Four Influential Books
These are four of the more influential books that have inspired and informed the writing of my first novel When Trees Fall, Book One of the Wood and Water Saga:
The Story of Westmoreland: A Jamaican Parish by Marguerite R. Curtin helped give me the background necessary to write a historical fiction book set in Westmoreland, Jamaica.
Pieces of the Past: A Stroll Down Jamaica's Memory Lane by Rebecca Tortello was particularly helpful in understanding the cultural roots of many Jamaicans--Out of many, one people!
Drumblair: Memories of a Jamaican Childhood by Rachel Manley afforded me an insider perspective on the family history of the politically influential Manley family and the beginnings of the pre-independence movement, which gave Jamaican men and women over 21 the right to vote in 1944.
A Simple Smile: A Poetic Memoir by Dorothy Mahfood is by far the most influential book. While my mother penned most of the poems after I had written the majority of Oristano, the stories she told me in the past formed many of my ideas for the novel, all of which I have fictionalized and added other fictional characters and events to. Reading A Simple Smile will prepare you for my novel, not to mention, the first chapter of my novel is at the back of her book.
