Out of Order!

Anthony C. Winkler, one of the most popular West Indian writers of the last fifty years largely due to his out-of-order outrageousness, is a white Jamaican who is often, on the basis of his writing, assumed to be black. Acknowledging the fluidity of the terms white Jamaican and white West Indian, the book offers a preliminary overview of writing by white West Indians, identifying stereotypes and relating Winkler's books to prevalent trends demonstrated by other white West Indians - and suggesting that Winkler's work stands apart from the mainstream in significant ways. The book provides a detailed analysis of two Winkler novels (The Lunatic and The Duppy) and an autobiographical work (Going Home to Teach). In examining these texts Robinson-Walcott highlights aspects of Winkler's experience which have helped shape his distinctive, out-of-order vision. Anthony C. Winkler has emerged as a significant as well as an immensely popular Jamaican writer of fiction, with four novels, one autobiographical work and a collection of short stories already published, and two additional novels scheduled for publication in 2005-2006. in North America, yet very little published criticism of his work exists. This book fills that gap; and because it has been written in a highly readable language, it is accessible to the many non-academic fans of his work.