Loving This Man

by Althea Prince

Like Jamaica Kincaid's Lucy, Althea Prince's new novel beautifully traces a woman's struggle to negotiate the transition from life in the Caribbean to life in the concrete utopia of urban North America. Sayshelle, her mother Reevah and her aunts Sage and Juniper Berry stand at the centre of this breathtaking new novel. Loving This Man is about Antigua, about politics and class, but more than anything, about the mother-daughter bond that exists in these women's lives. The Antiguan section of the novel describes Reevah's relationship with her husband Emmanuel, whose fiery political beliefs are silenced by a tragic early death; Sage's failed relationships with Rogain and Rommel, men who use and control her, to the point where she allows her daughters to suffer; and Juniper Berry, headstrong and forthright, who divorces her first husband and stakes her claim on Clifford, a man she senses she has known in a previous life. In the novel's second section, Sayshelle has moved to Canada, where she makes a life for herself against the background of historical forces such as the Black Power movement, the feminist revolution and the Vietnam War. Sensuous, specific in its evocation of Toronto and Antigua, Prince's novel is a must for anyone who follows Black Canadian, Caribbean and Post-colonial literatures.

214 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2002

About the author

Dr. Althea Prince is an award-winning author who was born in Antigua and has resided in Canada, the US, and England.

She has taught sociology, first at York University and the University of Toronto, and now teaches at Ryerson University–The G. Raymond Chang School of Continuing Education, where she won the Kay Livingstone Award in 2011. Her teaching focus tends to be on African Caribbean peoples in metropolitan communities.

Dr. Prince is known for her work as an essayist and fiction writer.

Reviews

[Andre Stern]

I couldn't decide between giving this book 3 or 4 stars and I see my views are aligned with most readers. I wanted insight into Antigua and Barbuda, having read an Pan Caribbean anthology and been left wanting more, and while Loving This Man did deliver sprinkles of that, I think the big division between the two halves of the book are what weakens it. The first half, set in Antigua, deals with family, motherhood, colorism and community, all through really compelling characters. The second half, set in Canada, abandons all characters but one and focuses on otherness, racism, immigration and intersectionality, but through characters we don't know much about and I didn't really care for. The points made, specifically towards the end, are very poignant. But perhaps by trying to do too much, the book didn't do anything spectacularly. By no means an unworthy read however, I recommend it.

[Harisa- EsquiredToRead]

My Antingua book around the world.

Short, but pretty good and powerful. I wish the aunts and mom stories were a bit more fleshed out.

[Rhoda]

4.5 stars

This book was my pick for my read the world challenge for Antigua and Barbuda. It sounded like it was going to be a love story, but it’s really not!

This book is in two sections: the first part is about three sisters Reevah, Sage and Juniper Berry, their children and their lives in Antigua. The second section takes place in Toronto, Canada where Reevah’s daughter Sayshelle moves. It follows Sayshelle’s life in Toronto where the Black Power movement is emerging and provides an interesting contrast between life in Antigua and Canada, as well as the relationship between mothers and daughters.

I really enjoyed this book and it is probably my favorite so far from my reading the world challenge.