I am an admirer of Kincaid's work, especially "The Autobiography of My Mother" and "My Brother." However, my high hopes for this book were dashed as I turned page after page. In "Mr. Potter," Kincaid unintentionally parodies the very prose style that made the above works so powerful.

In close to 200 pages, what is incantatory in her earlier work is tediously and self-importantly repetitous in this one. The details of her father's life -- his ancestry, his abandonment of mother and daughters, his later livelihood -- are several dozen pages worth of narrative that is ridiculously stretched out in endlessly repeated phrases; and when those phrases are exhausted, we get paraphrases of those phrases.

Instead of creating a solid portrait of her father the way she did with her mother and brother, we get a novel in which parodic repetition is the main character, in which the author's voice defeats forward-moving narrative. One gets the feeling that the style has become just filler, that Kincaid knew few enough facts of her father's life in order to fill entire book.

Kincaid's writing style is entirely unique and distinctive. This book is not just trying to tell a story, it is assigning an identity to people who otherwise would not have one. The point of this book is to explore and interpret the influence that the past has on the present, both globally and individually. Every literary device Kincaid incorporates into this book is used for a reason, from her repetition of certain phrases to her two page long sentences--it all adds and supports the depth and breadth of the subject she is writing about. With this book Kincaid not only challenges the way we view our lives, history and environment, but the way we view the lives,history and environments of people who are wholly unlike us. "Mr. Potter" is a striking piece of literature.

I enjoyed this novel. It's very realistic, and flows smoothly. Great summer read. Other summer reads recommended are: In-Law Drama and Sunset in St. Tropez. Happy reading!

I first picked up Kincaid's 'At the bottom of the river' last August. I just returned to homeland after 5 years away, saw the book on the floor of a bookshop, picked it up and ended up bringing it home. Since then, I have read all of her books.

This novel continues to do great justice to its predecessors. Illuminating, alive and vivid.

This is not a book about only gardening, but about everything. Poignant, funny, opinionated. It is a book that entertains and informs, in between the discussion of gardens and people with gardens.

I must confess to having never read any of Ms. Kincaid's earlier work, but having enjoyed this book as much as I did, I will certainly seek out her other writings.

This book is an open, descriptive peek into the pleasures and peeves of gardening, and into Ms. Kincaid's own idiosyncratic - alternately heartwarming and annoying - view of herself, her family, her friends and acquaintances, and history. It takes the "garden as metaphor for life" theme into entirely new and thought-provoking directions.

Her style (writing as the novice Kincaid reader that I am) was unusual - very conversational, sometimes rambling and disjointed - and took some getting used to. But once I got into the essays, I found it entirely engaging. She delivers an honest appraisal of her strengths and her weaknesses, as a gardener and as a person. Her enemies (insect, animal and human) became my enemies, her heroes became my heroes (I've registered for a symposium featuring Dan of Heronswood Gardens already!), and her ideas never failed to generate my own questions and (sometimes) answers.

I highly recommend this book, as an adjunct to the winter plant catalogues and "how-to" books into which we addicted gardeners usually immerse ourselves during the "off" season. No great font of gardening information (by her own admission, she usually breaks the mold, if not the rules), it will not fail to inspire your own efforts come spring.

I love gardens, but I don't have a green thumb. I don't why I picked this book up, but I did. This work does not detail the Latin names for plants or teach you how to layout your garden designs based on climate and soil conditions. It is a voyage of discovery of the self through the tending of a garden. An intriguing concept well written by Jamaica. Through her knowledge and experiences as a gardener, she began to understand her history, thoughts, decision-making, home, desires, fears, everything that makes her a woman, with a family, living on earth. Do not read this book for tips on gardening. Read this book for personal insights through the tending and building of gardens in connection to one's mind, body, soul, and heritage.

It is difficult to rate Autobiography of My Mother fairly; Jamaica Kincaid has written excellent books - At the Bottom of the River, Lucy . . . - and this book is only well above average. Were my expectations not so high, the things that are right about the book would stand out more against the portions that don't work. She is at her best when portraying the inability to love and the bitterness at the colonialist religion. However, there are points in the story where the political portrayal of victor vs. vanquished becomes a polemic out of character of the protagonist. A good book that is well worth reading - but is probably more enjoyable if you have read Annie John, Lucy or One Small Place so that the political polemic fits the reader's growing knowledge of the author rather than simply being an element less adroitly handled in this particular book.

The Autobiography of My Mother is not an autobiography at all, and it is not even solely about a mother. It is actually a novel about a woman whose mother died when she was being born. This first life event, which is also the first event the narrator tells the reader about in the story, is a powerful force that shapes the narrator's life.

Not only does narrator (Xuela) not have a mother, but she feels that she does not actually have a country, a homeland. She lives on the island of Antigua, which is only twelve miles long and nine miles long. The culture of her people was stolen by their English colonizers, and the only culture they now know is that of England.

In my opinion, there are times in the book when the narrator is self-pitying and repetitive. I do think, however, that this is in keeping with her character. The book is written as if Xuela is sitting down with the reader and telling him or her her life story, and Xuela would definitely be a character who would repeat and overemphasize the bad parts just so the person listening would get the point.

I also found fault with the narrator because she was very hyprocritical. She critized her father's actions and attitude about life, but then she acted in simliar ways and had a simliar attitude. The one positive aspect about the main character is that she is a very strong woman who is not afraid to deviate from her society's acceptable ways of behaving.

I was surprised that I liked this book so much when I did not like the narrator. I think it is because Kincaid had such an integrity when it came to writing about the main character. She presented all aspects, positive and negative, and didn't only show her in a good light. All aspiring authors can learn a lesson in characterization from reading this book.

Kincaid's writing style is very seductive. It pulls you in and makes you not want to get away. I read this book in two long settings because I didn't want to put it down. She has a powerful way of describing people, places, and situations. Her prose is lyrical and truthful - after reading a passage, I wanted to sit back and think about it for awhile, because there was so much truth and beauty to be found in it.

This is the first book I have read by Jamaica Kincaid. I am presently reading "A Small Place", and hope to read the rest of her books in the future. I would recommend this book to anyone, but especially to writers who are interested in reading very high quality writing with strong charactarization and powerful description.

I have to speak up, because I feel that this book is being unfairly trashed. I stumbled across one of the chapters of this book in a collection, and I was so taken aback that I had to rush out and get the complete novel. I think that that Jamaica Kincaid's writing is so beautiful and poetic that she could be writing about anything and I would read it. But she also tells a very interesting and important story. Xuela is a mixed-race, motherless girl who does not receive love from anyone, and must survive by loving and celebrating her self. Perhaps for those people who have always felt secure in their place in life, and surrounded by love on all sides, Kincaid's book is too harsh and hard to relate to. But for those of us who have had times we when we felt so alone that we literally had to become our own mother and/or our own best friend, Kincaid's novel is a testimony to our experience. A great book.

This is a poignant book, written much like a journal. It is lyrical prose mourning the loss of Kincaid's brother from AIDS, and in a greater sense the loss of her childhood stolen by a demanding mother, ill father, and half-brothers who drained the family provisions. My eyes were opened to abject proverty that I, as an American, know so little about. Antigua is so improverished the hospital is just a holding place for death. Only through Jamaica's efforts, is her brother afforded any medications. The story is poignant and expressive. Perhaps, because it reads like a mourning journal, I never felt comfortable reading it, and was relieved to complete this short novel. Not my favorite book, but worth reading, not the least reason being education.

"My Brother" by Jamaica Kincaid is one of the most unusual books I have ever read. It is moving, inspiring, depressing, emotional yet confusing all at the same time. The book is about a sister's journey as she helps her brother fight against AIDS to stay alive. It gives many explicit details that are disturbing. She paints a picture that can only be told by the one who experienced it first hand. In addition to the morbid mood of the book, the author has too many thoughts that she tries to fit into just one sentence. This form of writing can be hard to follow and actually trying to follow the storyline can be a distraction from the main focus of the book.
Jamaica Kincaid's novel is depressing and morbid in numerous ways. The setting of "My Brother" is mainly taking place in Antigua. There are no hospitals with the proper medications. In addition to the setting, the author's family affairs are an example of depression. Her family was extremely dysfunctional and unsociable. They had conflicts over meaningless situations and never resolved them. This family needed a psychiatrist to assist them with their many conflicts. Another example of depression in "My Brother" is the entire theme of a brother with no loving family and friends who is dying of AIDS, due to his own carelessness. On page 99-100, it shows how Jamaica's family is not affected in the least that Devon has just died. The one last main theme of depression is the relationship between Devon, the man with AIDS, and his mother. They never got along, which was very sad because Devon was dying and his mother didn't seem to care. She didn't do anything to try to help save him. It was Jamaica's help that gave her brother many extra days, perhaps years, of life.
"My Brother" was also a very confusing book. Reading it takes the complete focus of the one who is reading it in order to actually follow the story line. Many of the sentences are three or four thoughts combined into just one sentence. The book has a great number of sentences that are nearly half a page long. For example, on page 101 and 131, one of the sentences is nearly three quarters of the page. There are a great deal of commas, semi colons, and a few parenthesis in these sentences. With all of those elements, reading and actually comprehending the book can be very tough. Also, the author constantly bounces back from the present time to past experiences, which greatly contributes to the confusion.
My final opinion of this book is that it is very inspirational and moving. If one is close to someone with AIDS, they would find this book very enjoyable and interesting. Jamaica mentions many times that she doesn't love, never has loved and never will love her brother, yet she still goes way beyond her duties to care for her brother. After reading "My Brother" there are many instances where Jamaica is much like a true hero. By supporting her brother, Jamaica became a hero to herself and to Devon. The book is inspiring because it encourages anyone who reads the book to love their family and not take them for granted. "My Brother" is a moving book because throughout it, one learns of the struggles the entire family went through. Devon's critical conditions, however, did not bring the family any closer together. An example of a struggle the author told of was a time when her mother disapproved of something one of her other children did, and she began to throw stones at him. Her son then threw his mother to the ground and broke her neck (pg. 189). That experience the author described really stuck out because it sounded so unreasonable.
"My Brother" is a novel that one would not consider to be easy reading, not just because the style of writing was confusing, but because it was not a happy story. After reading this book, one would feel bad for Jamaica's family, yet inspired by her words. The book was hard reading, mainly because it was done in an unusual type of writing. It was also very depressing and had a definite morbid feel to it, yet it was extremely inspirational. It encourages those who read it to love your family while they're still there for you.

English Charlotte Wood
Book Review 1/4/02

The biography My Brother written by Jamaica Kincaid describes a heroic womens
life growing up in a poor household and a very difficult family situation. Jamaica possesses
nearly opposite qualities as the hero of the book The Odyssey. In mythology literature a
hero is strong, takes revenge, is powerful and has beauty. In todays society and also in
My Brother a hero is a person who helps others and is a positive role model.
The story is told by Jamaica herself, in first person. When her brother is diagnosed
with the HIV virus she is quickly reunited with her family and her past. A past that she left
behind at age 16. She travels back to her home in Antigua. There she finds her mother. A
women who she respected but did not love. I had sympathy for her then, but still no love,
only sympathy, and some revulsion, as I felt what had just happened to her-her child had
died, she would be burying one of her children-was a contagious disease and just to be
around her, just to be so near her meant I might catch it. (Page 173)
During her many trips to Antigua Jamaica learns many things about her family and
her life. It also reminds her of many dreadful childhood memories. Such as the time when
her mother burns her most precious possessions, her books. I insisted on reading books.
In a fit of anger that I can remember so well, as if it had been a natural disaster, as if it had
been a hurricane or an erupting volcano, or just simply the end of the world, my mother
found my books, all the books that I had read, some of them books I had bought, though
with money I had stolen, some of them I had simply stolen, for once I read a book, no
matter its literary quality I could not part with it. (Page 132)
Although the story is titled My Brother it mostly illustrates Jamaicas perspective
on his life and her own. She greatly portrays a hero figure. She is taken out of her ordinary
world and put into a controversial situation. She chooses the path to go back to her
childhood home and help her family and her brother. Although she does not love her
brother she pays for very expensive medication and takes care of him. At the beginning of
the book her brother denies having the virus, Me no get dat chupidness, man. Jamaicas
willingness to help her brother and determination shows that she is generous enough to
help someone just recently brought back into her life, that she hardly even knows.
I recommend this book to anyone who wants to read it. It is a gratifying story of
heroism and family. It reminds people of what is really important in life and that one
person can make a difference.