Dear Ty Batson:
I feel you do this country a disservice in highlighting the faults, finding not one redeeming quality in this country, plus the utter worthlessness of any character (save, perhaps Shelley) makes Mr Big very depressing reading — and would warn off any person thinking of coming to Trinidad on vacation. There's no doubt that you can write — your problem, as I see it, is the context, the plot.
Once more, I'm sorry to disappoint you.
Regards, Anne Hilton
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Madam,
ReplyDeleteWith very much respect for your opinion and your reviews of various books, I humbly believe that you have entirely missed the point of Mr. Big.
To say that the novel does a disservice to Trinidad and Tobago and that it would warn people off visiting is misleading. The picture presented quite accurately presents a picture of Mr. Big’s life in POS. And not only does the protagonist notice the natural beauty around him but the reader is able to get the texture of the place.
According to your premise anyone writing about racism, the vestiges of colonialism, the practice of obeah, or even hurricanes (and there are many that have done so in very successful books) would discourage people from visiting the Caribbean. I don’t think that Merle Hodge’s descriptions of abusive childhoods have kept people from visiting Antigua and Barbuda. Does Naipaul’s writing about the darkness of Africa dissuade people from travelling there? I doubt it.
Mr. Big is a smart, funny, intriguing read with a unique voice. It may not suit everyone, but it in the realm of crime fiction it will hold its own. While it is prudent to not delude budding new authors about their talent or their books, one should also not throw the baby out with the bath water and in so doing douse the creative fire.