Caribbean Compass Yachting Magazine August 2015

BOOK REVIEW BY ELAINE OLLIVIERRECULTURECLASHKalinago Blood, by Alick Lazare, ©2013. Abbott Press. Paperback, 298 pages.ISBN 978-1-4582-1264-1Kalinago Blood is a fictionalized account of the first permanent English settlementin the West Indies and describes the effects of that settlement on the indigenouspeoples of the Caribbean.The book is written in three parts. Part 1 begins as Sir Thomas Warner, on hisfirst voyage to the Caribbean in 1623, arrives in St. Kitts looking for suitable landon which to found a colony. Both English and French settlers follow and, initially,the Europeans share an uneasy peace with the indigenous people of St. Kitts. ButChief Tegremente is not happy with the newcomers and the Kalinago warriorsdecide to attack the foreign settlements. However, they are massacred by the colonistswho have been warned of the impending strike by Barbe, a female Igneri captiveof the Kalinago.After the massacre, Barbe becomes Warner’s mistress and both she and Warner’slegal wife, Rebecca, give birth to sons who are brought up together. When Rebeccadies, Warner marries again and, at the end of Part 1, we see Barbe leave St. Kitts toreturn to a Kalinago way of life in Dominica. She leaves her son, Thomas “Indian”Warner, to the mercies of his father’s widow, Anne, and Anderson, the overseer.Indian’s ill treatment at their hands forms the subject of Part 2, at the end of whichhe too decides to embrace his native roots in Dominica with his mother.Indian’s life as a Kalinago warrior is described in Part 3. His dual English/Kalinagoancestry makes him useful to the English authorities but his half-brother, Philip, isashamed of having a “native” sibling and resents the fact that Indian carries theirfather’s name. Indian tries to maintain peace between Kalinago and foreigners butfails and is killed.It is Barbe’s story that links the three parts of the book. Her life is told in flashbacksas she talks to a Catholic priest about her sins and misdeeds. She feels cursedand believes that her initial betrayal of the Kalinago people is linked to the final actsof violence that have resulted in Indian’s early death.The story follows the historical timeline fairly accurately and emphasizes the differencesin culture between the indigenous peoples of the islands and the Europeansettlers. Despite the love and care of Captain Warner, Barbe does not feel at easewith the customs and norms of the Europeans for whom she works. She feels stifledby the Europeans’ insistence on clothes, for example. She explains to Rebecca:Life in our world is not about possessions, but about personal happiness and thefreedom of will.In old age, Barbe is left to describe the defeat of most of the local tribes by foreignerswho are only looking for material wealth. The Kalinago way of life is almost wiped out.For the most part, I did enjoy the book. However, I must admit that I was not happywith what I thought were gratuitous sexual episodes. The sections when Indianbecomes enamoured of an African slave girl do not advance the storyline except toburden Barbe with yet another sin. And I was very uncomfortable with the descriptionof a rape victim (Barbe’s sister, Kwiana) experiencing sexual pleasure whenbeing assaulted by Totemi, the village villain.But these did not detract from the main message of the story. The clash of twocultures brought death to many and misery to more. I would recommend KalinagoBlood to students of West Indian history, but also to anyone who just likes a goodstory with interesting characters.FREECRUISING GUIDESDominican RepublicCayman IslandsHaitiCubaJamaicaTrinidadABC IslandsPuerto RicoLesser Antilles in 3 volumeswww.freecruisingguide.comCompliments of: Marina Zar-ParBoca Chica, Dominican Republicwww.marinazarpar.comThe Best Stories from Caribbean CompassNow available as an eBook at Amazon.com,Cruising Life: The Best Stories from Caribbean Compassis a collection of 49 outstanding stories selected from more than200 issues of Caribbean Compass.Ann Vanderhoof, author of An Embarrassment of Mangoes andThe Spice Necklace, says, “Given a new life beyond the magazine,the pieces in this collection resonate and sparklein a very different way, offering new pleasures.Beyond its entertainment — the first piece had me hooked —the collection is sure to spark ideas in bothcruising sailors and armchair dreamers.”US$8.95Read a preview and order Cruising Life nowat www.amazon.com!AUGUST 2015 CARIBBEAN COMPASS PAGE 25Available at bookstores and online retailers.