Customer Reviews

Panama Fever: Digging Down Gold Mountain

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I will update this review after I read the book but I can say the writing itself is excellent. Deep, complex prose that is also effervescent. Bravo. I feel fine recommending the book now based on this alone, given how much dross there is out there!

Matt Felix

Love pushes people through life, but that's not the sole thing that drives them. "Panama Fever: Digging Down Gold Mountain" is the story of two Jamaican immigrants who seize the opportunity to join in the Panama Canal project to earn their fortunes. Thomas and Byron face an unusual story of falling in love and facing the crises that their life seems to have brought up in the process. Riveting reading, "Panama Fever" is an excellent story that should be strongly considered.

The 1800 was a precarious time for people of color in the United States and overseas, in places such as Panama. Panamanians and African Americans were slaves; treated as second class citizens. Today we are still a threat to society, a fact which is proven daily when we read and hear on the news how President Barrack Obama is treated.

Traveling to Colon Harbor where they are going to work on the Panama Canal, Byron, a trusting orphan, and Thomas, the misbegotten son of a merchant, develop an unusual friendship. Upon their arrival in Colon, life is looking up, when mother nature steps in and destroys their new life. One is hurt; the other is accused of a crime.

I enjoyed Garvey's detailed description of Panama, the people and the construction done on the Canal. PANAMA FEVER was a history lesson, love story, and tragedy all rolled into one. The lesson taught was people of color never giving up. Knock us down we bounce back and go to higher heights.

Reviewed by Toni Bonita
of The RAWSISTAZ (tm) Reviewers