unburnable_john
2008 Longlist

Unburnable

artwork-image

ABOUT
THE BOOK

In this riveting narrative of family, betrayal, vengeance, and murder, Lillian Baptiste is willed back to her island home of Dominica to finally settle her past. Haunted by scandal and secrets, Lillian left Dominica when she was fourteen after discovering she was the daughter of Iris, the half-crazy woman whose life was told of in chanté mas songs sung during Carnival: Matilda Swinging and Bottle of Coke; songs about a village on a mountaintop and bones and bodies; songs about flying masquerades and a man who dropped dead. Lillian knew the songs well. And now she knows these songs — and thus the history — belong to her. After twenty years away, Lillian returns to face the demons of her past, and with the help of Teddy, the man she refused to love, she will find a way to heal.

ABOUT
THE AUTHOR Marie-Elena
John

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NOMINATING LIBRARY COMMENTS

This is a remarkable and ambitious novel. It deftly weaves an unforgettable tapestry of Dominica post-colonial society and legacy

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

Country
Antigua, United States
Original Language
English
Publisher
Amistad

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