Bivouac (Peepal Tree Press)
by Kwame Dawes

A sharply focused portrayal of Jamaica at a tipping point in its recent past, this story of one man’s private grief and dislocation explores the psyche of a nation and a cultural movement that has lost its footing. When Ferron Morgan’s family is thrown in turmoil by the suspicions surrounding the mysterious death of his father, his life is swept away in a tide of guilt and filial duty. Narrated in a nonlinear fashion with cycles of flash-back, the story suggests that the answers to the future can only be surmised once the past has been revisited.