A State of Independence

After a 20-year absence, Bertram Francis returns to his home in Saint Kitts on the eve of its independence. As he visits his old haunts, Bertram begins to feel like the 19-year-old he was when he left with a scholarship to study in England. He had expected the island to look different upon his return, but he wasn't prepared for the change in the attitudes of his family and friends. Bertram didn't realize he had burned so many bridges when he left. He was an outsider in England, and now he is an outsider in his childhood home.

There is a sense in which Saint Kitts is like the 19-year-old Bertram of twenty years ago, with hope in vague opportunities that will surely come its way with its new independent status. What will the nation look show more like twenty years from now? Will the tiny nation achieve any more than Bertram did with his independence? Phillips raises many questions and gives hints about his opinions, but he leaves the resolution up to his readers. show less

A State Of Independence covers a few days in the life of Bertram Francis, who returns to St Kitts just before independence after twenty years in the UK. In a sort of reverse [Small Island], he arrives with high expectations, but the people closest to him, far from welcoming him back, seem to want to teach him a lesson - his mother, his former girl, and an old schoolfriend who is now a government minister, and like all politicians, obsessed with the future but not above settling scores from the past.

As well as the personal story, the book wonders whether the Caribbean island was really gaining independence, or exchanging a formal relationship with the UK for cultural and economic dependence on the US.

I found this a fairly slight read, show more although in the final quarter of the book, Bertram started to take shape as a character, and began to find his direction. show less

A very touching story of a young man who, after leaving his native home of St. Kitts in the Caribbean to be educated in England, found very little welcome when he returned twenty years later. The reader can sympathize with the character, who had difficulty expressing his thoughts, which was part of his problem. But the main point is the change in attitude to someone who returns after an absence - particularly from a country that is more prosperous. It is often assumed that the person has changed somehow, got above himself. It was a sad little story but had a positive lift at the end, a reflection of the country's independence that was being celebrated at the time. Very enjoyable.

Bertram Francis returns to St. Kitts after living in England twenty years. He left the island after winning a scholarship to study abroad, expecting to be gone only three years. St. Kitts is gaining its independence in a few short days. Bertram expects his mother to welcome him, but she tells him to get out of her house. He discovers his brother died, and no one bothered to tell him. He expects his childhood best friend who is now an important official to welcome him, but he tells him to return to England. We find Bertram remembering the way things were and discover how things are now. It's a short read, but one that reminds the reader "You can't go home again."