What do you think?
Rate this book
So Many Islands: Stories from the Caribbean, Mediterranean, Indian Ocean and Pacific
Introduction by Marlon James and Sia Figuel
So Many Islands breaks out bold new writing from the distant shores of countries in the Caribbean, Mediterranean, Indian and Pacific oceans. Here you will find poems about revolution and protest. You will be transported to Marakei, ‘the women’s island’, and join the battle to save a beached whale. Alongside family politics, So Many Islands tackles nuclear testing and climate change – global issues that are close to the heart of these precariously poised communities. Giving voice to their challenges and triumphs, these writers create a vibrant portrait of what it is like to live and love on the small islands they call home. Readers everywhere will find universal connections with their words and worlds.
Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Bermuda, Cyprus, Grenada, Jamaica, Kiribati, Malta, Mauritius, Niue, Rotuma (Fiji), Samoa, Singapore, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Tonga, Trinidad and Tobago
ABOUT THE EDITOR(S)
Nicholas Laughlin (Trinidad & Tobago) is the editor of the Caribbean Review of Books and Caribbean Beat and programme director of the Bocas Lit Fest, an annual literary festival held in Trinidad. His poetry, essays and reviews have been widely published. His debut collection of poems, The Strange Years of My Life was published in 2015 by Peepal Tree Press. He lives and works in Trinidad & Tobago.
So Many Islands breaks out bold new writing from the distant shores of countries in the Caribbean, Mediterranean, Indian and Pacific oceans. Here you will find poems about revolution and protest. You will be transported to Marakei, ‘the women’s island’, and join the battle to save a beached whale. Alongside family politics, So Many Islands tackles nuclear testing and climate change – global issues that are close to the heart of these precariously poised communities. Giving voice to their challenges and triumphs, these writers create a vibrant portrait of what it is like to live and love on the small islands they call home. Readers everywhere will find universal connections with their words and worlds.
Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Bermuda, Cyprus, Grenada, Jamaica, Kiribati, Malta, Mauritius, Niue, Rotuma (Fiji), Samoa, Singapore, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Tonga, Trinidad and Tobago
ABOUT THE EDITOR(S)
Nicholas Laughlin (Trinidad & Tobago) is the editor of the Caribbean Review of Books and Caribbean Beat and programme director of the Bocas Lit Fest, an annual literary festival held in Trinidad. His poetry, essays and reviews have been widely published. His debut collection of poems, The Strange Years of My Life was published in 2015 by Peepal Tree Press. He lives and works in Trinidad & Tobago.
256 pages, Paperback
First published April 2, 2018
12 people are currently reading
497 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews
March 27, 2018
So Many Islands Is a collection of short stories, poems, essays from the Caribbean, Mediterranean, Indian Ocean and Pacific. When I heard about this collection of stories, I instantly gravitated to the idea of different island people coming together to speak their truth in various written forms.
I think Marlon James's introduction perfectly summarizes this collection and the writing "It takes a big mind, or at least a big worldview to write from such a small space..." I thoroughly enjoyed this collection and I really felt at home reading this book.
The major standouts for me were:
Tread Lightly by Emma Kate Lewis (Malta)
The Plundering by Heather Barker (Barbados)
Granny Dead (by Melanie Schwapp (Jamaica)
A Child of Four Women by Marita Davies (Kiribati)
Unaccounted For by Tracy Assing (Trinidad and Tobago)
Coming off the long run by Cecil Browne (Saint Vincent and the Grendadines)
If you are from an island, currently living on an island or planning on visiting an island, you should definitely pick up a copy of this collection. Outstanding stories from amazing Islanders!
I think Marlon James's introduction perfectly summarizes this collection and the writing "It takes a big mind, or at least a big worldview to write from such a small space..." I thoroughly enjoyed this collection and I really felt at home reading this book.
The major standouts for me were:
Tread Lightly by Emma Kate Lewis (Malta)
The Plundering by Heather Barker (Barbados)
Granny Dead (by Melanie Schwapp (Jamaica)
A Child of Four Women by Marita Davies (Kiribati)
Unaccounted For by Tracy Assing (Trinidad and Tobago)
Coming off the long run by Cecil Browne (Saint Vincent and the Grendadines)
If you are from an island, currently living on an island or planning on visiting an island, you should definitely pick up a copy of this collection. Outstanding stories from amazing Islanders!
July 30, 2018
This review first appeared on MediaDiversified.org on March 11, 2018.
So Many Islands circumnavigates the local to global essence of human experiences from Oceania to the Atlantic to the Caribbean and Indian Oceans. These contributors’ seventeen voices are as distinctive as the cultural anthems of each of their countries of origin. There is nothing quaint or precious. Their words bite and sting. They rebuke the popular notion inherited from the trickle-down influence of a “past of colonial exploitation” mentioned in Nicholas Laughlin’s foreword of indigenous islanders, particularly black and brown non-Anglo/Aryan/Caucasian/white citizens, as malleable, adult-sized children.
The organically developed theme of islands as microcosms of the human condition starts with the poignant and pragmatic introduction by Marlon James. On page 16 he writes, “This is the real globalism, a glorious cacophony that seeks no common ground other than attitude… and writers who write with nothing hanging on their backs.”
Some standouts among a stellar lineup remained in my thoughts hours after taking in the last word. “The Plundering” by Heather Barker from Barbados begins innocently enough until a menacing vibe swells to a crescendo of Trading Places collides with The Purge.
Cultural appropriation gets skewered in “Neo-Walt Village” by Mere Taito from Rotuma (Fiji). Some stanzas read as if written to be sung to the tune of a certain earworm song that repeats during a slow boat ride at what’s been self-proclaimed the happiest place on planet Earth while island nations are strip-mined of their uniqueness to pad corporate coffers.
The eerie “Granny Dead” by Melanie Schwap from Jamaica manages to pack a novel’s-worth of imagery and commentary about complicated family dynamics, generational conflict, social class as caste system, skin color as an indicator of intrinsic worthiness, and gender-based double standards with prose that lilts across a few pages filled with everyday heartbreaks and layers of grief.
One recurring element that reads as a distinctly islander and not mainland or Western cultural trait is an inherent respect and appreciation for the existence and wisdom of the elders. From Papa Dickey in Angela Barry’s “Beached” to Grandma in Mikoyan Vekula’s “The Maala” and Crazy Anni in “Roses for Mister Thorne” by Grenada’s Jacob Ross, a community’s most senior citizens are consulted and (often grudgingly) obeyed even when younger people feel impatient, annoyed, and confused when interacting with them. Is there something about the scarcity of human resources in island nations that predisposes them to recognize the value of what older people have to offer their society?
In the afterword on page 199, Sia Figiel composes a fitting comparison of the art of sewing one flower to another with a singing technique that connects songs, which is an appropriate description of this anthology as a clarion call to action in defense and preservation of island nations.
https://mediadiversified.org/2018/03/...
So Many Islands circumnavigates the local to global essence of human experiences from Oceania to the Atlantic to the Caribbean and Indian Oceans. These contributors’ seventeen voices are as distinctive as the cultural anthems of each of their countries of origin. There is nothing quaint or precious. Their words bite and sting. They rebuke the popular notion inherited from the trickle-down influence of a “past of colonial exploitation” mentioned in Nicholas Laughlin’s foreword of indigenous islanders, particularly black and brown non-Anglo/Aryan/Caucasian/white citizens, as malleable, adult-sized children.
The organically developed theme of islands as microcosms of the human condition starts with the poignant and pragmatic introduction by Marlon James. On page 16 he writes, “This is the real globalism, a glorious cacophony that seeks no common ground other than attitude… and writers who write with nothing hanging on their backs.”
Some standouts among a stellar lineup remained in my thoughts hours after taking in the last word. “The Plundering” by Heather Barker from Barbados begins innocently enough until a menacing vibe swells to a crescendo of Trading Places collides with The Purge.
Cultural appropriation gets skewered in “Neo-Walt Village” by Mere Taito from Rotuma (Fiji). Some stanzas read as if written to be sung to the tune of a certain earworm song that repeats during a slow boat ride at what’s been self-proclaimed the happiest place on planet Earth while island nations are strip-mined of their uniqueness to pad corporate coffers.
The eerie “Granny Dead” by Melanie Schwap from Jamaica manages to pack a novel’s-worth of imagery and commentary about complicated family dynamics, generational conflict, social class as caste system, skin color as an indicator of intrinsic worthiness, and gender-based double standards with prose that lilts across a few pages filled with everyday heartbreaks and layers of grief.
One recurring element that reads as a distinctly islander and not mainland or Western cultural trait is an inherent respect and appreciation for the existence and wisdom of the elders. From Papa Dickey in Angela Barry’s “Beached” to Grandma in Mikoyan Vekula’s “The Maala” and Crazy Anni in “Roses for Mister Thorne” by Grenada’s Jacob Ross, a community’s most senior citizens are consulted and (often grudgingly) obeyed even when younger people feel impatient, annoyed, and confused when interacting with them. Is there something about the scarcity of human resources in island nations that predisposes them to recognize the value of what older people have to offer their society?
In the afterword on page 199, Sia Figiel composes a fitting comparison of the art of sewing one flower to another with a singing technique that connects songs, which is an appropriate description of this anthology as a clarion call to action in defense and preservation of island nations.
https://mediadiversified.org/2018/03/...
September 19, 2018
So Many Islands is a fitting title for this anthology. These inspired by life short stories, essays, poems remind us of how akin our experiences as islanders are, beyond the commonalities of our "insulation and isolation". Tears welled up for a few, I was pleasantly surprised for others and I nodded my head with understanding as I read on. I had a few laughs while reading ''Coming off the Long Run - Cecil Browne''; I appreciated the lightheartedness and humor, it more or less sealed the deal or confirmed the balance and versatility of this work.
Avocado by Kendel Hippolyte got me thinking about the possible disappearance of my island, my home and our culture. About the ease with which this disappearance occurs and how can I preserve my sweet island.
My faves were -
Oceania - Karlo Mila
The Plundering - Heather Barker
Neo-Walt Village Combing - Mere Taito
Granny Dead - Melanie Schwapp
Immunity - Damon Chua
1980s Pacific Testing
Coming off the Long Run - Cecil Browne (
Something Tiny - Erato Ioannou
Avocado - Kendel Hippolyte
Avocado by Kendel Hippolyte got me thinking about the possible disappearance of my island, my home and our culture. About the ease with which this disappearance occurs and how can I preserve my sweet island.
My faves were -
Oceania - Karlo Mila
The Plundering - Heather Barker
Neo-Walt Village Combing - Mere Taito
Granny Dead - Melanie Schwapp
Immunity - Damon Chua
1980s Pacific Testing
Coming off the Long Run - Cecil Browne (
Something Tiny - Erato Ioannou
Avocado - Kendel Hippolyte
May 14, 2022
The writers collected here have written stories that vibrate with identity of place, people, and history. The poignancy found within each verse, paragraph, or page was felt as this reader whose own identity was molded in the Caribbean saw familiar ideas and ways of being and belonging.
August 18, 2023
So Many Islands is an anthology consisting of essays, poetry, and short stories from islanders in the Caribbean and Mediterranean Seas as well as the Indian and Pacific Oceans. These authors and poets seek to redefine the worldview of what it means to be an islander.
This anthology covered so very many topics and it's hard to summarize their collective themes in few words beyond the obvious: these are stories about islands. However, that feels like an oversimplification as this anthology explores different people, traditions, time periods, and environments. In the Foreword, the editor said they chose stories that approached island life in unique and compelling ways, which rings true and was very successfully done. This anthology reminded me of why I love short stories; they challenge authors and readers alike to imagine entire worlds within such a short amount of pages that it feels almost impossible. The landing is hard, but some stories triumph. This collection had a LOT of triumphs not just in short stories, but in poetry and essays as well. My personal favorites were:
- Oceania by Karlo Mila (poetry)
- Neo-Walt Village Combing by Mere Taito (poetry)
- A Child of Four Women by Marita Davies (essay)
- Immunity by Damon Chua (short story)
- Beached by Angela Barry (short story)
- Perilous Journey by Tammi Browne-Bannister (short story)
- Unaccounted For by Tracy Assing (essay)
- Something Tiny by Erato Ioannou (short story)
There was a good amount of variety among the authors, although it is worth mentioning that around 50% of the authors come from Caribbean countries. In the Foreword, the editor said that they considered whether there should be another collection solely on Caribbean authors because of how many submissions they received and I think it would be great for the Commonwealth Foundation to expand upon this book and perhaps create a series exploring authors and poets from each region. Something else to consider is that this anthology is not necessarily organized by specific themes or subsections. At times, I felt this worked against the book because some stories felt oddly organized considering the stories before and after. In the Afterword, Sia Figiel does a great job of building connections between stories and creating arbitrary sections through her reflections on the book. Yet, I think some of this context would have been more obvious to readers with a slightly different organization or structure being used. Overall though, I have found many new favorites through this anthology and found it to be almost a master class in perfecting the short story across different forms!
This anthology covered so very many topics and it's hard to summarize their collective themes in few words beyond the obvious: these are stories about islands. However, that feels like an oversimplification as this anthology explores different people, traditions, time periods, and environments. In the Foreword, the editor said they chose stories that approached island life in unique and compelling ways, which rings true and was very successfully done. This anthology reminded me of why I love short stories; they challenge authors and readers alike to imagine entire worlds within such a short amount of pages that it feels almost impossible. The landing is hard, but some stories triumph. This collection had a LOT of triumphs not just in short stories, but in poetry and essays as well. My personal favorites were:
- Oceania by Karlo Mila (poetry)
- Neo-Walt Village Combing by Mere Taito (poetry)
- A Child of Four Women by Marita Davies (essay)
- Immunity by Damon Chua (short story)
- Beached by Angela Barry (short story)
- Perilous Journey by Tammi Browne-Bannister (short story)
- Unaccounted For by Tracy Assing (essay)
- Something Tiny by Erato Ioannou (short story)
There was a good amount of variety among the authors, although it is worth mentioning that around 50% of the authors come from Caribbean countries. In the Foreword, the editor said that they considered whether there should be another collection solely on Caribbean authors because of how many submissions they received and I think it would be great for the Commonwealth Foundation to expand upon this book and perhaps create a series exploring authors and poets from each region. Something else to consider is that this anthology is not necessarily organized by specific themes or subsections. At times, I felt this worked against the book because some stories felt oddly organized considering the stories before and after. In the Afterword, Sia Figiel does a great job of building connections between stories and creating arbitrary sections through her reflections on the book. Yet, I think some of this context would have been more obvious to readers with a slightly different organization or structure being used. Overall though, I have found many new favorites through this anthology and found it to be almost a master class in perfecting the short story across different forms!
March 29, 2025
Excellent anthology, varied and interesting and in the end with a reasonable thematic thread. I personally found it to be rather Caribbean-heavy. I understand that likely reflects the Press and what submissions they got, and there isn't a story I would cut, there are just, well, so many islands that rarely see representation. I keep wondering what #18 and #19 were, what other stories we could hear.
July 5, 2018
A wonderfully multi-layered collection of essays, poems, and stories from authors hailing from island nations around the globe, particularly the Caribbean and the Pacific. Many if not all of these authors will be unfamiliar to US audiences due to the small percentage of non-US literature imported to our shores. Literature can be a window and door into the world and this collection does that - look through it into those worlds and cultures you have not yet met.
Read
December 9, 2018A great collection of island-inspired short stories, poems and essay. The perspectives were refreshing and the interwoven historical details really fleshed out the narratives.
See a full review here --> http://susumba.com/books/reviews/so-m...
See a full review here --> http://susumba.com/books/reviews/so-m...
May 13, 2022
I very much enjoyed spending time on warm-climate islands of the world. We have here 20 contributions, introduction / foreword / afterword, short stories and poems, from 17 island-nations: 8 from the Caribbean, 5 from the Pacific, 2 from the Mediterranean, 1 from the Indian Ocean and 1 from the Singapore Strait / South China Sea. As with any anthology, there were some contributions I liked more and others I liked less. First my top four:
Angela Barry (Bermuda), Beached (story). Wonderful evocation of what it means to be an islander: the possibilities and the limitations, the being stranded on a 'rock', the connection to the world via the endless horizon. All rolled up into a memorable night with a whale and some boyhood regrets.
Mere Taito (woman writer from Rotuma, Fiji) Neo-Walt Village Combing (poem). Clever, incisive and thinky about the exoticising and prettifying of the Pacific for the Disney film corporation (I'm thinking 'Moana' which, btw, I learned from this book means 'blue').
Marita Davies (Kiribati), A child of Four Women (story). Set on the tiny atoll of Marakei. I google mapped it via Satellite view and marvelled. Suggestive re ex-pat return and looking for / finding rootedness. Also: this entire atoll will be submerged due to the climate emergency.
Karlo Mila (woman writer from Tonga), Oceania (poem). The ocean, all the oceans, as mother. 'her continuous blue body / holding even / my weight'. And: 'in order to be held / by the body water of the world'.
The others, grouped into region:
Singapore:
Damon Chua, Immunity (story). Tentative melancholy of gay soldier-recruits during quarantine on Tekong, a tiny island off Singapore. That's what you learn about islands: there are always ever smaller islands near other islands.
Indian Ocean:
Mauritius. Sabah Carrim (woman writer), Plaine-Verte (story). Plaine-Verte is, I learned from this story, a neighbourhood of poor people. Also, that the language of people is infused with Francisms. A 17-year-old girl who is top of her class is about to be married off.
Mediterranean:
Malta. Emma Kate Lewis, Tread Lightly (story). Childhood summers in Mellieha and on Gozo , another of those off-shoot islands.
Cyprus. Erato Ioannou, Something Tiny (story). An old woman buries the one bone that is left of her husband who disappeared decades ago during Civil War violence.
Caribbean (from south to north):
Trinidad & Tobago. Tracy Assing, Unaccounted For (memoir-essay). The lost indigenous people and their heirs: Caribs, Arawaks, Taino, Yaio, Nepuyo, Karina. I know nothing about these people so this was good to read. I now want to know more.
Grenada. Jacob Ross, Roses for Mister Thorn (story). Crazy Anni gets involved in the revolution. Alludes to a period in Grenadan history about which I know nothing.
St Vincent & the Grenadines. (Even the name of this nation already highlights its archipelago-ness.) Cecil Browne, Coming Off the Long Run. A fun story about cricket.
Barbados: Heather Barker, The Plundering (story). The Hunger Games in post-colonial times.
St Lucia. Kendel Hippolyte, Avocado (poem). 'i woke one morning and the Caribbean was gone'.
Antigua & Barbuda. Tammi Browne-Bannister, Perilous Journey (story). Set in Barbados. The sight of a giant centipede on her wall sets off a woman's dreams and musings on being on a ship, carrying enslaved people from Africa.
Jamaica. Melanie Schwapp, Granny Dead (story). About the relationship of a young woman to her modern parents who want her to do well in school and her traditional grandmother who brews all manner of medicinal herbs, both licit and illicit.
Pacific:
Samoa. Fetuelemoana Elisara (woman writer), 1980s Pacific Testing (poem). The French who caused the woes and France where you must go to be treated: unwanted dependencies.
Niue. Mikoyan Vekula (man writer), The Maala (poem). Something about the taro crop. This didn't really resonate with me.
Front- and backmatter:
Nicholas Laughlin (Trinidad & Tobago), Foreword. This book is sponsored by the Commonwealth Foundation so there is a bias here towards islands as part of the former Imperial invasions and European manoeuvrings of Great Britain and the English language. Still, other colonialisms shine through. I would love to read an anthology of ALL the islands, nation-state or no, with translations (or even better, bi-lingual side-by-side presentations) from non-English and also non-European languages.
Marlon James (Jamaica), Introduction. 'that you can be singular yet part of a regional group'
Sia Figiel (Samoa), Afterword. 'the sharing of our aloneness'
Other writers and people mentioned whom I'd like to pursue further: Epeli Hau'ofa. Anote Tong (nominated for Nobel Peace Prize for work on climate change). Kathy Dede Nein Jetnil-Kijiner. Alejo Carpentier. Reinaldo Arenas.
Format: Second-hand paperpack with yellowing coarse pages and a nice sky-blue cover with a white pattern of swirls, waves and birds. Fairly stiff-spined.
Read for my own personal 2022 challenge 'set on an island'. Chosen to read in the month of May because Americans are celebrating Asian American and Pacific Islander (diaspora) authors in that month. Also for the #readtheworld21 challenge: May 'Pacific / Oceania' and June 'Caribbean'.
Angela Barry (Bermuda), Beached (story). Wonderful evocation of what it means to be an islander: the possibilities and the limitations, the being stranded on a 'rock', the connection to the world via the endless horizon. All rolled up into a memorable night with a whale and some boyhood regrets.
Mere Taito (woman writer from Rotuma, Fiji) Neo-Walt Village Combing (poem). Clever, incisive and thinky about the exoticising and prettifying of the Pacific for the Disney film corporation (I'm thinking 'Moana' which, btw, I learned from this book means 'blue').
Marita Davies (Kiribati), A child of Four Women (story). Set on the tiny atoll of Marakei. I google mapped it via Satellite view and marvelled. Suggestive re ex-pat return and looking for / finding rootedness. Also: this entire atoll will be submerged due to the climate emergency.
Karlo Mila (woman writer from Tonga), Oceania (poem). The ocean, all the oceans, as mother. 'her continuous blue body / holding even / my weight'. And: 'in order to be held / by the body water of the world'.
The others, grouped into region:
Singapore:
Damon Chua, Immunity (story). Tentative melancholy of gay soldier-recruits during quarantine on Tekong, a tiny island off Singapore. That's what you learn about islands: there are always ever smaller islands near other islands.
Indian Ocean:
Mauritius. Sabah Carrim (woman writer), Plaine-Verte (story). Plaine-Verte is, I learned from this story, a neighbourhood of poor people. Also, that the language of people is infused with Francisms. A 17-year-old girl who is top of her class is about to be married off.
Mediterranean:
Malta. Emma Kate Lewis, Tread Lightly (story). Childhood summers in Mellieha and on Gozo , another of those off-shoot islands.
Cyprus. Erato Ioannou, Something Tiny (story). An old woman buries the one bone that is left of her husband who disappeared decades ago during Civil War violence.
Caribbean (from south to north):
Trinidad & Tobago. Tracy Assing, Unaccounted For (memoir-essay). The lost indigenous people and their heirs: Caribs, Arawaks, Taino, Yaio, Nepuyo, Karina. I know nothing about these people so this was good to read. I now want to know more.
Grenada. Jacob Ross, Roses for Mister Thorn (story). Crazy Anni gets involved in the revolution. Alludes to a period in Grenadan history about which I know nothing.
St Vincent & the Grenadines. (Even the name of this nation already highlights its archipelago-ness.) Cecil Browne, Coming Off the Long Run. A fun story about cricket.
Barbados: Heather Barker, The Plundering (story). The Hunger Games in post-colonial times.
St Lucia. Kendel Hippolyte, Avocado (poem). 'i woke one morning and the Caribbean was gone'.
Antigua & Barbuda. Tammi Browne-Bannister, Perilous Journey (story). Set in Barbados. The sight of a giant centipede on her wall sets off a woman's dreams and musings on being on a ship, carrying enslaved people from Africa.
Jamaica. Melanie Schwapp, Granny Dead (story). About the relationship of a young woman to her modern parents who want her to do well in school and her traditional grandmother who brews all manner of medicinal herbs, both licit and illicit.
Pacific:
Samoa. Fetuelemoana Elisara (woman writer), 1980s Pacific Testing (poem). The French who caused the woes and France where you must go to be treated: unwanted dependencies.
Niue. Mikoyan Vekula (man writer), The Maala (poem). Something about the taro crop. This didn't really resonate with me.
Front- and backmatter:
Nicholas Laughlin (Trinidad & Tobago), Foreword. This book is sponsored by the Commonwealth Foundation so there is a bias here towards islands as part of the former Imperial invasions and European manoeuvrings of Great Britain and the English language. Still, other colonialisms shine through. I would love to read an anthology of ALL the islands, nation-state or no, with translations (or even better, bi-lingual side-by-side presentations) from non-English and also non-European languages.
Marlon James (Jamaica), Introduction. 'that you can be singular yet part of a regional group'
Sia Figiel (Samoa), Afterword. 'the sharing of our aloneness'
Other writers and people mentioned whom I'd like to pursue further: Epeli Hau'ofa. Anote Tong (nominated for Nobel Peace Prize for work on climate change). Kathy Dede Nein Jetnil-Kijiner. Alejo Carpentier. Reinaldo Arenas.
Format: Second-hand paperpack with yellowing coarse pages and a nice sky-blue cover with a white pattern of swirls, waves and birds. Fairly stiff-spined.
Read for my own personal 2022 challenge 'set on an island'. Chosen to read in the month of May because Americans are celebrating Asian American and Pacific Islander (diaspora) authors in that month. Also for the #readtheworld21 challenge: May 'Pacific / Oceania' and June 'Caribbean'.
March 23, 2019
I went searching for the ocean and found it in this collection. The poems, essays, and short stories have taken me on a magical journey around the world to 17 island nations, and have also propelled me forward and backward through time, and into parallel dimensions. A must read.
September 6, 2022
it takes
a big mind,
or at least
a big
world view
to write from
a small space.
E v e r y t h I n g
We write stands
One foot on land,
The other in the sea.
We can’t help it:
We’re from
Where the air is clear,
So it’s almost impossible
To think small.
MARLON JAMES
Islands hold a very important place in my heart, for unknown reasons; partly it is the ocean itself that holds my heart, and partly the idea that so much isolation can happen on the islands, like the Galapagos, that thrill my soul with singularity and uniqueness.
I love every mood and every type of beach, ocean, and island and try hard to reject any colonizing thoughts and narratives, but I almost sobbed when I met Antiguan natives on a tour of the island and learned how much their culture distrusts the sea, so that many do not learn to swim, and learn to fear it. It is not an untrue narrative, the ocean can be deadly, a beach can be deadly; but it surrounds them and is so beautiful to me, even just wading ankle deep, it breaks my heart. I understand how it can be tied up with continued inequality and continued servitude now to tourists. I was the tourist. It is a complicated joy. So I appreciate the vast array of perspectives here from all the islands of the world, some poems and some short stories, some nonfiction.
There are so many islands!
As many islands as the stars at night
On that branched tree from which meteors are shaken
Like fallen fruit around the schooner Flight.
Derek Wolcott
A Island is a World is the title of a novel by the late Trinidadian writer Samuel Selvon, and a sentence that summarizes something essential about human geography: islands, large or small, are indeed in some sense self-contained, worlds unto themselves. But the very sea that insulates and isolates- two verbs with a common root but crucially different meanings- is also the medium that connects one island to every other island and archipelagoes to continents. Nicolas Laughlin
To belong to an island is to look outwards, understanding that the horizon is not simply a boundary between what is visible and what is invisible, what is known and unknown, but a challenge: to imagine, to yearn, to leave, to search, and to return. Nicolas Laughlin
OCEANIA
Some days
I’ve been
On dry land
Too long
My ache
For ocean
So great
My eyes weep
Waves
My mouth
Mudflats
Popping with
Groping breath
Of crabs
My throat
An estuary
Salt crystallizing
On the tip of my tongue
My veins
Become
Rivers that flow
Straight out to sea
I call on the memory of water
And
I
Am
Star fish
In sea
Buoyed by
Lung balloons
And floating fat
I love the ocean
She loves me
Her continuous blue body
Holding even
My weight
Flat on my back
I feel her
Outstretched palms
Legs wide open
A star in worship
A meditation as old as the tide
…
Oh the simple faith
of the floating
letting go
in order to be held
by the body water of the world
some days
this love
is all I need.
Karlo Mila is an award-winning New Zealand poet, Fulbright Scholar, researcher, academic and author of Tongan, Samoan and European descent.
PERILOUS JOURNEY, TAMMI BROWNE-BANNISTER, ANTIGUA AND BARBUDA
In her dream, she is on a ship with The People. Twigs wearing tattered loincloths and Anasha in the purple camisole and pink cotton pajama pants she wore to bed that night. Anasha feels a-kind-of-way about wearing cotton. It was all she saw on television: black people picking cotton in the fields…women sing in their native tongue. Anasha does not know if they sing songs of consolation, yet she sings along with them. She feels everyone knows by heart the words to a wretched song. She picks up the language easily, and she’s surprised how fluently she sings, but no one can see this. Anasha thinks everyone yearns for a song of freedom. That must be what the women are singing, and that is what Anasha understands.
a big mind,
or at least
a big
world view
to write from
a small space.
E v e r y t h I n g
We write stands
One foot on land,
The other in the sea.
We can’t help it:
We’re from
Where the air is clear,
So it’s almost impossible
To think small.
MARLON JAMES
Islands hold a very important place in my heart, for unknown reasons; partly it is the ocean itself that holds my heart, and partly the idea that so much isolation can happen on the islands, like the Galapagos, that thrill my soul with singularity and uniqueness.
I love every mood and every type of beach, ocean, and island and try hard to reject any colonizing thoughts and narratives, but I almost sobbed when I met Antiguan natives on a tour of the island and learned how much their culture distrusts the sea, so that many do not learn to swim, and learn to fear it. It is not an untrue narrative, the ocean can be deadly, a beach can be deadly; but it surrounds them and is so beautiful to me, even just wading ankle deep, it breaks my heart. I understand how it can be tied up with continued inequality and continued servitude now to tourists. I was the tourist. It is a complicated joy. So I appreciate the vast array of perspectives here from all the islands of the world, some poems and some short stories, some nonfiction.
There are so many islands!
As many islands as the stars at night
On that branched tree from which meteors are shaken
Like fallen fruit around the schooner Flight.
Derek Wolcott
A Island is a World is the title of a novel by the late Trinidadian writer Samuel Selvon, and a sentence that summarizes something essential about human geography: islands, large or small, are indeed in some sense self-contained, worlds unto themselves. But the very sea that insulates and isolates- two verbs with a common root but crucially different meanings- is also the medium that connects one island to every other island and archipelagoes to continents. Nicolas Laughlin
To belong to an island is to look outwards, understanding that the horizon is not simply a boundary between what is visible and what is invisible, what is known and unknown, but a challenge: to imagine, to yearn, to leave, to search, and to return. Nicolas Laughlin
OCEANIA
Some days
I’ve been
On dry land
Too long
My ache
For ocean
So great
My eyes weep
Waves
My mouth
Mudflats
Popping with
Groping breath
Of crabs
My throat
An estuary
Salt crystallizing
On the tip of my tongue
My veins
Become
Rivers that flow
Straight out to sea
I call on the memory of water
And
I
Am
Star fish
In sea
Buoyed by
Lung balloons
And floating fat
I love the ocean
She loves me
Her continuous blue body
Holding even
My weight
Flat on my back
I feel her
Outstretched palms
Legs wide open
A star in worship
A meditation as old as the tide
…
Oh the simple faith
of the floating
letting go
in order to be held
by the body water of the world
some days
this love
is all I need.
Karlo Mila is an award-winning New Zealand poet, Fulbright Scholar, researcher, academic and author of Tongan, Samoan and European descent.
PERILOUS JOURNEY, TAMMI BROWNE-BANNISTER, ANTIGUA AND BARBUDA
In her dream, she is on a ship with The People. Twigs wearing tattered loincloths and Anasha in the purple camisole and pink cotton pajama pants she wore to bed that night. Anasha feels a-kind-of-way about wearing cotton. It was all she saw on television: black people picking cotton in the fields…women sing in their native tongue. Anasha does not know if they sing songs of consolation, yet she sings along with them. She feels everyone knows by heart the words to a wretched song. She picks up the language easily, and she’s surprised how fluently she sings, but no one can see this. Anasha thinks everyone yearns for a song of freedom. That must be what the women are singing, and that is what Anasha understands.
June 14, 2024
A collection of stories by authors residing in island states of the Commonwealth, from the Pacific Ocean and the Caribbean to Cyprus. A very beautiful initiative which highlights not only the culture of these countries but also the authors themselves. Each story has within it elements of the civilisation, customs and culture of the author's homeland. Stories that deal with nostalgia, tradition, joy, sorrow, fear, racism, and hope. The authors often use local language words instead of English ones, further enriching the experience for the reader.
All of them were very nice stories but my personal favourite is the poem "Oceania" by Karlo Mila from Tonga.
Some of the stories could be made into very nice short films (7-10 minutes).
All of them were very nice stories but my personal favourite is the poem "Oceania" by Karlo Mila from Tonga.
Some of the stories could be made into very nice short films (7-10 minutes).
January 19, 2026
The first part of this collection reminded me that I used to love short stories and poems. Some of them were truly excellent, with "The Plundering" as a clear stand-out. However, I thought that the stories in the second half were weaker. I found myself pushing through the last pieces just to have finished it. It is possible that me coming from a very much landlocked country meant that I had a harder time relating to the island experience. I still found it a worthy collection (with a beautiful cover) - but maybe one to browse, not to read every word of.
January 11, 2022
Not my typical type of read but I was intrigued by the stories of island life, in particular stories with elements of old beliefs and practices, some of the stories were quite educational really.
I'm not really too keen on poetry, admittedly I skipped a lot of those parts..
I'm not really too keen on poetry, admittedly I skipped a lot of those parts..
October 28, 2024
An interesting compilation of short stories written by people who live on islands.
I liked the variety. Some were happy and hopeful, while others were a bit more negative in town. Overall, a pretty good read.
I liked the variety. Some were happy and hopeful, while others were a bit more negative in town. Overall, a pretty good read.
May 12, 2021
This is the only book I could find still being sold that contains stories about Kiribati. Thanks for keeping these stories flowing!
October 12, 2022
Very nice collection of short stories, beautiful poems (some more beautiful than others) to read on the beach. Also critical though ((neo)colonialism a.o.), makes you think.
August 24, 2025
They really frontloaded all their best stories. There were a few good ones though
December 16, 2024
A collection od essays, short stories and poems from island authors. Islands like St Lucia, Barbados, Trinidad & Tobago in the Caribbean ; Cyprus and Malta in the Mediterranean ; Bermuda, Mauritius, Kiribati and many more.
The only thing that united them : island mentality and the values, but also difficulties that come with it. Historical, cultural and environmental difficulties. A unique consciousness of the relationality of land to oceans and ancestors goes hand in hand with the imperial legacy of missionisation, militarisation, nuclear weapons testing, nickel and phosphate mining, chronic illness, and disease, rising sea levels and more.
The authors portray raw feelings of despair, anger, frar, uncertainty, anguish, sadness, but most importantly connection, passion, desire, yearning…hope. Alone, but never lonely.
Loved it!
The only thing that united them : island mentality and the values, but also difficulties that come with it. Historical, cultural and environmental difficulties. A unique consciousness of the relationality of land to oceans and ancestors goes hand in hand with the imperial legacy of missionisation, militarisation, nuclear weapons testing, nickel and phosphate mining, chronic illness, and disease, rising sea levels and more.
The authors portray raw feelings of despair, anger, frar, uncertainty, anguish, sadness, but most importantly connection, passion, desire, yearning…hope. Alone, but never lonely.
Loved it!
July 29, 2020
Favourites in this collection were Plaine-Verte (Mauritius), Roses for Mr Thorne (Grenada; a story with a perfect concluding paragraph) and Avocado (Saint Lucia; a poem I appreciate more with each re-reading). Perilous Journey (Barbados/Antigua and Barbuda), was also a standout for me. This was partly because it depicted a real-life incident that I remember (an unmarked boat with the petrified bodies of 11 West African men was discovered in Barbados waters) and partly because the story ended in such an abrupt and startling way.
Read
January 10, 2021(Various)
A fine anthology- somewhat uneven in quality. I was hoping for more of a showcase but the main theme of this selection was very centered on island identity and belonging or the feeling of not-belonging. All of which are fine to explore, although one of the pitfalls of being a writer from a small island seems to be a kind of pigeon-holing, an expectation that THIS is the most worthwhile thing for you to be writing about.
A fine anthology- somewhat uneven in quality. I was hoping for more of a showcase but the main theme of this selection was very centered on island identity and belonging or the feeling of not-belonging. All of which are fine to explore, although one of the pitfalls of being a writer from a small island seems to be a kind of pigeon-holing, an expectation that THIS is the most worthwhile thing for you to be writing about.
November 29, 2024
Can you score a collection of literature?
Some were charming, some were moving, a couple were a bit boring tbh.
It has made me curious of a few authors though,
And Marlon's intro is great, obv.
Arbitrary 3.5
Some were charming, some were moving, a couple were a bit boring tbh.
It has made me curious of a few authors though,
And Marlon's intro is great, obv.
Arbitrary 3.5
Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews