Ukraine on My Mind
As Russia begins its invasion of Ukraine, here are some memories of my time there and a simple plea for peace and collective effort…
Pick of the Crop by Nailah Folami Imoja
The annual calypso competition is a big deal in Barbados, so when I saw a novel about it on a recent trip…
January 2022 Reading Roundup
I had a good reading month, including a few books from my trip to a Barbadian bookshop, plus a couple for the…
Borges Marathon, Part 6: The Uncivil Teacher of Court Etiquette, Kôtsukéno Suké
The theme of honour runs through many of the fictions of Jorge Luis Borges. But why bother retelling such a well-known story…
Ms Ice Sandwich by Mieko Kawakami
Ms Ice Sandwich is a beautiful and endearing novella about a young boy's innocent crush on a grocery-store clerk.
The Joy of Bookshops
I recently visited a bookshop for the first time in ages. Browsing the shelves, picking up books at random, reading back covers and ruffling…
Best Books I Read in 2021
In another difficult year, books once again brought me solace. Here's a roundup of my best books of 2021 (these are the…
Borges Marathon, Part 5: The Disinterested Killer Bill Harrigan
As with many Borges stories, the line between fact and fiction in this story is unclear. So why does Borges make these…
Symbols Matter
As Barbados becomes a republic, there's a bizarre disconnect between the way foreign media and local people are framing what's happening.