Lorna Goodison is a poet, author of eight books of poetry and two collections of short stories. Her work has been widely translated and anthologized. In 1999 she received Jamaica's Musgrave Gold Medal. Born in Jamaica, Goodison now teaches at the University of Michigan. She divides her time between Ann Arbor and Toronto.
"'Captivating... Being introduced to the cast of From Harvey River is like sitting down at the family dining table. You'll stay for the day and then on into the evening as each new character pulls up a chair. You could not be in better company.' New York Times 'Beautiful is the life Goodison evokes from the far-distant past... A window that opens onto a society that most of us will never know.' Washington Post"
"'Captivating... Being introduced to the cast of From Harvey River is like sitting down at the family dining table. You'll stay for the day and then on into the evening as each new character pulls up a chair. You could not be in better company.' New York Times 'Beautiful is the life Goodison evokes from the far-distant past... A window that opens onto a society that most of us will never know.' Washington Post"
Family history in Jamaica provides the focus for this memoir as poet Goodison (Controlling the Silver) traces the Harvey roots from the time her great-grandfather, Englishman William Harvey, discovered a well-traveled foot path adjacent to a river circa the last days of slavery. Harvey decides to settle on this land, naming the river after his family, and the plot becomes the family home for generations. Goodison, an award-winning poet and short story writer, tells of her family's fortunes from the early days of English settlement, especially those of her mother, Doris, and her seven siblings. Doris grew up in Victorian comfort as one of the "fabulous Harvey girls," only to experience difficult economic times when her husband, Marcus, loses his auto repair business, causing them to move with their nine children to the slums of Kingston. The appeal of this poetic memoir lies in Goodison's ability to weave Jamaican history and culture into her family saga, capturing the spiritual as well as the factual. Her language-clear, graceful, and at times humorous-enables the reader to see Jamaica through a new pair of eyes. Recommended for large public libraries.-Nancy R. Ives, SUNY at Geneseo Copyright 2008 Reed Business Information.
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