"Remarkable for its courage, its color and its natural control."-The New Yorker

"Unforgettable...written with pride and anger, with rebellion and tears."-The Herald Tribune

This beloved coming-of-age story set in Brooklyn during the Depression and World War II follows the life of Selina Boyce, a daughter of Barbadians immigrants. Her mother craves the American Dream while her father longs for his island birthplace. The new foreword by contemporary Caribbean author Edwidge Danticat explores the novel's themes of identity, sexuality and values as well as Selina's struggle against the racism and poverty surrounding her.