February 28, 2011
Journalist Thomson (Bonjour Blanc) offers a portrait of contemporary Jamaica beyond the clichés of "golden beaches and guns, guns, guns." Thomson spoke to Jamaicans from all strata of society: white Jamaicans, beneficiaries of fortunes built on slave labor, now hiding in their crumbling plantation mansions, terrified of the encroaching violence; Rastafarians and Maroons; rabbis and priests; tired bureaucrats and armed youths; Indian and Chinese shopkeepers; the musicians and producers that have exported Jamaican music all over the globe. At times the book is overcrowded with characters and lacks a cohesive argument, but the elegant capsule histories of major figures and events ground the interviews in context. What emerges is a portrait of a country haunted by its colonial past, still trying to define itself apart from the two imperial powers (U.S. and British) that have shaped it thus far, and of a diverse people who struggle to hold on to their hope for a brighter future.
March 1, 2011
A British journalist takes a probing, critical look at economic and moral decline in post-independence Jamaica.
With a similar literary travelogue under his belt about the troubled island of Haiti, Thomson (Primo Levi: A Life, 2003, etc.) now sets his sights on Jamaica, once a paradisiacal resort area, not to mention the birthplace of reggae music, now a down-at-the-heel tropical haven for drug warlords, violence and general infrastructural entropy. The author adroitly combines historical research with his personal observations made while traveling through Jamaica's embattled neighborhoods. Thomson interviewed mostly older conservative Jamaicans, many of whom are either middle class or members of the local clergy. Most of the interviewees attribute Jamaica's decline to narrow-mindedness, laziness and a detrimental American influence overtaking the culture. Some of them feel that Jamaica was better off as a British colony. It would be unfair to say that Thomson voices his damning opinion on Jamaica through his one-sided choice of source material, but his own Anglo schoolmasterish disapproval comes through clearly enough. Still, as appalled as he is by the state of things in today's Jamaica, the author has the good judgment to avoid any suggestion that Jamaica would be better off as an American or British protectorate. The real worth of Thomson's study are the chapters devoted to the lesser-known but prominent ethnic groups in Jamaica—Jamaican Jews, "Eastern" Indians and Chinese, among others—who've played an important, largely obscure role in shaping the island's history. The author also outlines the inconsistent local politics that have shaped post-independence Jamaica, most notably the left-wing revolutionary leader Michael Manley's "glamorous failure" to curtail political violence and unite the country's antagonistic black/white ethnic divide.
A broadly informative cultural investigation despite its inherently biased perspective.
(COPYRIGHT (2011) KIRKUS REVIEWS/NIELSEN BUSINESS MEDIA, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.)
Starred review from April 1, 2011
In this excellent book, Thomson (Primo Levi: A Life) reveals the complexities of modern Jamaican life as lived by Jamaicans--poverty-stricken and violent, multicultural and rich with tradition. A fine ear for language and a journalist's nose for a good story make Thomson the perfect guide through island life, but his book is far more than a travelog. He delves into Jamaican history, politics, culture, religion, music, food, and economy, deftly weaving these macro-level issues with the lives of ordinary Jamaicans--white, black, multiracial, Chinese, and East Indian. He talks with white Jamaicans on the island, black Jamaicans in Britain, and everyone in between. Ultimately, the story is of a country still struggling with the legacies of colonialism and of a people deeply attached to their home but conflicted about where they belong in Jamaica and where Jamaica belongs in the world. VERDICT Thomson's obvious love for Jamaica makes the book that much more engaging, and he is a skilled enough writer that his affection never clouds his prose or tips it toward sentimentalism. A remarkable book that many readers of narrative nonfiction will appreciate. Highly recommended also to students of Caribbean studies.--Julie Biando Edwards, Univ. of Montana Lib., Missoula
Copyright 2011 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.
Starred review from March 15, 2011
For a not particularly large Caribbean island, Jamaica has had an outsized influence on the rest of the world. Bob Marleys reggae briefly dominated popular music, and the lands mineral and agricultural bounty made many fortunes. Despite a half century of independence from British colonial rule, Jamaica remains an exceedingly troubled land, whose lush resorts mask intractable divisions that continue to beset the island. Racism dominates just about every aspect of existence as descendants of African slaves, British, East Indians, Chinese, Lebanese, Germans, and Jews vie for political and economic advantage. Lucrative trade in illegal drugs and guns corrupts even the best, transforming the body politic into vicious gangs of warring thugs and turning murder into an unremarkable daily commonplace. Thomson has done an extraordinary job of casting light into the dark corners of a nation very much at war with its own history. His great gift is for fearlessly letting Jamaicans from every class and race and all walks of life speak about their nation for themselves. The tales they tell bespeak tragedy and despair almost too profound for words.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2011, American Library Association.)
March 1, 2011
A British journalist takes a probing, critical look at economic and moral decline in post-independence Jamaica.
With a similar literary travelogue under his belt about the troubled island of Haiti, Thomson (Primo Levi: A Life, 2003, etc.) now sets his sights on Jamaica, once a paradisiacal resort area, not to mention the birthplace of reggae music, now a down-at-the-heel tropical haven for drug warlords, violence and general infrastructural entropy. The author adroitly combines historical research with his personal observations made while traveling through Jamaica's embattled neighborhoods. Thomson interviewed mostly older conservative Jamaicans, many of whom are either middle class or members of the local clergy. Most of the interviewees attribute Jamaica's decline to narrow-mindedness, laziness and a detrimental American influence overtaking the culture. Some of them feel that Jamaica was better off as a British colony. It would be unfair to say that Thomson voices his damning opinion on Jamaica through his one-sided choice of source material, but his own Anglo schoolmasterish disapproval comes through clearly enough. Still, as appalled as he is by the state of things in today's Jamaica, the author has the good judgment to avoid any suggestion that Jamaica would be better off as an American or British protectorate. The real worth of Thomson's study are the chapters devoted to the lesser-known but prominent ethnic groups in Jamaica--Jamaican Jews, "Eastern" Indians and Chinese, among others--who've played an important, largely obscure role in shaping the island's history. The author also outlines the inconsistent local politics that have shaped post-independence Jamaica, most notably the left-wing revolutionary leader Michael Manley's "glamorous failure" to curtail political violence and unite the country's antagonistic black/white ethnic divide.
A broadly informative cultural investigation despite its inherently biased perspective.
(COPYRIGHT (2011) KIRKUS REVIEWS/NIELSEN BUSINESS MEDIA, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.)