Elizabeth Nunez

"Nunez is one of the finest and most necessary voices in contemporary American and Caribbean fiction."—Colum McCann, author of Let the Great World Spin "Nunez has always had the power to get to the essence of what makes human beings take right and wrong turns."—Edward P. Jones, author of The Known World Peter Ducksworth, a Trinidadian widower of English ancestry, retires to Barbados, believing he will find an earthly paradise there. He decides to divide his land among his three daughters while he is alive, his intention not unlike that of King Lear who hoped "That future strife / May be prevented now." But Lear made the fatal mistake of confusing flattery with love, and so does Ducksworth. Feeling snubbed by his youngest daughter, Ducksworth decides that only after he dies will she receive her portion of the land. In the meantime, he gives his two older daughters their portions, ironically setting in motion the very strife he hoped to prevent. Beautifully written in elegant prose, this is a novel about greed, resentment, jealousy, betrayal, and romantic love, through which Nunez weaves themes of racism and classism in the postcolonial world of the Caribbean, giving us a diverse cast of characters of African, Indian, Chinese, Syrian/Lebanese, and English ancestry. Elizabeth Nunez is the award-winning author of eight novels and a memoir. Both Boundaries and Anna In-Between were New York Times Editors' Choices. Anna In-Between won the 2010 PEN Oakland/Josephine Miles Award and was long-listed for the International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award. Nunez also received the 2011 Writers for Writers Award from Poets & Writers and Barnes & Noble, and a NALIS Lifetime Literary Award from the Trinidad & Tobago National Library. She is a distinguished professor at Hunter College, CUNY, where she teaches fiction writing.

Even in Paradise

Exiled from England for performing dangerous experiments on his patients, Peter Gardner flees to the Caribbean with his daughter, Virginia, raising her in isolation except for a few natives, including Carlos, a young boy of mixed race with whom Virginia develops a forbidden friendship that blooms into love.

Prospero's Daughter

Caribbean professor Lila Bonnard arrives in Vermont for a short-term teaching position and is forced to confront the terrible legacy of American (in)justice "In Now Lila Knows, Elizabeth Nunez has crafted an indelible saga, one that is both of the times and timeless; both personal and universal. This beautifully, masterfully written novel is at once a compelling love story, a crucial exploration of the contemporary immigrant experience, and a trenchant critique of American racism." --Mitchell S. Jackson, Pulitzer Prize winner, author of The Residue Years "Timely and essential, Now Lila Knows is a luminous story of discovery and the consequences of being Black in America." --Bernice L. McFadden, author of The Book of Harlan "Now Lila Knows is a tale of empathy that comes at the necessary cost, however delayed, of losing one's innocence, of trading it for a harsher, more urgent reality. By encircling the reader in what they might think they know--about America, about the Caribbean, and the spaces in between--Elizabeth Nunez challenges us to answer for ourselves not only what we know, but also what we are prepared to do. The magic of this novel is that it opens a window to Black life in America through the eyes of an immigrant. A must read." --Kevin Adonis Browne, OCM Bocas Prize winner, author of High Mas Lila Bonnard has left her island home in the Caribbean to join the faculty as a visiting professor at Mayfield College in a small Vermont town. On her way from the airport to Mayfield, Lila witnesses the fatal shooting of a Black man by the police. It turns out that the victim was a professor at Mayfield, and was giving CPR to a white woman who was on the verge of an opioid overdose. The two Black faculty and a Black administrator in the otherwise all-white college expect Lila to be a witness in the case against the police. Unfortunately, Lila fears that in the current hostile political climate against immigrants of color she may jeopardize her position at the college by speaking out, and her fiancé advises her to remain neutral. Now Lila Knows is a gripping story that explores our obligation to act when confronted with the unfair treatment of fellow human beings. A page-turner with universal resonance, this novel will leave readers rethinking the meaning of love and empathy.

Now Lila Knows

The author examines her relationship with her parents and their relationship with one another as she prepares to return to the Caribbean for her mother's burial.

Not for Everyday Use: A Memoir

When the body of a white woman is fished from the waters off Trinidad, the event reunites two childhood friends and forces both to confront a terrible crime they witnessed together two decades earlier. Winner of the American Book Award. Reprint.

Bruised Hibiscus

Jennifer Sparrow

An anthology of stories by Caribbean women writers explores such themes as residency in a tourist environment that invites visitors to make the area their own, the sexual exploitation of Caribbean women, and the region's tragic colonial history, in a volume that includes contributions by such authors as Edwidge Danticat, Jamaica Kincaid, and Dionne Brand. Reprint.

Caribbean Women Writers at Home and Abroad

Stories from Blue Latitudes

The author explores her mother’s marriage—and fourteen pregnancies—in this “powerful memoir” (Ebony). One of Oprah.com’s Best Memoirs of the Year Winner of the 2015 Hurston/Wright Legacy Award in Nonfiction Tracing the four days between the moment she gets the dreaded call and the burial of her mother, Elizabeth Nunez tells of her lifelong struggle to cope with her parents’ ambitions for their children—and her mother’s seemingly unbreakable conviction that displays of affection are not for everyday use. Yet Nunez sympathizes with her parents, whose happiness is constrained by the oppressive strictures of colonialism; by the Catholic Church’s prohibition of artificial birth control which her mother obeys, terrified by the threat of eternal damnation (her mother gets pregnant fourteen times: nine live births and five miscarriages which almost kill her); and by the complexities of skin color in Caribbean society. Through it all, a fierce love holds this family together, and helps carry Nunez through her grief, in this “intriguing [and] courageous memoir” (Kirkus Reviews). “Nunez ponders the cultural, racial, familial, social, and personal experiences that led to what she ultimately understands was a deeply loving union between her parents. A beautifully written exploration of the complexities of marriage and family life.” —Booklist

A Memoir

Not for Everyday Use

A novel of family, privilege, and poverty, described as “King Lear in the Caribbean” (O, The Oprah Magazine). A New York Post Must-Read Book Peter Ducksworth, a Trinidadian widower of English ancestry, retires to Barbados, believing he will find an earthly paradise there. He decides to divide his land among his three daughters while he is alive, his intention not unlike that of King Lear, who hoped “That future strife/May be prevented now.” But Lear made the fatal mistake of confusing flattery with love, and so does Ducksworth. Feeling snubbed by his youngest daughter, Ducksworth decides that only after he dies will she receive her portion of the land. In the meantime, he gives his two older daughters their portions, ironically setting in motion the very strife he hoped to prevent. “An epic tale of family betrayal and manipulation couched in superbly engaging prose and peopled with deftly drawn characters. In a story structure as rhythmic as the ebb and flow of the water surrounding Trinidad and Barbados, this revisiting of the classic story of King Lear becomes a subtle, organic exploration of politics, class, race, and privilege. A dazzling, epic triumph.” —Kirkus Reviews, starred review “Nunez’s textured and engaging novel explores familial discord, along with questions of kinship and self-identity. . . . Nunez crafts an introspective tale as her vividly drawn characters navigate complications of heritage, race, and loyalty.” —Booklist “A Caribbean reimagining of King Lear that adds colonialism and racism to the story of three sisters, the men they love and their battle over the deed to their father’s beloved property.” —Ms. Magazine “Even if you’re not familiar with King Lear, William Shakespeare’s great tragedy, you will still enjoy Even in Paradise.” —Essence

A woman struggles with love, work, and identity in a novel by “one of the finest and most necessary voices in contemporary American and Caribbean fiction” (Colum McCann, author of Let the Great World Spin). Anna, a Caribbean American immigrant, is eager to assimilate in her new country—but she is about to discover that a gap yawns between her and American-born citizens. The head of a specialized imprint at a major publishing house, Anna is soon challenged for her position by an ambitious upstart who accuses her of not really understanding American culture—particularly African American culture. Her job at stake, Anna turns for advice to her boyfriend, a fellow Caribbean American himself, but even here she finds conflict—in this riveting, thoughtful novel about immigration, family dynamics, race, and relationships, in which “many moments of elegant, overarching insight bind the personal to the collective past” (The New York Times Book Review). “Spare and transcendent prose . . . a unique and riveting perspective on Caribbean life as well as immigrant life in general.” —The New York Amsterdam News “If I wore a hat, I’d tip it to novelist Elizabeth Nunez. [Boundaries] is timely and provocative—and it’s written with such vivid prose that, despite the bittersweet ending, you’ll step away from this refreshing take on contemporary publishing with a smile.” —Essence “In Nunez’s latest, the author further explores immigrant life, a life where a hard-working woman can progress up the corporate ladder, buy an apartment in a soon-to-be trendy neighborhood, and still be plagued by outsider’s angst. A thoughtful literary novel exploring the shadows of cultural identity and the mirage of assimilation.” —Kirkus Reviews “A quiet, sensitive portrait . . . This work covers a lot of ground, from mother-daughter and male-female relationships to the tensions between immigrants and the American born.” —Library Journal “Deftly dissects the immigrant experience in light of cultural traditions that impact family roles, professional obligations, and romantic opportunities.” —Booklist

Boundaries

Caribbean professor Lila Bonnard arrives in Vermont for a short-term teaching position and is forced to confront the terrible legacy of American (in)justice “In Now Lila Knows, Elizabeth Nunez has crafted an indelible saga, one that is both of the times and timeless; both personal and universal. This beautifully, masterfully written novel is at once a compelling love story, a crucial exploration of the contemporary immigrant experience, and a trenchant critique of American racism.” —Mitchell S. Jackson, Pulitzer Prize winner, author of The Residue Years “Timely and essential, Now Lila Knows is a luminous story of discovery and the consequences of being Black in America.” —Bernice L. McFadden, author of The Book of Harlan “Now Lila Knows is a tale of empathy that comes at the necessary cost, however delayed, of losing one’s innocence, of trading it for a harsher, more urgent reality. By encircling the reader in what they might think they know—about America, about the Caribbean, and the spaces in between—Elizabeth Nunez challenges us to answer for ourselves not only what we know, but also what we are prepared to do. The magic of this novel is that it opens a window to Black life in America through the eyes of an immigrant. A must read.” —Kevin Adonis Browne, OCM Bocas Prize winner, author of High Mas Lila Bonnard has left her island home in the Caribbean to join the faculty as a visiting professor at Mayfield College in a small Vermont town. On her way from the airport to Mayfield, Lila witnesses the fatal shooting of a Black man by the police. It turns out that the victim was a professor at Mayfield, and was giving CPR to a white woman who was on the verge of an opioid overdose. The two Black faculty and a Black administrator in the otherwise all-white college expect Lila to be a witness in the case against the police. Unfortunately, Lila fears that in the current hostile political climate against immigrants of color she may jeopardize her position at the college by speaking out, and her fiancé advises her to remain neutral. Now Lila Knows is a gripping story that explores our obligation to act when confronted with the unfair treatment of fellow human beings. A page-turner with universal resonance, this novel will leave readers rethinking the meaning of love and empathy.

Anna, the daughter of an upper-class Caribbean family, returns to her island home on vacation to learn that her mother is suffering from breast cancer, and makes every effort to persuade her mother to go to the United States for treatment.

Anna In-Between

When Sara Edgehill leaves her home in Trinidad to attend college in Wisconsin, she finds solace and friendship with Courtney, another West Indian who covertly practices voodoo rituals, and Sam, a charismatic civil rights activist

Beyond the Limbo Silence

“A captivating tale of Oufoula Sindede, an African diplomat in a passionless marriage who falls madly in love with Marguerite, a New York City artist.” —Essence Dutifully married to lovely Nerida, Oufoula goes through the motions, formally keeping his distance from the woman with whom he shares his bed. And yet there is a deeper, buried passion within him that will lead him to question which values he holds sacred and which can be sacrificed. Despite his quiet marriage, the memory of a fiery love affair triggers Oufoula to entangle himself in the life of another woman, a Jamaican-born painter named Marguerite. Soon he discovers that Marguerite is nothing like his quick old flames or his gentle wife, Nerida—Marguerite is much more. And so begins a whirlwind affair, spanning over twenty years, between a young woman who wants order and love and a man who is torn between the honors of his profession and his dishonorable love life; the old African customs of polygamy and the American dream; the passion for a mistress and the duty to a wife. “A provocative new love story.” —The Seattle Times “Refreshingly ambitious in its intellectual scope.” —The New York Times Book Review “Right from the start of this haunting novel, Nunez adopts the mesmerizing myth-spinning voice of an oral storyteller . . . Nunez explores self-deception, envy, Christian monogamy vs. African polygamy, and the very real dilemma of loving two people at once.” —Publishers Weekly “A complex portrait of a love triangle by a gifted writer.” —Booklist A main selection of the Black Expressions Book Club

A Novel

Discretion

As Caribbean American Anna Sinclair, the head of a publishing imprint that focuses on ethnic writers, faces challenges at work, she struggles with her mother's cancer diagnosis and starts dating her mother's oncologist.

The body of a woman washes up on a beach in Trinidad and rumor has it she was killed by her husband. The incident gives ideas to two women, both of whom are dreaming of getting away from their spouses. By the author of When Rocks Dance.

“Deftly explores family strife and immigrant identity . . . expressive prose and convincing characters that immediately hook the reader.” —Publishers Weekly, starred review Winner of the PEN Oakland Award for Literary Excellence Long-listed for the IMPAC Dublin International Literary Award When Anna takes a break from her successful publishing career in the US and visits the Caribbean island home of her birth, she is upset to discover that her mother, Beatrice, has breast cancer. The family is upper class, and treatment in America may offer her a chance of survival. But, believing that she would never receive quality care there as a black woman, she rejects all efforts to persuade her as the clock keeps ticking on her illness . . . From the American Book Award–winning author of Prospero’s Daughter, this is a “moving exploration of immigrant identity [with] a protagonist caught between race, class, and a mother’s love” (Ms. Magazine). “A psychologically and emotionally astute family portrait, with dark themes like racism, cancer, and the bittersweet longing of the immigrant.” —The New York Times Book Review “Nunez has created a moving and insightful character study while delving into the complexities of identity politics. Highly recommended.” —Library Journal “An intimate portrait of the unknowable secrets and indelible ties that bind husbands and wives, mothers and daughters.” —Booklist “Probing and lyrical . . . one of Nunez’s best yet.” —Edwidge Danticat

Robert Antoni

Shani Mootoo

Lawrence Scott

Ramabai Espinet

Oonya Kempadoo

Eighteen authors share dark mysteries set on the sunny Caribbean island in this anthology. Akashic Books continues its award-winning series of original noir anthologies, launched in 2004 with Brooklyn Noir. Each book is compromised of all-new stories, each one set in a distinct neighborhood or location within the geographic area of the book. As reflected herein, the Caribbean provides no shelter from the delicious terror of noir fiction. Features brand-new stories by Robert Antoni, Elizabeth Nunez, Lawrence Scott, Ramabai Espinet, Shani Mootoo, Kevin Baldeosingh, Vahni Capildeo, Willi Chen, Lisa Allen-Agostini, Keith Jardim, Reena Andrea Manickchand, Tiphanie Yanique, and more. Praise for Trinidad Noir “The volumes in Akashic’s locale-based noir anthology series set outside North America (Dublin Noir, etc.) offer more variety than those set in different major U.S. cities, and this one is no exception. The editors’ brief but insightful introduction makes clear that the sun and sea tourist image of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago is at odds with the country’s political climate of excess and corruption and an element of society afloat in drugs and guns . . . . The two standouts are Keith Jardim’s mystical “The Jaguar” and Lawrence Scott’s “Prophet,” in which a series of child disappearances in a small but corrupt community builds to an appropriately bleak ending.” —Publishers Weekly

Elizabeth Nunez

About

Books

Join the club