A tender, funny novel written with the verve of Dickens and the passion of Chekhov, set during World War II in a derelict neighborhood in Trinidad's capital and narrated by an unnamed boy -- from the Nobel Prize-winning author.

"One of the few contemporary writers of whom we can speak in terms of greatness." -- Newsday

"A stranger could drive through Miguel Street and just say 'Slum!' because he could see no more." But to its residents this corner of Trinidad's capital is a complete world, where everybody is quite different from everybody else. There's Popo the carpenter, who neglects his livelihood to build "the thing without a name." There's Man-man, who goes from running for public office to staging his own crucifixion, and the dreaded Big Foot, the bully with glass tear ducts. There's the lovely Mrs. Hereira, in thrall to her monstrous husband. This tender, funny early novel is a work of mercurial mood shifts, by turns sweetly melancholy and anarchically funny. It overflows with life on every page.

• We started tracking this book on August 21, 2011.
• This book was $9.99 when we started tracking it.
• The price of this book has changed 74 times in the past 5,062 days.
• The current price of this book is $4.99 last checked 9 hours ago.
• The lowest price to date was $4.99 last reached on June 29, 2025.
• This book has been $4.99 5 times since we started tracking it.
• The highest price to date was $14.99 last reached on September 10, 2018.
• This book has been $14.99 one time since we started tracking it.
• This book is currently at its lowest price since we started tracking it.

• Literature & FictionLiterary FictionBlack & African American
• Literature & FictionLiterary FictionHistorical

• Text-to-Speech: Disabled
• Lending: Disabled
• Print Length: 226 Pages
• File Size: 31 KB