Customer Reviews

You Alone Are Dancing (Ann Arbor Paperbacks)

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

 

 

I think that the editor of this sight did not justly review Flannagan's text. He/she wrote that this is a story about only two things: the politics of Trinidad and the story of Sonny Allen's struggle. Yes, this is a powerful political story, but it is not only a story of Sonny's struggle, as is written here. It is also a story about women and their choices. The editor, in addition to forgetting to mention the novel's female protagonist, did not even seemingly notice the cover artwork of Brenda Flannagan's novel on which a woman is shown walking toward or past a man lying stationary in a hammock. Beatrice's story is a keystone of the political story. She is the true hero because she does not abandon her conflict, hoping to rebuild her life without her culture. Beatrice's development is superior to Sonny's because he feels that he is unable to rebuild what exists, and must build something new. While all Flannagan's characters speak as though alive, I think that the strongest voice in her novel should be recognized as that of Beatrice, the peddle pusher wearing queen- not Sonny Allen. Sonny and this editor did not realize that one can not shake all the soil out of the roots of the plant. Beatrice is the soil that allows the root of this novel to grow in the mind of the reader.

The title of this West Indian novel by Brenda Flanagan conveys its poignant message of disappointed love and lost dreams. You Alone Are Dancing is set in a fictional Caribbean island, but its clever portrayal of political corruption, social oppression and the survival instincts of the lower class bring realism to those familiar with this way of life.

These elements, combined with compelling and colorful dialog, make the story engaging to the reader and while most novels thrive on conflict, the reader looks forward to a satisfying end. In this case there is none. The story tells of a young girl, Beatrice, who is raped by a Chinese doctor, while she's hoping that her lover, Sonny, will come back and take her to the United States. He does come back and when Beatrice tells him she was raped, he is furious. However, Sonny leaves for the US without Beatrice and the reader is left wondering if the two will ever end up together. A great read and a realistic ending, but in my opinion it does not satisfy.
Women for All Seasons: Biblical examples for every season of your life

Much more then just a romance novel, this book dives into a real world situation that allows the reader to develope an understanding of how many poor people live outside of the US. A lot of the novels dialog contains pharses and terms native to the location and adds a sence of realness and escape to what we are use to as English in the US. This is also the reason I gave it a 4 (actually 4.5) instead of a 5. If there were some kind of dictionary or glossory, it would make some things a little more clear. If your looking for a good book thats a different style then your use too, this is the book.