Natives of My Person
Will be published approx. on 14. July 2026
Book
Paperback/Softback
432 pages
978-0-241-82947-9 (ISBN)
Description
A profound exploration of colonialism, from one of the Caribbean's most powerful literary voices
'A novel which adds a new dimension to contemporary fiction ... Natives of My Person is above all the story of a voyage ... a voyage which as in The Odyssey and Moby Dick penetrates into the very depths of a civilization' C. L. R. James
In the age of empire, the good ship Reconnaissance sets sail under its murderous Commandant. Yet this is no ordinary expedition for gold and plunder. It is a mission to create a new world in the virgin territories of San Cristobal, a fabled island shrouded in myth and promise. As the perilous voyage unfolds, however, it becomes a mirror of the colonial mind: avaricious, brutish, haunted by death and madness.
With poetic intensity and philosophical depth, this is a novel that journeys far beyond the seas it charts. Through shifting perspectives and a richly layered narrative, Lamming unearths the deep scars of conquest and the personal and political dimensions of empire - its delusions, its violence, and the haunting legacy it leaves behind.
'One of the great political novels in modern "colonial" literature' Ngugi wa Thiong'o
'A novel which adds a new dimension to contemporary fiction ... Natives of My Person is above all the story of a voyage ... a voyage which as in The Odyssey and Moby Dick penetrates into the very depths of a civilization' C. L. R. James
In the age of empire, the good ship Reconnaissance sets sail under its murderous Commandant. Yet this is no ordinary expedition for gold and plunder. It is a mission to create a new world in the virgin territories of San Cristobal, a fabled island shrouded in myth and promise. As the perilous voyage unfolds, however, it becomes a mirror of the colonial mind: avaricious, brutish, haunted by death and madness.
With poetic intensity and philosophical depth, this is a novel that journeys far beyond the seas it charts. Through shifting perspectives and a richly layered narrative, Lamming unearths the deep scars of conquest and the personal and political dimensions of empire - its delusions, its violence, and the haunting legacy it leaves behind.
'One of the great political novels in modern "colonial" literature' Ngugi wa Thiong'o
Reviews / Votes
One of the great political novels in modern 'colonial' literature -- Ngugi wa Thiong'o Natives of My Person' is undoubtedly George Lamming's finest novel. It succeeds in illuminating new areas of darkness in the colonial past that the colonizer has so far not dealt with, and in this sense it is a profoundly revolutionary and original work... George Lamming is not so much a novelist as a chronicler of secret journeys to the innermost regions of the West Indian psyche -- Jan Carew * New York Times *More details
Language
English
Place of publication
London
United Kingdom
Publishing group
Penguin Books Ltd
Product notice
Paperback (UK-B)
Dimensions
Height: 198 mm
Width: 129 mm
Thickness: 35 mm
Weight
500 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-241-82947-9 (9780241829479)
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Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions
Person
George Lamming was a Barbados-born novelist, essayist, and poet. He taught at universities around the world, including posts of Distinguished Visiting Professor at Duke University and Visiting Professor at Brown University. His books include In the Castle of My Skin (1953), The Emigrants (1954), Of Age and Innocence (1958), and The Pleasures of Exile (1960).