Lyonel Trouillot Book order

Set in Haiti, this satirical novel blends magical realism with a vivid portrayal of everyday life, exploring the interplay between supernatural forces and the realities faced by its characters. Lyonel Trouillot intricately weaves dreams and reality, creating a unique narrative that reflects the complexities of his homeland. Through this lens, the novel delves into themes of culture, identity, and the influence of the supernatural on daily existence.

Set in early 2000s Haiti, the narrative captures the resilience of a nation transitioning from dictatorship to a new era. Through the eyes of an anonymous, disillusioned young male student, the story unfolds via journal entries that introduce a vibrant community center in Port-au-Prince. Here, a diverse cast of characters—including friends, revolutionaries, and a mentor known as "the little professor"—interact amidst the backdrop of foreign peacekeepers. Trouillot's work serves as both a tribute and farewell to a pivotal time in Haiti's history.

Lyonel Trouillot?s harrowing novel depicts a night of blazing violence in modern-day Port-au-Prince and recalls hundreds of years of violence stretching back even before the birth of Haiti in the fires of revolution. Three narrators?a madam, a taxi driver, and a post office employee?describe in almost hallucinatory terms the escalating chaos of a bloody uprising that pits the partisans of the Prophet against the murderous might of the great dictator Deceased Forever-Immortal. ø The drama of promise and betrayal in Haitian life inform?s Street of Lost Footsteps with the grim irony and savage tenderness characteristic of writers for whom the repetitiveness of history has gone beyond tragedy, through farce, and on into insanity. With impressive originality and touching immediacy, Trouillot explores the nature of political oppression, memory, and truth.