Dancing Lessons - Softcover

Senior, Olive

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1938604490 ISBN 13: 9781938604492

Publisher: Dzanc Books, 2014

Synopsis

"As a novel it is compelling, its heroine unforgettable. . . . A simply wonderful read."—The Globe and Mail

"This novel is a jewel that promises the reader a lesson in dancing to the right tune."—Jamaica Observer

Her mother's death and her father's madness leave G unloved and unwanted as a child. Her runaway marriage brings her children but not the fulfillment she yearns for. Years later, a hurricane destroys her Jamaican country house where she lives alone and she ends up—unwillingly—in a ritzy retirement home in the city, placed there by her well-to-do but distant daughter.

About this title

About the Author

Olive Senior is the prize-winning author of a dozen books of fiction, poetry and non-fiction. Her short story collection Summer Lightning (Longman, 1986) won the inaugural Commonwealth Writers’ Prize for Best Book, and her poetry collection Over the Roofs of the World (Insomniac, 2005) was a finalist for the 2005 Governor General’s Literary Award for poetry. Born in Jamaica, she has travelled widely and now spends most of her time in Jamaica and Toronto.

Review

“Senior is particularly deft at exploring social class, maternal terrain and distance. The territory she writes about could not interest this reader more ... Senior skillfully depicts the space between mother and children... What’s remarkable at times is Senior’s subtle depiction of family tension, the prodding between mother and daughter, the apprehension of what the one does or mainly does not know of the other.” (The Globe and Mail)

“As a result of Senior’s feel for Jamaican social types, [the emotional dynamics that drive the plot of this novel] take on a strong local flavour in Dancing Lessons ... Senior knows [the speech of inner Jamaica] inside out.” (National Post)

“Senior employs insight and dry humour throughout.” (Quill and Quire)

“Senior’s insights about gender, race, and class in Jamaica reveal her keen eye for details.” (Canadian Literature)

Edition details

• Publisher: Dzanc Books
• Publication date: 2014
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1938604490
• ISBN 13: 9781938604492
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 374