6 Hrs Ago
Kevin Jared Hosein: Our Trinidadian Creole and jargon have never been an issue, which almost all of the dialogue in this novel is written in. - Courtesy Portia Subran
THE acceptance of Kevin Jared Hosein’s latest novel, Devotion, by publishing giant Bloomsbury brings a boost of confidence to Trinidadian and Caribbean writers.
His success hasn t come easy. He said between 2012 and 2020, he was rejected at least 30-40 times by different publications and competitions.
Devotion is set in 1940s central Trinidad and tells the stories of the Changoors and the Saroops, Hosein said.
“The spotlight shifts between an estate farm, home of the wealthy Changoors, and an old barrack, where the impoverished Saroops live. After Mr Changoor mysteriously disappears, ransom letters start appearing, and their dogs start getting viciously killed, Mr Saroop is tasked to act as a watchman for the Changoor house.
Bernard wins for the poetry collection
Surge (Penguin Random House/Chatto & Windus), which is about the disastrous party blaze in Southeast Londo9n in 1981 known as the New Cross Fire. Thirteen Black partiers aged 13 to 22 were killed in the event, and a 14th party attendee later committed suicide. The event became a potent and lasting flashpoint in British race relations and official indifference, prompting the protest slogan, “13 Dead, Nothing Said.”
Bernard’s treatment of the subject draws parallels to the 2017 Grenfell Fire incident, in which the blaze at a 24-story apartment building reportedly killed 72 people and injured at least 70.
The writer who prefers the pronouns