Winds of Change: The Transforming Voices of Caribbean Women Writers and Scholars

Designed to continue the tradition of critical study and celebration of the literary products of Caribbean writers, Winds of Change features eighteen new essays written by writers and scholars of Caribbean literature. The volume was developed from the 1996 International Conference of Caribbean Women Writers and Scholars and includes original essays by Opal Palmer Adisa, Maryse Conde, Beryl A. Gilroy, Merle Hodge, Patricia Powel, Astrid H. Roemer, and Elaine Savory, among others. The writers speak to each other and to the audience on the ways in which Caribbean women writers influence their societies (cultural, political, social, economic) through their literature. The work also features a discussion of Afro-Brasilian writers who situate themselves as Caribbean in sensibility and content.

About the Author :
The Contributors: Opal Palmer Adisa, Velma Pollard, Merle Collins, Merle Hodge, Regine Altagrace Latortue, Maryse Conde, Sybil Seaforth, Daisy Cocco de Filippis, Marie-Jose N'Zengo-Tayo, Marion Bethel, Lourdes Vazquez, Sherezada (Chiqui) Vicioso, Australia Tarver, Joan Anim-Addo, Beryl A. Gilroy, Lizabeth Paravisini-Gebert, Elaine Savory, Astrid H. Roemer, Patricia Powell, Leda Maria Martins. The Editors: Adele S. Newson is Associate Professor in the Department of English at Florida International University. She is the author of Zora Neale Hurston: A Reference Guide and numerous other articles and review essays. Linda Strong-Leek is Associate Professor in the Department of English at Florida International University. Her interests include African and Diaspora literature. She is working on her next book, Excising the Spirit: An Analysis of Female Circumcision.

Review :
This volume is an indispensable addition to the growing discourse on women writers in the African Diaspora. The editors bring needed attention to the often silenced voices of Caribbean women writers and scholars as we remap the literatures of the Americas. The significant interplay of writer and scholar creates a dialogue truly indigenous to the Caribbean. (Gay Wilentz, Author of 'Binding Cultures: Black Women Writers in Africa and the Diaspora') The language of the 'winds' and 'transformations' which mark this collection captures the spirit and energy of Caribbean women writing today. Writing out of their various whirlwinds, signaling new worlds, new meanings, new ideas, these writers assert the kind of presence which consistently revitalizes literature, culture as it simultaneously challenges worn-out assumptions. This collection is an astute selection of the most intriguing voices around today. The presence of these writers in one place continues to provide the kind of work which allows the study of Caribbean women to create its own space. (Carole Boyce Davies, Professor of English; Director, African New-World Studies Program, Florida International University) This is a stunning anthology in respect to its range, substance, and design. It makes current previous anthologies on the subject, recording and evaluating new directions in Caribbean women's writing and scholarship. The scholars and writers here represent old and new voices, allowing the student and scholar ready access to major currents in creative and scholarly production in the 1990s. The introduction is accurate and authoritative in its representation and interpretation of the issues. This collection will find its way into every college and university library in the United States, the Caribbean, and the British Commonwealth. It makes an invaluable contribution to Women's Studies, African American and Diasporic Studies, as well as to Multicultural and Postcolonial area studies. The quality of the contributions are such that this collection will enable readers to situate Caribbean women's writing in current thought in all these areas. (Sandra Pouchet Paquet, Associate Professor of English; Director, Caribbean Writers Summer Institute, University of Miami)