Publisher's Synopsis
No Hannibal Lecter here. Just a single mother and her animalistic raging passion with a few quid pro quos as she grippingly strives for survival for herself and her eight children. Men in Essie's world are after only one thing, and she is glad to give it to them--but only with a little quid pro quo to support her and her growing brood. Mark McLaughlin This is a humble family story which is, in many ways, similar to The Color Purple. Essie, an orphan child, had an awful abusive family in the countryside of Jamaica. She was always down on her luck with men. After eight children with none of their fathers around, she came close to giving up. She migrated to the USA which made her wanting to live once again. However, getting here was another story. That was when all of the drama began. Excerpt: Gena was ahead of the game. She knew that if anything went wrong, she would have to quickly separate herself from the pack and bail out. That was exactly what she did. As soon as her papers were processed, she did not linger. She calmly walked by Bunny and Lela, who were still being questioned. Gena held her head straight as if she didn't know them and had no part in other people's affairs. As the old Jamaican saying goes, it was like "when chicken a pass by dentist office," meaning, since chickens have no teeth, they have no concern with dentists, and therefore, they hold their heads up high with pride when passing by a dental office because they have no reason to care. Gena held on tightly to little Faith's hand and headed straight out through the doors of the airport. She took a quick glance back just before she disappeared through the main doorway, and disappointment slapped her squarely in the face. (Just like in the case of the late artist formerly known as Prince, see also how one of Essie's seeds ended with a somewhat similar outcome). Book Review by CN Weekly News; Dr. Luke A. M. Brown (the Lamb) has succeeded in writing a very interesting and entertaining book, focusing on a mother's relentless love in a community adjacent to Jamaica's second city, Montego Bay. The story's about the pretty, shapely, country girl, Essie, who escaped life with an abusive family to live in Montego Bay. There, as a result of several failed romantic relationships, the young girl bears eight children for multiple men but matures to a strong, caring mother. Essie meanders through her relationships with hope then despair, as again and again she is abandoned after bearing a child. But Essie presses on excelling as a chef, acquiring a house, and skillfully juggling scarce funds to cloth, feed and school her children. As adults, the children succeed in making much of their lives, building on the foundation of their mother's love. Her eldest child and daughter, Gina, manages to get to the U.S., via the Bahamas, becomes a U.S. citizens and helped most of her siblings and her mother to migrate. One of her children, Leonard, whose life seems remarkably familiar to the author, becomes a Doctor of Pharmacy, the core of Essie's pride. Essie grows old, sick and dies in the U.S., and her body is returned to Jamaica for burial where Leonard offers a moving eulogy. But the remarkable funeral is ruined when one of Essie's sons who despised her because she left him with his father, who Essie eventually marries, in the Jamaican countryside, sparked a major disturbance at the graveside over the reading of the will. The author gives an in-depth account of the Jamaican culture and folklore.
