Shabbat Reading: Jamaica Kincaid's A Small Place

#whatireadovershabbat Jamaica Kincaid's A Small Place (1988; Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2000)

We’ve all at some point been a tourist. To go somewhere you never knew, to explore, is almost natural. Almost. In this short book about her native Antigua, Kincaid lays bare the brutal heart of tourism and exploration, the narcissism of travel. Sparing no one, she also reveals the dangers of being tied to “a small place,” as she exposes the normal, human ugliness of Antigua, hidden by white sand beaches. If you’re willing to risk it, this surprisingly amiable book will leave you bruised and wiser.