Big Island, Small

by Maureen St. Clair

Sola is confused the first time she sees Judith, a fair skinned woman with dreadlocks dancing to reggae music. Meeting her gaze, Judith thinks Sola is judging her for appropriating Black culture. A few days later, up against an interlocking fence, Judith kisses Sola. Onlookers hurl stones and racial and gay slurs. Thus begins the complicated friendship between Judith and Sola who live in between the land they were born, the Caribbean, and the land where they presently live, North America.

Winner of the 2016 Beacon Award for Social Justice Literature and the 2015 Atlantic Writer's Competition, Big Island, Small is a story of intimacy and friendship between two Caribbean/Canadian women with similar, yet vastly different, backgrounds who must dismantle their assumptions and biases around race, class, gender and sexuality in order to make amends with violent pasts, release shame, find joy and reconnect with themselves and each other.

217 pages, Paperback

Published April 16, 2018

Reviews

[Ian · Rating 3 out of 5]

Big Island, Small centres on a relationship—sometimes fractious, sometimes affectionate—between two young women, Judith and Sola. Both are from “Small Island” in the Caribbean and living on “Big Island,” which we are invited to believe is North America. Judith, light-skinned with dreadlocks and exuding a truculent air of confidence, and Sola, dark-skinned, observant, vulnerable, meet at a reggae concert and are immediately attracted to one another. Impulsively, they decide to meet again later, an encounter that turns physical and impassioned. From this beginning we watch as, while dealing with complex national, racial and gender identities while at the same time simply trying to get on with their lives, Judith and Sola, often in desperation, pull each other close and push each other away. Both have previous and ongoing relationships with other people, other lovers, and this leads to jealousy and conflict. Both are haunted by ghosts from the past, both have complicated family situations. At earlier stages of their young lives both have behaved in ways, and made decisions, that they regret but don’t fully understand, and certainly don’t want to discuss. Moreover, Judith and Sola are inquisitive individuals, particularly with regard to each other: they push and probe, but a common reluctance to address the past often threatens to drive them apart. Judith has a bit of a chip on her shoulder, borne of her mixed-race heritage—she doesn’t like to be told what to do or whom she should spend her time with—and as the story unfolds we also see a self-destructive streak emerge. Finally, after a period of estrangement, a crisis brings them together once again, old wounds begin to heal, nagging family secrets are dragged into the light. In Big Island, Small Maureen St. Clair has written a taut and compelling drama about two fascinating women. The novel is narrated by Judith and Sola, in alternating chapters and in their distinctive voices. A weakness of the book is the geographic vagueness of the setting, which grants the author latitude to invent freely, without having to tie events to a specific locale, but is also a distraction. As well, Judith and Sola’s push-pull relationship—their impulsive and occasionally antagonistic behaviour toward one another—sometimes goes over the top. A quiet conversation veers into private territory, one of them takes offense, hurtful things are said: it’s a pattern with which the reader becomes very familiar, enough so that we begin to wish the two would just grow up already and appreciate what they have in each other. Still, we care deeply about the two protagonists, and undeniably the novel is engaging on multiple levels. It also tackles questions of social, gender and racial identity in provocative fashion. Deserving winner of the 2016 Beacon Award for Social Justice Literature.

[Shilpa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Big Island, Small by Maureen St. Clair, plays out in real time, a slow awakening of the soul. A friendship blossoming. A passage of time. Life isn't as it happens.

The format of the book is unique. Written almost as a journal, a daily account of the day, of feelings, of how the situation is viewed by the two main characters of the novel. Two sides of the story, alternating chapter by chapter, are told from the perspective of each girl. This is a format that would backfire greatly if each of the characters weren't as properly developed, or if the narrative itself wasn't as interesting. (Think about reading somebody's diary...it can be incredibly mundane, or revelatory.)

Full review: http://sukasareads.blogspot.com/2018/...

[Liz · Rating 4 out of 5]

Big Island, Small by Maureen St.Clair presents a story of two girls, laid bare on paper, as they fight a familiar battle of self-discovery. Set half on a fictional Caribbean small island, half on a large island in North America, the main characters face one of the most daunting battles of life; the battle to be brave enough to discover and be who they are, while they lean hard on the precipice of adulthood. St. Clair uses imagery, dual perspective, language, flashbacks and severe contrasts to discuss issues of racial conflict, colorism, sexuality and self-discovery in a contemporary climate.

The plot is largely rooted in the main characters journey towards identity and how their continued interactions with each other, both verbal and non verbal, help them along the way. Through shared socio-cultural background and the challenge to accept each others different reactions to it, both Sola and Judith learn more of what they want from their conflicted lives.

Sola is a dark skinned girl who has taken proudly to her use of the Standard English language and wears this accomplishment as a badge of honor, while she pursues her studies on Big Island. Her youth, has been riddled with struggles and advantageous experiences that have catapulted her into a figure of strength in her young adult years. It is a strength her character has had to adorn herself with like a suit of armor. It is strength so brazen that anyone who first encounters her seems to glide over the still young girl sternly holding to bravery. Until, she meets Judith.

Judith’s own earlier years are not without struggle but they are the kind of struggles the majority of children her age, that were within her immediate company, could not readily understand. This reality keeps her lonely in a crowded room. Until, she meets Sola.

Judith aches to fit into skin, history and Caribbean culture while Sola is desperate to stand out despite it. Jointly, they find joy in all things that draw them together and set them apart from the masses. However they also find themselves disagreeing, in seismic proportions, on various world views.

Their relationship is an open challenge to aforementioned themes of the book.. There are bold questions the two main characters dare at each other and by extension; questions that the author dares the reader to contemplate through the vehicle of their edged dialogue.

The reader bears witness to young girls facing issues of sexual assault, violence, racial precedence, anxiety, victim blaming and the questions that come with sexuality and sexual discovery in a way that is made all the more compelling by the events of our current world chatter. Big Island, Small by Maureen St. Clair serves as a Caribbean literary reminder that maybe this big world isn’t so big after all, especially through the small, intimate lens of our shared experiences.

Read my entire review of this book via my blog here: http://sandalsandsunnies.blogspot.com...

[Tanya R · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting read to be sure. Reading something like a daily journal from both POV’s is something I’ve not read before.

The subject matter is pertinent to struggles of the lgbtq+ community and is definitely worth the read.

[Darendra Boodram · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really liked the format of this book. It follows two characters, Sola and Judith, with each chapter switching between their perspectives. This dual narrative highlights how two people can interpret the same event in completely different ways.

The story delves into complex themes—struggling with “Small Island” identity, navigating sexual identity, the role of language and native speech, the weight of trauma, and the stark differences in how boys and girls are treated in the Caribbean. It’s a thoughtful exploration of the realities we face in our relationships with friends and family, especially when worldviews differ, and how we see ourselves compared to those from the “Big Island.”

At its heart, this is a beautiful story about friendship. Both girls are grappling with their own internal battles, and the strength of the book lies in how authentic and grounded their challenges feel.

[Renee · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting style of writing. I enjoyed the Caribbean flavour of the characters' speech. The story left me wanting a bit more closure to the relationships explored.