Me Dying Trial (Bluestreak)

Rating:
Summary: A Surprise Jewel
Review: Anyone with a love of West Indian literature should real ME DYING TRIAL. Likewise, those with an interest in the gay and lesbian literature that has been coming from Caribbean writers over the past decade. ME DYING TRIAL is the first novel of Jamaican-born Patricia Powell who was only in her 20s when the book was published. It is an amazing accomplishment for a young writer. ME DYING TRIAL traces the life of Gwennie, a bright but unhappy Jamaican woman who has many children, an abusive husband, and a great deal of ambition. We feel we know her intimately and two of her children - Rudi and Peppy - are certainly memorable long after the book is finished as is Ma Cora, the woman who helps to raise Peppy. This is a novel about survival, about the complexities of family, about expectations, about hurt and loss. For those reading of the Caribbean for the first time, it gives a real flavor and feeling for the West Indies. And for those interested in finding characters to identify with in literature who feel slightly out of step with their families, ME DYING TRIAL has a lot to offer. The book may never be a classic, but it is well-written in gorgeously rendered dialect, and it was written by a brave and intelligent young woman.