Summary

Chapter 8 marks a turning point in the story. Set against the backdrop of the July 1977 blackoutin New York City, Chapter 8 details some of the large changes in August's life. The blackout summer marked the time when most of the white people in her neighborhood moved out for good, and the neighborhood changed. Her brother discovered math and had accepted his mother's death, while August was unable to. Jennie's children were taken away from her again.

Perhaps the biggest change after her mother's ashes arrived at their apartment is that August's father started dating and converted more fully to Islam. Sister Loretta, a woman from the Nation of Islam, took the family on as a project and transformed their diets and their lives. Even as Sister Loretta tried to convince August to cover her head and her body, August was not yet convinced about her...