. “It’s a novel about displacement and creating home… It’s also about finding your voice within the chaos and making a stand for what you believe in wherever you are. Celestine gets to a new country, and she’s testing the boundaries of her power in love, friendships, and politics… I hope it will make some Black girl who is reading white male authors in her American lit class feel seen.”
