Unearthing: A Story of Tangled Love and Family Secrets

By Kyo Maclear

WINNER OF THE 2023 GOVERNOR GENERAL'S LITERARY AWARD FOR NONFICTION

For readers of Crying in H Mart and Wintering, an unforgettable memoir about a family secret revealed by a DNA test, the lessons learned in its aftermath, and the indelible power of love.

Three months after Kyo Maclear’s father dies in December 2018, she gets the results of a DNA test showing that she and the father who raised her are not biologically related. Suddenly Maclear becomes a detective in her own life, unravelling a family mystery piece by piece, and assembling the story of her biological father. Along the way, larger questions arise: what exactly is kinship? And what does it mean to be a family?

Thoughtful in its reflections on race and lineage, unflinching in its insights on grief and loyalty, Unearthing is a captivating and propulsive story of inheritance that goes beyond heredity. 

What gets planted, and what gets buried? What role does storytelling play in unearthing the past and making sense of a life? Can the humble act of tending a garden provide common ground for an inquisitive daughter and her complicated mother? As it seeks to answer these questions, Unearthing bursts with the very love it seeks to understand.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Random House Publishing Group
• Release date: Apr 18, 2023
• ISBN: 9781039006713

Kyo Maclear

Kyo Maclear is a critically acclaimed novelist, essayist, and children's book author. Her books have received starred reviews, appeared on numerous "Best of" lists, and been published in multiple languages around the world. She is the author of many picture books including Virginia Wolf which was adapted for stage, Julia, Child which was adapted into an animated television series, The Fog, Story Boat, and The Wish Tree, also illustrated by Chris Turnham and published by Chronicle Books. Kyo lives in Toronto. To learn more about her visit kyomaclearkids.com.

Reviews for Unearthing

[juju2cat · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

This is certainly a unique book. I enjoyed the writing style, i.e. random thoughts in small paragraphs. It was a bit hard to hold my interest with the exception of anything gardening/plant related.Thank you to Goodreads for a copy for my review.