The White Hot

The White Hot by Quiara Alegría Hudes

From Pulitzer Prize winner Quiara Alegría Hudes comes The White Hot, a powerful and lyrical story of a young mother’s ten-day journey of freedom, self-discovery, and reckoning with generational trauma. When April, trapped in a household of unspoken secrets and constant conflict, feels the volcanic rage she calls the white hot, she walks away—buying a one-way ticket that propels her from Philadelphia into an unpredictable wilderness. Over ten days, she confronts desire, fear, and the messy truths of life, learning lessons that will echo for years. Told as a letter from mother to daughter, this spellbinding, fierce, and unforgettable story blends spiritual awakening, raw emotion, and tender humor. The White Hot is a short epic of love, loss, and the pursuit of self.