Fruit Punch

A Memoir

By: Kendra Allen

Narrated by: Kendra Allen

An arresting and one-of-a-kind memoir about the alternately exultant and harrowing trip growing up as a Black child desperate to create a clear reality for herself in this country

Written in a distinctive voice and filled with personality, humor, and pathos, Fruit Punch is a memoir unlike any other, from a one-of-a-kind millennial talent. Growing up in Dallas, Texas, in the nineties and early 2000s, Kendra Allen had a complicated, loving, and intense family life filled with desire and community but also undercurrents of violence and turmoil. “We equate suffering to perseverance and misinterpret the weight of shame,” she writes. As she makes her way through a world of obscureness, Kendra finds herself slowly discovering outlets to help navigate growing up and against the expected performance of being a young Black woman in the South—a complex interplay of race, class, and gender that proves to be ever-shifting ground.

Fruit Punch touches on everything from questions of beauty and how we form concepts of ourselves—as a small rebellion, young Kendra scratched a hole into every pair of stockings she was forced to wear—to what it means to grow up in her great uncle’s Southern Baptist church—with rules including “No uncrossed ankles” and “No questions.” Inflected by a powerful sense of place and touched by poetry, Fruit Punch is a stunning achievement—a memoir born of love and endurance, fight or flight, and what it means to be a witness, from a blisteringly honest and observant voice.

©2022 Kendra Allen (P)2022 HarperCollins Publishers

Unique Writing Style

Kendra's writing style is like none other I have read or heard. Having lived in the Dallas metroplex for over twenty years, this book felt familiar and at home. It was an interesting perspective on childhood traumas and how one handles them and is affected by them throughout life.

Great but sad story

I really enjoyed this memoir. The cadence of the author speaking her own words really drew me in. I was drawn to this book from TikToks of Donnelwrites that I saw. He read several exerpts from her book that sounded so good. So, I wanted to get the whole thing and boy and I glad I did. I am also a Texan that now lives in the Dallas area. It was nice to read about areas I am familiar with in her book. I definitely recommend this book to others. There are topics related to molestation, puberty, and suicidal ideation. Mature teens could benefit from this book.

As a black girl….

As a black girl who never was able to defend herself against her family. I loved how she made lite of pain. I just….Thank you Kendra

Very interesting format for a memoir.

I struggled to finish it. I wasn't expecting her to read it like a 4hr poem. As much as I enjoy poetry and love a good memoir, for me those two should never intertwine. I appreciate the author being the narrator and liked the overall story.