Mythic characters, dark fairy-tale themes, and the harsh realities of race, gender, and class in the French Antilles underpin an earthy and complex story from this former professor of French at Columbia University. It is the story of Victoire, a brilliant chef, loosely based on the author’s own grandmother, who bore her mother at age fourteen and of whom the narrator has only a single sepia-toned photograph.
She writes, “What I am claiming is the legacy of this woman who apparently did not leave any. I want to establish the link between her creativity and mine, to switch from the savors, the colors and the smells of meat and vegetables to those of words.”
In a unique voice Ms. Conde portrays the beauty and ugliness of the
French Caribbean islands and the coarseness inherent in most unequal
power relationships born of colonialism and slavery. The novel is set in
the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Paradoxically, the use of
language is exceptionally fine throughout, both sparkling and even
sumptuous, no matter the subject.
Victoire, My Mother’s Mother. By Maryse Conde; translated by
Richard Philcox; Atria International, $20; 182 pages.
Our TownGoombay! is Back on the BlockFriday, 13 August 2010
The YMI Cultural Center, located in the heart of Asheville’s historic African American district, The Block, will host the traditional Goombay Festival beginning Friday, August 27 and continuing through Sunday, August 29.
Goombay! is back on the Block from Friday, August 27 to Sunday,... + Full Story
CommunitiesShiloh Community Plans School ReunionFriday, 13 August 2010By Sarah Williams
Shiloh is an historically African American community inhabited since the late 1880s.
Older residents refer to this area as “New Shiloh.” Shiloh evolved and prospered around three cornerstones, its churches, its schools, and its people.... + Full Story
BusinessWhy Lenders Want Your Loan to DefaultFriday, 13 August 2010Predatory schemes steal the equity of this country.
In the late 1980s and early ’90s, Presidents Bush and Clinton, under the guise of making housing available to the poor, eased regulations intended to ensure that consumers were protected from predatory lending practices.... + Full Story
BusinessMinority Enterprise Development WeekFriday, 13 August 2010Staff Reports
Since 1982, the U.S. President has proclaimed a National MED Week observance to recognize the outstanding achievements of minority businesses and to honor those corporations and financial institutions that support minority business development. The national MED... + Full Story
Mythic characters, dark fairy-tale themes, and the harsh realities of race, gender, and class in the French Antilles underpin an earthy and complex story from this former professor of French at Columbia University. It is the story of Victoire, a brilliant chef, loosely based on the author’s own grandmother, who bore her mother at age fourteen and of whom the narrator has only a single sepia-toned photograph.
