Sharon Gordon

Broschiertes Buch

Sheribaby

A Little Girl's Big Voice in Post-Independence Jamaica

Beschreibung

SHERIBABY: A Little Girl's Big Voice in Post-Independence Jamaica Sheribaby is a feisty, full of spunk, insight and charm almost seven-year-old who soaks up every aspect of her life, and all that's happening around her like a sponge. Sheribaby has a strong sense of self although she is only six and half years old, she is a little girl with a mouth and an attitude older than herself. Sheribaby delves into a slice of life, in a world that borrows heavily from real life places, people and events and could very well have happened in that time but this is a story of fiction. This is a story many in the diaspora of a certain age will identify with. It's a story about life in yesteryear, post-Independence Jamaica 1962. This story touches on the political, the social, the financial, the emotional, the "churchical" and the psychological dynamics colliding during that time. Themes of domestic, sexual, physical and emotional abuse, examinations of the irrational reverence in political party identity, who are you JLP or PNP? Sheribaby mentions Catholic school indoctrination for success via high scholastic standards, the cultural references to Rastafari and Miss Lou, Jamaican folklore and the language of Patois sets Sheribaby apart for serving up a well-seasoned, old school, Jamaican style stew of cultural and historical context that support the stories being told. Sheribaby is not just a well told tale of an adventurous little girl turned social commentator, curiously attuned to the realities of Classism in post-colonial Jamaica within her own family and her wider community. Sheribaby speaks to those nuanced perceptions in addition to perceptions based on skin color, and how people present, where your family comes from, which party you belong to, and which school you attended. Music appears as a motif throughout Sheribaby and so does, the practice of prayer, spiced with liberal sprinklings of Jamaican idiomatic expressions, and the cultural references to the island's world renowned cuisine. All this happens seamlessly and is made without force. The story flows for it really is just that, a story offering a narrow lens into the life of a little girl, who seems so much older than her age, growing up in Rollington Town in Kingston, Jamaica, during the years, 1969 to 1975.

Produktdetails

• Verlag: TSO Productions
• Seitenzahl: 290
• Erscheinungstermin: 31. März 2025
• Englisch
• Abmessung: 216mm x 140mm x 17mm
• Gewicht: 336g
• ISBN-13: 9798992462807
• Artikelnr.: 73542505

Rezensionen

5.0 out of 5 stars Quintessential Jamaican Novel … a Must Read! Sharon Gordon has written the quintessential Jamaican novel, yet in a way it is at the same time a most intimate and privately revealing novel. Sheribaby is an experience, multi-layered and raw. The author transports us back to growing up in Kingston Jamaica in the 70s with ease and fluidity. Sharon's deft and skilled writing releases us into the world of Sheribaby with references to places and a time that renews our own Jamaican experiences. We see a brave and bold author writing through the eyes of a brave and bold child. Through the use of the language of the people "patois" we get to relive our own unique Jamaican experiences through the use of words, expressions and

idioms, street and school references etc. that typify the Jamaican experience. This novel has us laughing, crying, longing, reminiscing, disgusted, crazed and sometimes all at once! As we emote with Sheribaby we find that we simultaneously emotionally connect with our own little Jamaican selves. This happened to me in a way that I had not experienced in over 40 plus years since leaving Jamaica. Sharon does this by venturing into areas such as mother daughter dynamic, sexual molestation, church and religion, obeah, class, color and politics to name a few. She does this with honesty and integrity staying true to the time, her characters and the Jamaican culture. All while keeping the story moving and entertaining and the music of the time and the vibrancy of the culture steadily beating in the background throughout. This novel is a must read for anyone who wants a good read and certainly for any Jamaican or anyone connected to Jamaica, the Caribbean or to the diaspora. Sharon Gordon you have made us proud! Erica H.