In the Castle of My Skin

Another day of being home in recovery… which means, read a book.  George Lamming’s In the Castle of My Skin tells the story of a young boy growing up on the island of Barbados.  It is an autobiographical story which gives insight into the culture and ways of life as a black child who witnesses the challenges that exist on a tropical island.  The story occurs in the 1930s with the backdrop of riots and struggles of the island versus its motherland, Britain.  The book has a series of short stories all tied around the narrator’s experience on the island and what the villagers face during this tumultuous time.  Lamming’s character, himself, is able to escape and leave after his difficult time studying in high school, tapped by the elders to attend, though he finds this is not the direction for him and he plans for his departure to another Caribbean island, Trinidad.  Trinidad, known for its carnival and rugby players who annually visit Barbados for the tournament, offers Lamming an escape for things that are better, much in keeping with his friend who leaves for the American Dream to the US.  The underlying theme is leaving as soon as one can for a better life, though as he later learns when his friend returns from the US, there is a pecking order in every country, and the islanders are at the bottom in the US.  The book is very much a “coming-of-age” story of the young man who learns about his family, then his village, and then that there is more out in the world for him to experience.  This seems to be very much a similar sentiment in many of the books written during the time of Lamming’s work, learn by seeing a larger world! I will say that Lamming paints a pretty harsh series of images of the flooding, the rioting, and the struggle between men and the role that women must play based on cultural traditions.  The elders are in control and have no qualms in flogging a young child who does not pay attention to orders.  Having recently spent time on one of the Caribbean islands, Trinidad, I was not very surprised by the consistency in experiences and the very traditional roles of the family and society.  This was a relatively quick read and has a significance to the members of the Barbados community as one of their “must read” books written during the time of their independence.  Lamming paints a pretty clear picture as to what was happening during the time.  History buffs will certainly appreciate this one, as will those interested in sociological perspectives on societies.