Earl Lovelace is a novelist, playwright, and short-story writer whose work draws on an intimate knowledge of rural Trinidad. Through his characters, he explores the complexities of post-colonial society, the impact of history on the present, and the search for identity. Lovelace's style is characterized by its keen insight into human psychology and its vibrant portrayal of Caribbean culture and spirit.
There have been many great and enduring works of literature by Caribbean authors over the last century. The Caribbean Contemporary Classics collection celebrates these deep and vibrant stories, overflowing with life and acute observations about society.
James, Earl Lovelace's Caribbean classic tells the story of Calvary Hill - poverty stricken, pot-holed and garbage-strewn - where the slum shacks 'leap out of the red dirt and stone, thin like smoke, fragile like kite paper, balancing on their rickety pillars as broomsticks on the edge of a juggler's nose'.