Thursday night renowned author Jamaica Kincaid delivered a reading to mark the first event of Brown's Caribbean Heritage Week 2005. The event filled Sayles Hall with current undergrads, graduate students, alums, faculty and President Ruth Simmons - an "old friend," said Kincaid.
The reading coincides with the publication of Kincaid's latest book, "Among Flowers: A Walk in the Himalaya," a National Geographic Directions account of her trip to Nepal for "seed collecting." But Kincaid also discussed her "endless obsession with her mother" and read from two of her novels.
In his introduction, Professor of Africana Studies Paget Henry reviewed the import of Kincaid's writing within "the tradition of feminist writing" as well as the "discourse of Caribbean existentialism ... (and historicism)."
Henry, who grew up with Kincaid on the island of Antigua, praised her for her exploration of "Africana spirituality" and her "genre-bending" work.
Many members of the crowd closed their eyes as Kincaid lowered her voice to read pieces Henry described as "all so beautifully written."
Her novel "Mr. Potter" would be "great to read to children," said Laura Wood '03.5.
Kincaid's conversational tone elicited laughter from the crowd, especially when her cell phone rang mid-reading. She also offered amusing consolation to young writers when reflecting upon her own work: "All young writers want to remove all old writers ... it is essential ... it is wrong ... (and) you must think this of me."
During this excerpt Kincaid was careful to point out the irony of her "transgression": as a woman from the Caribbean she was once looked at "by the prosperous part of the world," and now she travels "from the prosperous part to look at (Nepal)."
Brown Bookstore representatives sold almost half of the 120 Kincaid books they brought to Sayles. "People are buying their favorite books," said saleswoman Susan Schlesinger.
Dominique Bridge '07, said Kincaid was "great - funny and humble." Bridge, a sophomore from Jamaica, plans on attending many of this week's events, but was most excited about Thursday's reading. She first read Kincaid's "A Small Place" in Assistant Professor of Comparative Literature Esther Whitfield's first-year seminar CO 81: "Caribbean Re-Writes."
The theme for Caribbean Heritage Week is "Many Islands, Many Cultures, One People," a title that co-coordinators Carey Turnquest '07 and Michaela Bayard '07 have translated into Spanish and French. The trilingual title reflects the diversity of the Caribbean while "bring(ing) in the so many not embraced," Turnquest said.
They have been preparing for this week since October, developing a program that can represent the complexity of the Caribbean and move beyond the exotic image that the region is typically "shoved into," said Turnquest, who is from Nassau Bahamas. He has used this opportunity as a coordinator "to learn more and to share more."
Turnquest is most excited about the week's convocation Wednesday. Keynote speaker Donna Hope will discuss Dancehall music, and the event will feature a Trinidad steel band, he said.
