Praise for "How to Escape from a Leper Colony"
"I reached the end of "How to Escape from a Leper Colony "with the exhilarating sense that I had been on the best kind of journey--not, finally, to the Virgin Islands nor Trinidad nor Houston nor London, but to the imagination of a wonderfully talented young writer who has many more stories to tell." --Margot Livesey, "The Boston Globe"
"To wrap your mind around life on an island, you need to understand insularity, restlessness, the way it feels to have a fluid sense of identity. All this and more is what you get from Tiphanie Yanique's haunting and vibrant debut fiction collection." --"O, The Oprah Magazine"
"A few years ago, Tiphanie Yanique wowed us with her phenomenal story collection, "How to Escape from a Leper Colony." Now she brings us this astonishing and wondrous novel. Multilayered, multigenerational and epic in both talent and scope, Land of Love and Drowning is a stunning first novel about family, history, home and much, much more. Tiphanie Yanique's tremendous talents and incredible storytelling will astound you and leave you breathless."--Edwidge Danticat
""Land of Love and Drowning "is a gorgeous incantation of a novel, a masterly fusion of place, language, and seductive storytelling that will hold you spellbound from its first pages to the last. Tiphanie Yanique takes on all of it--the bitter and the sweet, love and loss, betrayal and faith, as well as the distant machinations of state that push us about like so many minnows on ocean tides--and does so with a grace and a wisdom that are nothing short of profound. This book is an absolute marvel."--Ben Fountain, author of "Billy Flynn's Long Halftime Walk"
""Land of Love and Drowning "is a marvel--epic and sweeping, yet intimate as a secret. It's a tour de force combining naturalism and lyricism, myth and history. This is a story that feels ancient and modern at the same time. Tiphanie Yanique is a prodigiously talented new writer with a sharp voice, wicked humor, and compassion beyond measure."--Tayari Jones, author of "Silver Sparrow"
"What a miracle this book is. Tiphanie Yanique unites the sweep of history and the tenderest movements of the heart in writing so beautiful it's breathtaking. Both an epic and a three-generation love poem, it's irresistible."--Stacey D'Erasmo, author of "The Sky Below"
"In "Land of Love and Drowning," Tiphanie Yanique paints a poignant, electrifying panorama of the Virgin Islands. Breaking writerly rules left and right, Yanique's sentences seem effortless, free. Yet watch as these assemble into a family saga of unforgettable gravita
"Through the voices and lives of its native people, Yanique offers an affecting narrative of the Virgin Islands that pulses with life, vitality, and a haunting evocation of place."--"Publishers Weekly" (starred)
"Bubbling with talent and ambition, this novel is a head-spinning Caribbean cocktail."--"Kirkus "(starred)
"A few years ago, Tiphanie Yanique wowed us with her phenomenal story collection, "How to Escape from a Leper Colony." Now she brings us this astonishing and wondrous novel. Multilayered, multigenerational and epic in both talent and scope, Land of Love and Drowning is a stunning first novel about family, history, home and much, much more. Tiphanie Yanique's tremendous talents and incredible storytelling will astound you and leave you breathless."--Edwidge Danticat
""Land of Love and Drowning "is a gorgeous incantation of a novel, a masterly fusion of place, language, and seductive storytelling that will hold you spellbound from its first pages to the last. Tiphanie Yanique takes on all of it--the bitter and the sweet, love and loss, betrayal and faith, as well as the distant machinations of state that push us about like so many minnows on ocean tides--and does so with a grace and a wisdom that are nothing short of profound. This book is an absolute marvel."--Ben Fountain, author of "Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk"
""Land of Love and Drowning "is a marvel--epic and sweeping, yet intimate as a secret. It's a tour de force combining naturalism and lyricism, myth and history. This is a story that feels ancient and modern at the same time. Tiphanie Yanique is a prodigiously talented new writer with a sharp voice, wicked humor, and compassion beyond measure."--Tayari Jones, author of "Silver Sparrow"
"What a miracle this book is. Tiphanie Yanique unites the sweep of history and the tenderest movements of the heart in writing so beautiful it's breathtaking. Both an epic and a three-generation love poem, it's i
"This hypnotic tale tracks a Virgin Islands family through three generations of blessings and curses. It starts in 1900, with a shipwreck that orphans two sisters and the half-brother they've just met, and then spinso out magic, mayhem, and passion."--"Good Housekeeping"
"A debut novel about three generations of a Caribbean family. It reads lush and is graced with rotating narrators, each of whom has a distinct and powerful voice."--"USA Today"
"Through the voices and lives of its native people, Yanique offers an affecting narrative of the Virgin Islands that pulses with life, vitality, and a haunting evocation of place."--"Publishers Weekly" (starred)
"Bubbling with talent and ambition, this novel is a head-spinning Caribbean cocktail."--"Kirkus "(starred)
"A few years ago, Tiphanie Yanique wowed us with her phenomenal story collection, "How to Escape from a Leper Colony." Now she brings us this astonishing and wondrous novel. Multilayered, multigenerational and epic in both talent and scope, Land of Love and Drowning is a stunning first novel about family, history, home and much, much more. Tiphanie Yanique's tremendous talents and incredible storytelling will astound you and leave you breathless."--Edwidge Danticat
""Land of Love and Drowning "is a gorgeous incantation of a novel, a masterly fusion of place, language, and seductive storytelling that will hold you spellbound from its first pages to the last. Tiphanie Yanique takes on all of it--the bitter and the sweet, love and loss, betrayal and faith, as well as the distant machinations of state that push us about like so many minnows on ocean tides--and does so with a grace and a wisdom that are nothing short of profound. This book is an absolute marvel."--Ben Fountain, author of "Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk"
""Land of Love and Drowning "is a marvel--epic and sweeping, yet intimate as a secret. It's a tour de force combining naturalism and lyricism, h
"A feat of tropical magical realism."--"Vanity Fair"
"Spellbinding."--"Elle"
"Sink or swim is the guiding theme in this fantastical, generational novel."--"Marie Claire"
"This hypnotic tale tracks a Virgin Islands family through three generations of blessings and curses. It starts in 1900, with a shipwreck that orphans two sisters and the half-brother they've just met, and then spinso out magic, mayhem, and passion."--"Good Housekeeping"
"A debut novel about three generations of a Caribbean family. It reads lush and is graced with rotating narrators, each of whom has a distinct and powerful voice."--"USA Today"
"The novel provides readers with beautiful, imaginative prose via a story set in the Virgin Islands."--"Ebony"
"Through the voices and lives of its native people, Yanique offers an affecting narrative of the Virgin Islands that pulses with life, vitality, and a haunting evocation of place."--"Publishers Weekly" (starred)
"Bubbling with talent and ambition, this novel is a head-spinning Caribbean cocktail."--"Kirkus "(starred)
"A few years ago, Tiphanie Yanique wowed us with her phenomenal story collection, "How to Escape from a Leper Colony." Now she brings us this astonishing and wondrous novel. Multilayered, multigenerational and epic in both talent and scope, Land of Love and Drowning is a stunning first novel about family, history, home and much, much more. Tiphanie Yanique's tremendous talents and incredible storytelling will astound you and leave you breathless."--Edwidge Danticat
""Land of Love and Drowning "is a gorgeous incantation of a novel, a masterly fusion of place, language, and seductive storytelling that will hold you spellbound from its first pages to the last. Tiphanie Yanique takes on all of it--the bitter and the sweet, love and loss, betrayal and faith, as well as the distant machinations of state that push us about like so many minnows on ocean tides--and d
"It's a tired cliche to call a place a character, but in Tiphanie Yanique's gorgeous debut, St.Thomas in the U.S. Virgin Islands makes for a textured and fascinating protagonist. At the beginning of the novel, in the early 20th century, the island is in flux as it goes from Danish to American ownership. At the same time, sisters Eeona and Anette find their fortunes changing drastically when their father, Captain Owen Arthur Bradshaw, who's something of a local legend, drowns in a shipwreck. The untouchably beautiful Eeona and the earthy but equally seductive Anette must evolve and fend for themselves as Saint Thomas becomes a tourist hot spot and their dead father's secrets continue to haunt them at every turn--as we're often reminded, it's a small island. Yanique's many artful touches--switched perspectives, deeply idiomatic dialogue, island folklore, strokes of magical realism--are so arresting that it's easy to overlook the mastery involved in intertwining the history of a place and the lives of two unforgettable women."--"Entertainment Weekly"
"In "Land of Love and Drowning," three generations of beautiful Bradshaw women bewitch the men of St. Thomas through the islands' transfer to American control, World War II, segregation and the aftermath of a catastrophic hurricane. Secrets and jealousies shadow the relationship between two sisters and set them apart from other islanders as they all lurch through historical changes. . . . Yanique has written the best kind of summer read--lurid, yet layered and literary."--NPR.org
"A feat of tropical magical realism."--"Vanity Fair"
"Spellbinding."--"Elle"
"Sink or swim is the guiding theme in this fantastical, generational novel."--"Marie Claire"
"This hypnotic tale tracks a Virgin Islands family through three generations of blessings and curses. It starts in 1900, with a shipwreck that orphans two sisters and the half-brother they've just met, and then spinso out magic, mayhem, and passion."--"Good Housekeeping"
"A debut novel about three generations of a Caribbean family. It reads lush and is graced with rotating narrators, each of whom has a distinct and powerful voice."--"USA Today"
"The novel provides readers with beautiful, imaginative prose via a story set in the Virgin Islands."--"Ebony"
"Through the voices and lives of its native people, Yanique offers an affecting narrative of the Virgin Islands that pulses with life, vitality, and a haunting evocation of place."--"Publishers Weekly" (starred)
"Bubbling with talent and ambition, this novel is a head-spinning Caribbean cocktail."--"Kirkus "(starred)
"A few years ago, Tiphanie Yanique wowed us with her phenomenal story collection, "How to Escape from a Leper Colony." Now she brings us this astonishing and wondrous novel. Multilayered, multigenerational and epic in both talent and scope, Land of Love and Drowning is a stunning first novel about family, history, home and much, much more. Tiphanie Yanique's tremendous talents and incredible storytelling will astound you and leave you breathless."--Edwidge Danticat
""Land of Love and Drowning "is a gorgeous incantation of a novel, a masterly fusion of place, language, and seductive storytelling that will hold you spellbound from its first pages to the last. Tiphanie Yanique takes on all of it--the bitter and the sweet, love and loss, betrayal and faith, as well as the distant machinations of state that push us about like so many minnows on ocean tides--and does so with a grace and a wisdom that are nothing short of profound. This book is an absolute marvel."--Ben Fountain, author of "Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk"
""Land of Love and Drowning "is a marvel--epic and sweeping, yet intimate as a secret. It's a tour de force combining naturalism and lyricism, myth and history. This is a story that feels ancient and modern at the same time. Tiphanie Yanique is a prodigiously talented new writer with a sharp voice, wicked humor, and compassion beyond measure."--Tayari Jones, author of "Silver Sparrow"
"What a miracle this book is. Tiphanie Yanique unites the sweep of history and the tenderest movements of the heart in writing so beautiful it's breathtaking. Both an epic and a three-generation love poem, it's irresistible."--Stacey D'Erasmo, author of "The Sky Below"
"In "Land of Love and Drowning," Tiphanie Yanique paints a poignant, electrifying panorama of the Virgin Islands. Breaking writerly rules left and right, Yanique's sentences seem effortless, free. Yet watch as these assemble into a family saga of unforgettable gravitas. A magnificent story, marvelously told."--Claire Vaye Watkins, author of "Battleborn"
"Yanique spins a series of seductive tales covering six decades and three generations living in the Virgin Islands in her first novel, which draws upon her own family history." NPR, Great Reads of 2014
"It's a tired cliche to call a place a character, but in Tiphanie Yanique's gorgeous debut, St.Thomas in the U.S. Virgin Islands makes for a textured and fascinating protagonist. At the beginning of the novel, in the early 20th century, the island is in flux as it goes from Danish to American ownership. At the same time, sisters Eeona and Anette find their fortunes changing drastically when their father, Captain Owen Arthur Bradshaw, who's something of a local legend, drowns in a shipwreck. The untouchably beautiful Eeona and the earthy but equally seductive Anette must evolve and fend for themselves as Saint Thomas becomes a tourist hot spot and their dead father's secrets continue to haunt them at every turn as we're often reminded, it's a small island. Yanique's many artful touches switched perspectives, deeply idiomatic dialogue, island folklore, strokes of magical realism are so arresting that it's easy to overlook the mastery involved in intertwining the history of a place and the lives of two unforgettable women." Entertainment Weekly
"In Land of Love and Drowning, three generations of beautiful Bradshaw women bewitch the men of St. Thomas through the islands' transfer to American control, World War II, segregation and the aftermath of a catastrophic hurricane. Secrets and jealousies shadow the relationship between two sisters and set them apart from other islanders as they all lurch through historical changes. . . .Yanique has written the best kind of summer read lurid, yet layered and literary." NPR.org
"A feat of tropical magical realism. Vanity Fair
Spellbinding. Elle
Sink or swim is the guiding theme in this fantastical, generational novel. Marie Claire
"This hypnotic tale tracks a Virgin Islands family through three generations of blessings and curses. It starts in 1900, with a shipwreck that orphans two sisters and the half-brother they've just met, and then spinso out magic, mayhem, and passion." Good Housekeeping
"Adebut novel about three generations of a Caribbean family. It reads lush and is graced with rotating narrators, each of whom has a distinct and powerful voice." USA Today
"The novel provides readers with beautiful, imaginative prose via a story set in the Virgin Islands. Ebony
"Through the voices and lives of its native people, Yanique offers an affecting narrative of the Virgin Islands that pulses with life, vitality...
