Buxton Spice

Not since Jamaica Kincaid burst on the scene with her classic novel Annie John has so original and gifted an author given voice to a young girl’s coming-of-age in the Caribbean. Oonya Kempadoo’s Buxton Spice is a breathtaking glimpse into the inner life of Lula, who is growing up in a racially mixed family in a predominantly black village in Guyana in the 1970s. Tamarind Grove is a magical place filled with vibrant characters like Aunt Ruth, the obeah voodoo lady; and a trio of prostitutes known as Bullet, Sugar Baby, and Rumshop Cockroach. As Lula playfully and candidly explores her awakening sexuality, the repressive regime of Guyana’s dictator extends irs poisonous tendrils to cast a shadow over every area of life in Tamarind Grove.Lula’s passage from innocence to experience is narrated in language that dances off the page, swaying with the lively, lilting cadences of Caribbean dialect. Buxton Spice is a resonant, gemlike masterpiece.