Here Comes the Sun by Nicole Dennis-Benn June 2017

June 2017 selection - Here Comes the Sun by Nicole Dennis-Benn

The Fairfax Library Book Discussion Group will meet Thursday, June 8th at 7 p.m. in the meeting room of the Fairfax Library to discuss our June book, Here Comes the Sun by Nicole Dennis-Benn.

Discussion questions are below.

Here are some links for additional background and information:

History of sex workers in America

Some interesting info on Jamaica history

  

Coming up, we have the following books to look forward to reading:

Thurs. July 13^th        The Last Painting of Sara De Vos by Dominic Smith

Thurs. Aug. 10^th       The Sympathizer by Viet Thanh Nguyen

  

Thanks for reading with us. I look forward to seeing you at the Fairfax Library.

Beth Bailey-Gates

Friends of the Fairfax Library

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

Here Comes the Sun by Nicole Dennis-Benn

1. Riding to work one day, Margot says, "Can't wait to leave dis godforsaken place." When the taxi driver says, "we live by di sea," Margot responds "This is not paradise. At least, not for us." Talk about the disparity between Jamaica's image as a tourist destination and Jamaica as a place to live for its residents. If you've visited Jamaica, or other Caribbean Islands, where you surprised by life portrayed in Here Comes the Sun?
2. . What do you think of the three women characters—Dolores, Margot, and Thandi? The choices they make are problematic, to say the least. Can their choices be understood, even acceptable, given the dire poverty the women face?
3. . (Follow-up to Question 2) What do you think of the "extra job" Margot undertakes in order to raise money for Thandi's schooling? What else does Margot do to get ahead. Is she blameworthy or can her choices be defended?
4. . Dolores believes that in her culture a woman is valued for "what's between her legs." Is this a realistic assessment or a warped and cynical one?
5. . What are the promises—and threats—of the proposed new hotel? Will it bring hoped for prosperity or only destruction of the village?
6. . Discuss Thandi's decision to undergo skin bleaching and the hierarchy of race as explained by the woman who administers the skin treatment.
7. . The book poses significant questions about greed and sacrifice, about being desperate in paradise. What are the many humiliations undergone in order to achieve security? What would any of us do—what would you do—in order to survive in a culture and economy like these women face?
8. . Discuss homophobia in Jamaica. The author, herself a lesbian, chose to leave Jamaica rather than live in a hostile environment. What about Margot and Verdene? Will living in a gated community offer the protection Margot dreams of?
9. . Given the desperate lives the women lead and the choices they make, do you find this book difficult to read? Is it simply too grim? Or does the writing—in particular, the depth of the characters and the complexity of the issues—redeem the book in your eyes? (There is no single or right answer to this question!)
10. . Nicole Dennis-Benn brings to life a Jamaica that is removed from, yet also inextricably linked with the fantasy world of the resorts. How does she create a distinct sense of place? Did the Jamaica she conjures surprise you? Did it feel foreign or familiar?

11.   “God nuh like ugly,” Miss Ruby warns Thandi, and her mother tells her, “nobody love a black girl.” How do racism, colorism, and classism shape their society? How do these forces direct the characters’ lives, thoughts, and actions?
How did your understanding of Margot’s relationship with Delores change over the course of reading the novel? Do you find their actions toward one another understandable? Forgivable?

12.   Margot, Thandi, Delores, Verdene, and Sweetness all have distinct, strong voices. Which of these women did you most sympathize (or even identify) with? Which do you hold most accountable for her actions?

13.  4. The ever-expanding resorts threaten the homes of River Bank residents and destroy their livelihoods as farmers and fishermen. Yet the hotel business also brings jobs and, to ambitious people like Margot, the promise of prosperity. Do you consider this kind of development progress? Why or why not? Did the novel change your views?

14.   How do the women in the novel relate to men? What effects do men have on women’s lives and senses of self?
How do Jamaican religion and tradition interact with encroaching modernity on the island? Which storylines illuminate this tension?

15.   What are Margot’s motivations? Are they what she says they are?

16.   After implementing her scheme, Margot sees Miss Novia Scott-Henry crying in the hotel bathroom, “long streaks down her face. Like scars.” Why do you think Dennis-Benn uses this startling imagery?

17.   Why does Margot react as she does when she finds out Thandi has been bleaching her skin?

18.   What role does language play in this world, and how does Dennis-Benn use it? What social and emotional associations does the local patois carry?

19.   The book’s title sounds optimistic. Is that expectation borne out?