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Writing a New Caribbean: Under the Surface

Elisha Efua Bartels talks to some of the new wave of writers coming out of the English-speaking Caribbean. She meets Sharon Millar, Elizabeth Walcott-Hackshaw and Andre Bagoo.

A picture of the Caribbean, as seen by a new generation of writers and poets.

Elisha Efua Bartels talks to Trinidadian writers Sharon Millar, Elizabeth Walcott-Hackshaw, and Andre Bagoo about the sense of place in their work.

For Sharon Millar, author of the short story collection 'The Whale House', the landscape and colour of Trinidad is always the anchor, and she often explores the cultural interaction and foot traffic between the island and Venezuela, only 7 miles away. Elizabeth Walcott-Hackshaw delves under the surface of Trinidadian society in her novel 'Mrs B', set during the 1990 coup in Port of Spain and inspired by Flaubert's 'Madame Bovary'. In Andre Bagoo's poetry, locations in the city become symbolic of the state of the nation, both in their beauty and disgrace.

Elisha looks at the ways in which these writers capture Trinidadian landscapes and cityscapes in their work, and how they address what lies beneath.

Featuring readings from:
Elizabeth Walcott-Hackshaw - 'Mrs B', Peepal Tree Press
Sharon Millar - 'The Whale House', Peepal Tree Press
Andre Bagoo - 'Burn', Shearsman Books
Elisha Efua Bartels - 'Woman is Boss' from 'Trinidad Noir' - Akashic Books
Sonia Farmer - 'The Best Estimation in the World'.

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31 minutes

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