A thoughtful and essential book to pack

books:


	• Caribbean (Traveller's Literary Companion) NTC/Contemporary Publishing Company, 1997 - 408 pages average customer review:based on 1 review view larger image
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A thoughtful and essential book to pack

This is a thoughtful and insightful anthology, as essential to pack as your sunscreen, serving as an antidote to the superficial "sun and fun" approach of the commercial Caribbean vacation. The booklists themselves are a treasure chest for those who want to dig deeper, or just fill a valise with books that illuminate their destination.

There are plenty of guides to Caribbean resorts and beaches, but this is the only one dedicated to the region's literary treasures. James Ferguson provides a general introduction to each of 20 island groups, plus a book list, poetry and prose extracts, and notes (biographical and literary) on the authors whose works are extracted. Browsing the selections, you realize that Puerto Rico would be so much more enjoyable with a Luis Rafael Sánchez novel in hand, or some Julia de Burgos poetry to provide cultural context, and that it would be a shame to miss out on Brian Moore if you were going to Haiti. The extracts provide a literary smorgasbord that give an interesting view of each island, and more importantly, help you decide which poets and authors must be part of your trip. --Stephanie Gold

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