Historical novel set around ENGLAND (Birmingham)
Novel set in JAMAICA
11th March 2026
A House for Miss Pauline by Diana McCaulay, novel set in JAMAICA
Shortlisted for the Wilbur Smith Adventure Writing Prize 2025
Pauline Sinclair is an elderly woman who knows that the movement of her house and the sounds it makes are telling her something very important. Yet, she is worried that others will see it as “...pure old age foolishnis or some new nightime ‘fraid“. Those walls hold a lot of memories for her and she doesn’t really want to make herself vulnerable with others by acknowledging these experiences. Justine, her granddaughter, is due to fly in shortly and as she awaits her arrival, her thoughts go back in time, to the people in her life, the natural weather events that have descended on the island and ravished it, and encounters she has had.
She has also been growing ganja, just part of her everyday life. She has led a very simple life, so when Justine arrives, she brings the modern Western world with her. Pauline shares how a man came to claim the land on which she built her house, but it transpires he is dead. Justine’s visit sets in motion a new trajectory, as Pauline’s life is coming to an end. There are secrets aplenty, a mystery or two to be examined and as the story develops it becomes clear how much Pauline is invested in tying up the loose ends of her life.
The feel of Jamaica is beautifully evoked: “The colours of the sea range from turquoise to deepest indigo and surf break while on underwater reefs. The reddish, rusting roofs of Port Maria cling to the edge of a sweeping bay with a steep, circular green island in the middle“. This is so gorgeous, says Justine. I guess this is why tourists visit Jamaica. Indeed, it probably is.
The dialogue is rendered oftentimes in patois, which adds an authentic element to the narrative.
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