Novel · A way to begin
Angel
Merle Collins · 1987
Synopsis
In the village of Hermitage, in Grenada, Doodsie, a peasant woman struggling with poverty, and her husband Allan watch their daughter Angel grow up, born around 1951, the year the workers rise up against the white owners of the cane and cocoa estates. When the leader of this revolt becomes corrupt, the mother instinctively knows which side to take; Angel, whom university has opened to Black Power and decolonisation, is more divided, and the two women thus live through thirty years of the island's history.
Context
Published in London in 1987 by The Women's Press, then in Seattle the following year, the novel follows the political awakening of three generations of women, from the revolt of 1951 to the revolution of 1979 and the invasion of 1983. The author alternates French-based Creole, Grenadian English and standard English, gives her sections titles in Creole and weaves proverbs, songs, tales and poems into the narrative. She revised and expanded the final part for a new edition from Peepal Tree Press.
Who it is for
A novel in English mixed with Creole; knowing the history of Grenada, from 1951 to 1983, sheds light on the reading.
Prizes and reception
Very favourably received on publication, it is regarded as its author's most important work.
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