A Vision of Hope for Haiti

• Book: The Sons and Daughters of Toussaint
• Location: Haiti
• Author: Keith Madsen

Review Author: jimmetzner

Keith Madsen knows Haiti intimately and that knowledge and his obvious love for the country permeates this novel with details that could only have come from first hand experience. “Sons and Daughters of Toussaint Louverture” alternates between present day Haiti and the last days of Louverture, hero of Haiti’s revolution, which ultimately released the country from the bonds of foreign control and slavery. Not without a bloody price. The present day story presents us with a vision of a fictional revitalized Haiti on the verge of reclaiming its place as the pride of the Caribbean.
I found myself fact-checking the historical narrative, wondering if Jean-Jacques Dessalines, Toussaint’s successor was indeed the cold-blooded tyrant depicted in “Sons and Daughters”, why is Dessalines Day still celebrated as a national holiday in Haiti? It turns out Madsen got his facts right, and Dessalines, along with much of Haiti’s past, has been subject to a historical makeover. In a time where the US is reconsidering the status of “heroes” from our past, it’s a part of Madsen’s tale that hits home. Another compelling thread for me was the question of beauty – what it is and isn’t, when one of the main characters in the novel, a Haitian model, famous for her good looks, is obliged to rediscover her own inner beauty.
There’s a spoiler in the description of the novel on its back cover, so I’d advise diving into the book itself, putting yourself in the good hands of a excellent storyteller.

Back to book