First published 2018
An old slave breaks from his plantation and runs into the thick rainforest of Martinique. His master follows close behind with a hunting mastiff trained to track runaways. The forest swallows all three men into its ancient darkness. Trees and vines grow so dense they block out time itself. The old man meets the spirits of dead slaves who whisper their stories. The master discovers his power means nothing against the wilderness. Even the dog changes as the jungle strips away everything familiar. The forest becomes a place where past and present merge, where the voices of the murdered demand justice. Patrick Chamoiseau transforms this chase into something larger than escape. The old slave carries the weight of his people's suffering but also their endurance. In the green maze of Martinique's interior, three lives collide with the island's buried history of violence and survival.
Genres: literary-fiction, historical-fiction, african-literature, adventure
Vibes: atmospheric, emotional, lyrical, thought-provoking
Tropes: man-vs-nature, man-vs-self
Setting: Martinique
Period: 19th-century
118 pages · Kindle Edition · Dialogue Books
Content warnings: colonialism, slavery, violence