The Last Warner Woman

An elongated short story.

Oh dear, this book was such a disappointment. The narrative had barely enough content for a short story and even that was repeated in several versions. We were subjected to one version by Adamine Bustamante, the Warner Woman herself and then another, boringly similar version, by the writer who was apparently narrating her story.
I had hoped for much more detail and character analysis of the inhabitants of the leper colony but they were merely a passing phase.

The story started with The Original Pearline Portious, followed later by her daughter, Adamante, also known (incorrectly) as Pearline Portious.
TOPP made knitted doilies but refused to submit to convention and make them white; she was knitting in rainbow show more colours. Having failed to sell them at the market she found herself at a leper colony where she obtained an order for knitted bandages. So began her journey away from home and into independence.
Adamine is born in the leper colony and the book is really about her rather than her mother as she relates her life to the Writer Man and learns that she has the ability to tell the future - or 'Warn'. But here, again, I felt there was little substance, as she never really used her skills to any effect other than realising what effect her departure from the leper colony had had.

I found the narrative pretty slow, with little to redeem it. If I hadn't been reading the book to review it I think I would have given up, and having now finished, I don't think I'd have missed much.
I enjoyed reading the reviews by other Amazon.co.uk reviewers, however, as I can see now where the book was heading, I'm only sorry I didn't get so much out of it. I would therefore say it might be worth a read - hopefully you will enjoy it as much as others have. show less

I am a Jamaican and so without much effort I could understand that this is not a literal story, and I also saw some of the underlying themes that are in the book and can appreciate the artistry. It is written by a poet who uses irony, allegory, meter, use of the surreal and other techniques to express his thoughts. I liked the fact that there are different covers which all expressed different aspects of the work.