Short stories
The Fantasy Eaters
Subramani · 1988
Synopsis
Ten short stories, from “Sautu” to “Gone Bush”, by way of “Marigolds” and “Dear Primitive”. They portray uprooted workers, exploited and bullied by the masters of the colonial plantations, then the educated children of today's cane cutters, grappling with poverty, a dull anger and the bewilderment of the second generation. The narrative, often fragmented, questions the authority of the narrator and the reliability of those who tell the story.
Context
Published in Washington in 1988 by Three Continents Press, an American publisher of Third World literatures, the collection brings together stories written over the preceding decade. Paul Sharrad notes a broken style, which speaks of confusion and unease, but which is held together by a lucid intelligence, and quotes Vijay Mishra's remark on these early stories, in which the pastoral hides danger. It has been read as a reflection on the art of storytelling and its unreliable storytellers. The collection was reissued and expanded in 2017 under the title Wild Flowers.
Who it is for
A short collection of one hundred and forty-two pages, with often elliptical stories; no French translation has been found.
Prizes and reception
The Literary Encyclopedia regards the author as one of the first prose writers, essayists and critics of Fiji.
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