Annabelle Tometich never expected a collect call from jail to reshape her understanding of family. But when she answers and hears her mother’s voice, the story is already tangled. Josefina, fiery and uncompromising, had shot at a man who tried to steal her mangoes. For Annabelle, the fallout is complicated—she’s a journalist at the very paper covering the story.
From that shocking moment unfolds a memoir as witty as it is raw. Tometich revisits her childhood as a mixed-race Filipina in Florida, her father’s untimely death, and her own zigzagging journey from med school hopeful to food critic.
Named one of The Washington Post’s Best Books of 2024, The Mango Tree is an unforgettable ode to identity, resilience, and the fierce love of a mother.
