bcr17bingo
Justice
Having just read a novel set in 18th century Haiti, it was curious to see the differences between Island Beneath the Sea, Isabel Allende, and this one. Set in Jamaica instead, the settlers and plantation owners are British rather than French, a far more homogeneous upper class, and this tale is also on a much smaller scale. Not to mention that it is in some ways a more light-hearted tale, albeit not without the occasional brutal scenes that are part of any portrayal of slavery.
Miss July is the daughter of the slave Kitty and the Scottish overseer, Tam Dewar. Her mother, barely allowed enough time to give birth, picks her up and keeps on working. She dotes on her daughter though until the fateful day when the plantation owner’s wife spots her, and is attracted to the mischievous child. Taking her without consent from her mother, she brings her to the great house to be her lady’s maid, and decides that Marguerite is a more appropriate name. But Miss Caroline is soon destined to take over the maintenance of the plantation Amity on her own. And when she needs the services of a new overseer, Robert Goodwin, fresh from England, appears and the trio is set in motion.
In the meantime, a royal order from England frees the slaves, but most are content to live in their village and work the cane as before, until Goodwin sets the wheels of capitalism in motion. This story is set in the framework of July’s wealthy and well educated son (and no, not from Goodwin), urging his mother to tell her tale. So there is a lot going on in between.
I enjoyed the beguiling cadence to July’s voice, and her perspective on the changing life in Jamaica. Story of one woman, but what a story.
