Tiphanie Yanique

If you love islands and the ocean, pick this one up; if you don't, leave it on the shelf. The novel is drenched with brilliant sun and fascinating characters and circumstances, a mixture of fact, true family history, with a hot dash of magical realism. The islands are the US Virgin islands, along with one I had never heard of: Anegada of the British Virgin Islands, which seemed hardly real. The stories are of two families: the Bradshaws, who produce sea captains and daughters, and the show more McKenzies, whose clan includes enchantresses and sons. Their fates are entwined, there is incest with damage done, there is a soft porn movie that introduces the islanders to American ways and sends the preacher's wife screaming from the cinema. There's a protest when Americans start colonizing the beaches. There's the impact of WWII. Most of all, there are the people of the villages and the rhythm of their lives before and after the Virgins Islands are sold by the Dutch to the US - as strange as it is to think that could happen. The novel is perhaps a bit longer than it needed to be, but if you're like me, you'll wake up after a long night of reading believing that you can fling open the shutters and inhale the salty rustle of the waves. show less

This is the story of two sisters from the US Virgin Islands: their lives, loves, dreams, and realities over the course of several decades, presented with a touch of what I suppose you'd call magic realism. It's well-written and involving, with good characters and an interesting, vividly realized setting. (Frankly, it made me sorry and a little ashamed to realize just how little I knew of these islands when I started, but also extremely glad of the opportunity to spend a little vicarious time show more there.) While I recommend it, overall, for those to whom this sort of thing sounds appealing, I feel I should point out that it does deal with some potentially disturbing subject matter, including incest and pedophilia. Although, honestly, that makes it sound much darker than it actually is. show less

Set in the US Virgin Islands from the early 1900s to 1970s, this is the story of Bradshaw sisters Eeona and Anette, and their half-brother Jacob. When they are orphaned, they must make their own way in life. We follow their lives, loves, and struggles to deal with the many changes taking place in the islands at the time.

The author does a wonderful job of providing each character a unique voice. Eeona is the more formally educated. Anette communicates in the dialect of the islands. An show more omniscient narrator occasionally breaks in to provide commentary. Yanique mixes in elements of local folklore, obeah, and magical realism. These elements are subtle and do not overpower the narrative. The Virgin Islands are beautifully drawn, and the vivid sense of place is one of the highlights of the book.

This story is not solely a family saga. It also examines issues such as colonialism, racism, classism, tourism, and identity. I think the reader needs to be aware going in that the content includes incest. It is integral to the plot, and this portion is finished early in the book. Based on the author’s family background, this is an imaginative story grounded in the Virgin Islands’ culture and history. show less

The setting of this novel—the US Virgin Islands—is both exotic and beautiful. It has not previously been explored in modern fiction and thus it is unfortunate that it does not seem to come alive in this novel. Instead Yanique uses character development in this debut novel to evoke the history, geography, myths and legends of the Virgin Islands through her two main characters, the Bradshaw sisters—Eeona and Annette. They come from a privileged background but suffer hardship after the show more death of their parents. Both sisters have unusual sexual experiences and their efforts to come to terms with them are the central element of the plot. Being older, Eeona remembers the family as it was, while Annete has no memories of it. This difference is central to their different ways of coping. While following the sisters, Yanique also deals with themes of racism (especially as it manifests in the US versus the US Virgin Islands), nationalism (especially with regard to access to the Islands’ beaches) and feminism.

Yanique employs multiple narrators and succeeds with developing the plot using that technique, although the island dialect she uses with Annette takes some getting used to. I found some aspects of VI history and geography enlightening, especially the little known island of Anegada and the impact of US prohibition on the VI rum trade. The potential destructiveness of Caribbean hurricanes is more familiar but is still well evoked in the novel. The focus on unusual sexual issues will definitely sell books, but may paint a more bizarre picture of the people of the Virgin Islands than they deserve. show less