From a reality tv show that follows a family who only eats fruit, to debating one’s suicide on the basis of how it will be received on Facebook, this collection of short stories touches on every modern issue and does so in a wildly entertaining manner.

While each tale is vastly different from the next, they all share common threads that perhaps are best detailed in the very first story bearing the same title. The opening story is intriguing on its own without the shock at the end, but that’s the point. It would be interesting enough to follow these unique characters pursuing their passions, but ultimately they can’t. The journey ends before we even get to know them because that’s just how life is for many in America. The story doesn’t want to be about violence, but it’s forced to be.

Every story draws a new sketch, yet many overlap – not only in theme, but also with some characters cleverly taking over where others left off. Thompson-Spires spins this structure in such a spiraling fashion that she catches all of us in this web of comedy and tragedy.

It is difficult to pick favorites, but one that stood out for me consisted of letters exchanged between two parents passive aggressively fighting with one another over their respective daughters. Setting aside the hilarity and the fact that it’s best read while binging popcorn, beneath the wit lies the dark truth that there is so much loneliness and mental illness in plain sight these days that no one truly sees it.

What is really driving two mothers to battle one another, or two professors to fight over an office? What’s behind one woman fetishizing men with disabilities to the point of a restraining order or causing another to erupt at minor inconveniences?

Most of the characters throughout this collection seem to want to convey their unique situations without having to trace issues back to race, but it’s impossible not to.

Everyone is fighting an internal battle of who they are and who they’re ‘supposed’ to be, that these fights can’t help but spill outward. Each ‘head’ has a history, and even the most reprehensible character deserves our empathy.

Thompson-Spires not only creates such a wide variety of people but manages to seamlessly drop them into scenes ranging from the mundane to the catastrophic, all with poignant and compelling results.

In the Time of the Butterflies follows four young women as we observe how they deal with the everyday difficulties of growing up set against the backdrop of the Trujillo dictatorship in 1940s Dominican Republic. Shifting the perspective between the four Mirabal sisters, Alvarez etches deeper insight into each of these very different girls from one chapter to the next. While Patria, Dede, Minerva and Maria Theresa all provide unique voices that range from the timid to the revolutionary bold, they all share the same strength that binds them as they march through their own personal difficulties and joint struggles, as a whole.

The stories of each girl intertwines with one another, while also jumping ahead to the 1990s where Dede acts as the family historian, sitting down with an interviewer to explain what exactly happened to her family all those years ago. Overall, this is a heartbreaking tale where we see not only the loss of innocence, that all adolescents go through as they become adults, but at the same time we witness their loss of innocence in terms of their views of the country, and more specifically its leader. While the Mirabal girls in this historical fiction suffer the ultimate price, it could be said that through each of the sisters’ points of view we’re given an archetypical portrait of many women going through the same adversities, not just in the first half of the 20th century Caribbean, but even around the world today.

“Informed by impeccable research and infused with a deep curiosity and love for the beauty and complexity of the West Indies, Fireburn is at times shocking, at times deeply moving and always engaging. Historical fiction of the highest class.

Gidley is a skilfull and assured story-teller, unafraid to take on complexities of race, class, and gender, while at the same time creating unforgettable characters and a story that kept me reading deep into the night. Like the very best historical fiction, Fireburn brings the past to life in glorious technicolour.”

An engaging history:
The Danish-owned island of 1870s Saint Croix vibrates with passion and tension as Anna Clausen, a young Anglo-Danish woman, returns to her childhood home after her mother’s death. Her heart sinks at what she finds on arrival. Her father is ailing and desolate and her beloved plantation, Anna’s Fancy, that has been in the Clausen family for three generations, is in shambles.

The unwelcome lust of one man and forbidden love for another makes Anna’s return to Saint Croix even more turbulent. Despite the decline in the sugar industry, she is determined to retain Anna’s Fancy but must first win the trust of her field workers, of Sampson, the foreman and the grudging respect of Emiline, the cook, and local weed woman.

Fireburn tells the horrors of a little-known, bloody period of Caribbean history. Weathering personal heartache Anna survives the worker rebellion of 1878, 30 years after Emancipation, as she challenges the conventions of the day and faces hostility from the predominantly male landowners.

The post Literature Worth Revisiting appeared first on Caribbean Living Magazine.

Some stories offer us the rare privilege of a ride through a character’s entire life as though we’ve been right there alongside them the entire time, and with this tale, Groff manages to accomplish that feat twice. ‘Fates and Furies’ is a modern odyssey that attempts to discover the difference between comedy and tragedy.

Is it perspective? Or is there a difference at all? We start by stumbling across an average newlywed couple, Lotto and Mathilde, whose unshakeable love for one another lifts them through their early struggles. Mathilde supports her husband’s flailing efforts to become an actor, while his overflowing affection gives her a home she never had. But this isn’t the true start, for that we must fall back in time to see just how Lotto became the person he is today. Following his tumultuous quest into adulthood we learn how an adolescent Romeo could suddenly dream of being with only one person for the rest of his life. And as his path merges with Mathilde’s we watch their love ascend to a peak – but then what happens after twenty years into even the best of marriages?

Ups and downs, waves of temptation and outside influences will always rock even the sturdiest of boats, and what is so refreshing about this story is that it doesn’t just present us with love’s end result, but rather dives below the sparkling surface to see all the years of barnacles building up underneath. When we finally think we’ve found our footing, a new perspective comes crashing in and we then get to see everything through Mathilde’s eyes, unlocking another dimension to what we soon realize had previously been a one-sided account. All of which touches on another overarching message that many stories throughout history have been primarily seen through a single, male viewpoint. As it turns out, while Lotto was loved by all, it was due to Mathilde’s efforts behind-the-scenes that truly helped him succeed along the way.

An intricate character study acted out before us in poetic prose, this raw tale explores the complexities of marriage so honestly that it’s impossible to decide who’s right or wrong. In the end we’re all just playing the cards we’ve been dealt as best we can in the hopes of figuring out life, while the gods simply look down at us and laugh.

The post Book review “Fates And Furies” appeared first on Caribbean Living Magazine.

This moving sequel entirely lives up to the raw emotions pouring from every page of the first book, ‘Call Me By Your Name’. If the original was a tale of teenage angst overflowing from first love, ‘Find Me’ is about what happens when we’re stripped of our youth and naiveté yet still believe in the type of romance that never fades.

One technically wouldn’t have to read the first book to enjoy ‘Find Me’, although if you haven’t, I highly recommend that you do, as this story follows Elio, Elio’s father Samuel, and Oliver in the many years that have passed since their Italian summer. While Samuel played a minor yet crucial role in the first story, this time he takes centerstage as we learn more about his life’s wrong turns, giving way to the same overtones of regret that arose from Elio and Oliver’s relationship.

Perhaps it’s more acceptable for a teenager to quickly fall in love and dream of changing everything to pursue it, yet it’s quite another thing for someone who’s already lived a full life to dive into that type of passion for a woman he’s just met. Samuel is a scholar, someone who’s always been prudent and logical – but where has that gotten him? Taking a cue from his son, he finally lets go and attempts to reignite what first love can be. He’s no longer willing to resign the remainder of his life to mediocrity, because no matter your age, being in love will always keep you young.

As for Elio – what do you do when your true love isn’t there to love you back? Like most people he distracts himself with work, everyday life, and other romances that never quite live up to the first. Life goes on and he puts himself out there again, just as Oliver starts his own family and career. However they both can’t help but ponder the two most dangerous words in the English language: what if?

André Aciman is a master of emotion and his writing kicks down the door of the mundane, demanding to know: what could our lives be like if only we followed our hearts? Just like the first book, all this story wants you to do is fall in love. And while we journey with three very different characters, they all sing the same refrain: it’s never too late.

The post Book Review “Find Me” appeared first on Caribbean Living Magazine.

From a reality tv show that follows a family who only eats fruit, to debating one’s suicide on the basis of how it will be received on Facebook, this collection of short stories touches on every modern issue and does so in a wildly entertaining manner.

While each tale is vastly different from the next, they all share common threads that perhaps are best detailed in the very first story bearing the same title. The opening story is intriguing on its own without the shock at the end, but that’s the point. It would be interesting enough to follow these unique characters pursuing their passions, but ultimately they can’t. The journey ends before we even get to know them because that’s just how life is for many in America. The story doesn’t want to be about violence, but it’s forced to be.

Every story draws a new sketch, yet many overlap – not only in theme, but also with some characters cleverly taking over where others left off.

Every story draws a new sketch, yet many overlap – not only in theme, but also with some characters cleverly taking over where others left off. Thompson-Spires spins this structure in such a spiraling fashion that she catches all of us in this web of comedy and tragedy.

It is difficult to pick favorites, but one that stood out for me consisted of letters exchanged between two parents passive aggressively fighting with one another over their respective daughters. Setting aside the hilarity and the fact that it’s best read while binging popcorn, beneath the wit lies the dark truth that there is so much loneliness and mental illness in plain sight these days that no one truly sees it. What is really driving two mothers to battle one another, or two professors to fight over an office? What’s behind one woman fetishizing men with disabilities to the point of a restraining order or causing another to erupt at minor inconveniences?

Most of the characters throughout this collection seem to want to convey their unique situations without having to trace issues back to race, but it’s impossible not to. Everyone is fighting an internal battle of who they are and who they’re ‘supposed’ to be, that these fights can’t help but spill outward. Each ‘head’ has a history, and even the most reprehensible character deserves our empathy.

Thompson-Spires not only creates such a wide variety of people but manages to seamlessly drop them into scenes ranging from the mundane to the catastrophic, all with poignant and compelling results.

The post Book Review “Heads Of The Colored People” appeared first on Caribbean Living Magazine.

Informed by impeccable research and infused with a deep curiosity and love for the beauty and complexity of the West Indies, Fireburn is at times shocking, at times deeply moving and always engaging. Historical fiction of the highest class.

Gidley is a skilful and assured story-teller, unafraid to take on complexities of race, class and gender, while at the same time creating unforgettable characters and a story that kept me reading deep into the night.

Like the very best historical fiction, Fireburn brings the past to life in glorious technicolour.”

Back Blurb:

The Danish-owned island of 1870s Saint Croix vibrates with passion and tension as Anna Clausen, a young Anglo-Danish woman, returns to her childhood home after her mother’s death. Her heart sinks at what she finds on arrival. Her father is ailing and desolate and her beloved plantation, Anna’s Fancy, that has been in the Clausen family for three generations, is in shambles.

The unwelcome lust of one man and forbidden love for another makes Anna’s return to Saint Croix even more turbulent. Despite the decline in the sugar industry she is determined to retain Anna’s Fancy but must first win the trust of her field workers, of Sampson, the foreman and the grudging respect of Emiline, the cook and local weed woman.

Fireburn tells the horrors of a little-known, bloody period of Caribbean history. Weathering personal heartache Anna survives the worker rebellion of 1878, 30 years after Emancipation, as she challenges the conventions of the day and faces hostility from the predominantly male landowners.

The post Book Review “Fireburn” appeared first on Caribbean Living Magazine.

Spun with the classic detail and grit of Leonard’s renowned style, Cuba Libre drops readers into a Cuban pressure cooker ready to blow.

In 1888 the beautiful island of Cuba erupts when the U.S.S. Maine explodes just off the coast of Havana, forcing the Cuban people, Spain and America to all take sides.  The world descends into chaos, but all bank robber/cowboy Ben Tyler is concerned about is getting paid for his horses.

We follow Tyler’s journey of accepting the circumstances of the storms brewing around him, just like his new compatriot Virgil, a cocky marine who manages to survive the Maine’s explosion only to get locked away in a prison cell until the Cubans, the Spanish and the Americans can decide whether or not they’re at war.

Along the way Tyler meets Amelia, a young woman who uses her beauty to hide her true convictions, and turns out to be the spark that ignites the story’s explosion.  With a kidnapping, train heist and so many enemies chasing after Tyler, Virgil, Amelia and their gang, all of the moving parts feel reminiscent of The Good, The Bad and The Ugly.

Timeless and relevant themes permeate the excitement including the yellow journalism of fake news that draws the American public to support war in Cuba, and even Teddy Roosevelt and his rough riders make an appearance.

No punches are pulled in this brutal adventure in the Caribbean, but the humor and colorful characters keep this romp entertaining until the last shot.

The post Book Review “Cuba Libre” appeared first on Caribbean Living Magazine.

Fun and thrilling tale, Pirate Latitudes takes readers on an adventure back in time to life on the high seas in the Caribbean centuries ago.

Published posthumously, at first glance this might appear to be a stark contrast from Crichton’s other famous works such as Jurassic Park, Congo and Sphere, taking a break from science fiction in this fantastical pirate tale.  However like all of his works, this story is masterfully detailed, throwing readers into the beauty and horror of what it was like to live in the 17th century.  This historical journey is more than just a pirate romp, and as our hero Captain Charles Hunter would say, he’s not even a pirate at all.

Hunter is a charismatic, educated privateer in the wild and chaotic town of Port Royal, a place that thrives on treasure, sex and rum.  He explains that pirates are outlaws, however he and his crew simply serve at the pleasure of the English King, and if they happen to take a Spanish enemy’s treasure then they do so out of loyalty, not piracy.  And so this tenuous balance exists between criminals and lawmen in the ‘wild west’ of the Caribbean.

Throughout this adventure we hit one wave after the next, and just when we think an obstacle has been overcome a new, even tougher problem crashes into the captain and his crew like a tidal wave.  From attempting the heist of the century to fighting extraordinary naval battles, each twist requires the utmost brilliance and cunning to survive.  It’s clear that Crichton sticks to what he does best: taking an improbable story and making it entirely realistic, separating this from other fantasy pirate tales.  Pirate Latitudes is a daring escapade that takes us to a side of the Caribbean that we’ve never seen before, shedding new light on the thrills and perils of what it truly meant to live in the days of pirates.

The post Book Review “Pirate Latitudes” appeared first on Caribbean Living Magazine.

All the Finest Girls cleverly intertwines two worlds through the eyes of Adelaide Abraham by alternating chapters of her early years growing up with a wealthy family in New England, then as an adult when she travels to the fictional Caribbean island of St. Clair for her nanny’s funeral.  We watch Addy grow up through these flashbacks, understanding that while she might have been raised in a privileged home with famous parents, their relationship is destructive and leads to her dysfunction and even mental illness.  The one bright spot in Addy’s early years is her nanny, Louise, who she calls her second black mother.  When Addy is with ‘Lou’, she can truly be herself, discovering that many of the problems she experiences when she’s around her parents seem to fade away.  

In the present, Addy arrives on the beautiful island of St. Clair where she meets Louise’s two adult children, Derek and Phillip, who don’t seem too keen on having her here for the funeral.  Like a fish out of water, Addy does her best to blend in and act as though she belongs, yet can’t help sticking out and causing unintentional trouble.  Growing up, Addy had always thought of herself as part of this family due to the connection she shared with Louise, but as she gets to actually know this second family she learns that good intentions aren’t always enough.  Addy realizes that while she got to have Louise as a second mother, it meant that Lou wasn’t there for her actual children back at her true home.  At one point Derek challenges Addy’s love of his mother, accusing her of thinking deep down that she was better than Louise due to her wealth and race.  Addy refuses to believe it as she truly cared for Lou, but starts to wonder if the relationship that she had as a child was really as she had imagined.

Author Alexandra Stryon weaves an intricate portrait of two very different worlds through the eyes of a widening perspective.  We understand that neither side is right or wrong, and sometimes different cultures simply cannot come together no matter how honest one’s intentions might be.  All we can do is continue striving to better understand one another by seeing through someone else’s perspective, and in that process do our best to heal and come together.

The post Book Review “All the Finest Girls” appeared first on Caribbean Living Magazine.

While best known for his masterpiece Brave New World, literary genius Aldous Huxley considered his final book, Island, to be his most important.

With his wit, imagination and far-ahead-of-histime insight, in Island Huxley created a utopia on the fictional island of Pala – a perfect place where the native people lived their simple lives peacefully amongst the beauty of nature and one another. After a century of blending Buddhist traditions with western scientific knowledge, Pala became a haven for goodness, pleasure, and what many might consider to be heaven on earth. That all changed when Will Farnaby crashed onto the island.

Even though the imaginary island of Pala is set somewhere in the South Pacific, the story’s theme of natural beauty versus industrialization can easily be applied to any Caribbean para – dise. Untouched by the rest of the world, Pala had been able to flourish and cultivate its own societal norms. The citizens attempt to teach Farnaby their unusual way of life, but the main character personifies the cynical and humorous viewpoint of anyone who has experienced the ‘real world’ outside of Pala, especially in that 1960s post-World War II era.

“Though the novel was written over 50 years ago, he still makes us QUESTION OUR OWN BELIEFS and wonder if the path we’re on is truly THE BEST COURSE.

At times the narrative almost reads like Huxley’s thesis on how our world should be, if only human kindness and openness to new ideas were more instinctual than fear and greed. In the beginning, a hesitant Farnaby goes along with learning the strange ideas of Pala, yet his true intentions are to strike a deal with the Palanese Queen on behalf of an oil company to exploit the land. The people allow Farnaby, in his guise as a writer, to stay and learn about their way of life in a humorous clash of cultures; in so do – ing, the story touches on topics that were taboo in the 1960s… some still are today. The people attribute their success to applying the ancient principles of living simply and loving greatly to western advances in farming, education, as well as even birth control to prevent over-population.

REVIEWED BY JEFF SOBEL

The post Book Review “Island” appeared first on Caribbean Living Magazine.

This is a fascinating tale of unexpected relationships, the rising and ebbing tides of friends and enemies, and the chaotic ups and downs of power that change as quickly as the tropical weather. We follow the rise of Fulgencio Batista from his humble roots into the military and to eventually taking over control of the nation in yet another coup d’état, a regular happening ever since Cuba gained its independence from Spain in 1898. Elsewhere on the island a privileged young lawyer by the name of Fidel Castro plots his own moves for a different type of revolution. All the while Lansky and Lucky stage an overthrow of the modern Ma a that takes them to new heights, only to be set back by the U.S. government which lands Lucky behind bars. The fates of these seemingly unconnected players soon become intertwined and chart a new course for Cuba with rippling effects that have lasted even to this day.

It all begins in 1946 when Lansky organizes a mob boss meeting reminiscent of The Godfather II, which English notes while it’s not completely factually accurate, the lm nonetheless helps in the portrayal of true events to follow. At this point in time ‘organized crime’ was not believed to exist in America, as these men plot in secret and Lansky does his best to stay out of the head- lines, at least until Frank Sintara comes down for a visit.  At several points throughout the next decade events unravel and all seems to be lost, until an- other miraculous event explodes out of nowhere and turns everyone onto a new trajectory. For example, Lucky Luciano is seemingly behind bars for decades, only to be secretly enlisted by the U.S. government for assistance in taking down German spies on the docks of New York during World War II, leading to his early release.

As the mob’s Havana dream becomes a reality, launching mega hotel-casinos with the secret as- sistance of Batista to create a hedonistic paradise not seen since the Romans, Castro devises an attack to bring the corrupters down. And while his rst move is a failure, Castro captures the attention of the people and manages to escape Batista’s execution squad and instead is sent to prison where he maps out a future blueprint for revolution.

With the backing of the American government, Batista exerts his power by taking control of all the banks and nancial intuitions while sticking his hands into all of the mob’s ventures. In this environment art also blossoms – from the boom of Latin jazz and the mambo, to the Tropicana’s infamous sex shows and visits by Nat “King” Cole, Ella Fitzgerald, Johnny Mathis, Marlon Brando, Ernest Hemingway, JFK and countless others. Cultures mix in contrast to the land 90 miles to the north, and Batista who had once been turned down by the Havana yacht club because of his mixed race is now ruling it all. However the party can’t last forever, and at the insistence of the U.S. government Batista holds an election which he ‘wins’. Feeling so con dent in his power he decides to show he isn’t afraid of anyone by freeing his enemies, including Castro – a move that English notes would turn out to be the biggest mistake of his life.

Castro ees to Mexico City where he meets Ernesto “Che” Guevara and together they train a rebel force. In fact, Fidel even ventures to several American cities to raise money and gain more support in his effort to free the Cuban people of Batista’s reign. However Fidel’s attempts back in Cuba fail once again, raising little notice in the eyes of the Ma a who are only focused on building bigger and better casinos while the money rolls in. At one point when all seems lost for Castro and his rebel army, they slowly win over the rural population and the movement builds steam, aiming at the combined target of Batista and U.S. imperialism personi ed in the Ma a and their excess.

During the 1957-58 tourist season, the most pro table year for the Ma a and therefore Batista, they were blissfully unaware of insigni cant Castro and all of the uprisings around the countryside. While the U.S. government rst supplies Batista with weapons, once Castro starts burning sugarcane and winning over the popular mood both in Cuba and at home, the CIA then secretly supplies Castro with weap- ons. Soon the war becomes too big to ignore, sparking the nal ght for the fate of the island.

A truly incredible rollercoaster of ups and downs, this is a journey that takes us through history while touching on sex, movie stars, presidents, revolutionaries and the mob, all colliding in the unlikeliest of storms that truly helps to explain Cuba’s state and America’s foreign policy even today. A thoroughly entertaining account, Havana Nocturne is much more than a mere history lesson but a realistic insight into some of the most infamous characters of the 20th century.

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