Ian Thomson’s The Dead Yard: Tales of Modern Jamaica (2009) explores a country that older Jamaicans in the Diaspora can barely recognize. In this non-fiction portrait, Thomson describes a Jamaica that has sunk into corruption, hopelessness, poverty, gang rule, and police brutality. Thompson travels through Jamaica, walking the streets, riding buses, and interviewing people from all walks of life- including those who are struggling to survive, others who are trying to make a difference, and yet others from a mostly complacent elite- to create an unforgettable portrait of a country that was once considered “a beacon of optimistic third world politics.” Once the source of much of Britain’s wealth and a tropical paradise for British planters, “where slaves grew sugar and the money flowed out in vast quantities,” Jamaica had a huge influence on British culture. The author explores the changes Jamaica has undergone in over four decades since independence from Britain in 1962. Thomson tries to make sense of Jamaica’s transformation from one of the richest Caribbean islands to what he calls “a new kind of hell.”
For full synopsis, see http://www.faber.co.uk/work/dead-yard/9780571227617/
I havn’t read the book but it would be interesting to see exactly what Mr Tompson’s views are really about. As a committed Jamaican and a post independent child my heart bleeds when i see the economic conditions that exist in such a culturally and resoucefully rich country. I have followed the last five premiers from misters Manley&Seaga to the present and while i respect the positive message of Sir Patrick i have basically given up on hope for a better Ja.Case in point $5000 bill?Zimbabwe here we come and we(Ja) are not under any sanctions like Zimbabwe.
By: herbert oliphant on June 15, 2009
at 8:53 am