Brought to you by Penguin.

Where there is water, there is mystery. And mystery breeds mythology.

When Sasha Bonét's grandmother, Betty Jean, raised eleven children in a Texas bayou house, she did it alone, creating a home that was the heart of their family. Her daughter, Mama Connie, vowed to live differently but found herself echoing her mother's struggles. Now, Sasha navigates motherhood, reflecting on the legacies of Black women like Nina Simone, Betty Davis, Michelle Obama, Rosa Parks and Darnella Frazier (the woman who told the world about George Floyd) to build a portrait of Black womanhood through time.

Bonét explores the trials and triumphs of Black matriarchy – escape, promise, burden, assent and rebellion – weaving personal history with cultural narratives. From mundane yet powerful mornings at the kitchen table to moments of courageously taking on the world at large in the fight for dignity, The Waterbearers' clear-eyed tenderness reveals intimate vignettes mixed with cultural history of Black women who have built legacies and changed the word through the ties of love – and complexity – that bind them.

'A tale of evolution and hope' – Hilton Als, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of White Girls

'A bold new entry in the canon of literature about Black motherhood' – Kaitlyn Greenidge, author of Libertie

'The Waterbearers is magnificent in its nimble agility. People are elevated to wonders . . . Bonét dances on our hearts in this classic creation of will and wit. Electrifying and incredibly sturdy. Wow.' – Kiese Laymon, author of Heavy

© Sasha Bonét 2026 (P) Penguin Audio 2026