Under the Tamarind Tree: A Novel by Rosaliene Bacchus

In this compelling story, a man who has endured much tragedy as a boy reaps the bitter fruit of deceit sown by his deceased father, threatening all he loves.

While growing up in British Guiana, Richard Cheong wrestles with guilt after his younger brother is murdered and his mother’s death shortly thereafter. As the lone surviving son, Richard believes that only a son can redeem his tormented soul and end his life of poverty and servitude to his father’s sister.

After he marries the beautiful and headstrong Gloria, she bears him three girls. But in 1953 as Richard awaits the birth of what he hopes will be his first son, the British governor orchestrates a troop invasion, suspends the Guianese Constitution, and disbands the leftist government. As a chain of events unfurls that splinters Richard’s life and alters the course of his country, political unrest rages across the colony. Now Richard faces another threat as Gloria falls under the influence of his conniving eldest sister who has despised him since childhood. Will Gloria betray him or stay with him forever?

Cover Art by Joan Bryan Muss, Guyanese-Canadian Artist

READ AN EXCERPT:

The Writers' Room, Stabroek News, Georgetown, Guyana, published on August 25, 2019.

BUY YOUR COPY: See links to outlets at foot of page.

This is an achingly beautiful book. Under the Tamarind Tree is written with the care and control of a master craftsman. Human nature is revealed to us in all its nobility and frailty. My heart breaks for Richard Cheong. He is an ordinary man trying to live in extraordinary times. His burdens are great, and they reach back and forward through the generations. Bacchus conveys the weight Cheong shoulders brilliantly. From the very beginning, we see Richard Cheong’s humanity. His aspirations, his deep love for his wife and family, his work ethic, and his respect for tradition are crystalized in the breakfast scene on pages 3-5. These descriptions of home life are vivid and lovingly drawn they not only reveal Cheong’s humanity, but they also draw the reader into the world of the novel. In addition, Bacchus’s use of dialect gives the reader a sense of the rhythm and cadence of Guyanese Creole but neither patronizes the characters nor frustrates the reader. Indeed, the use of dialect endears the characters to me. It enhances my understanding that these characters reflect real people who take what is available to them and create a gorgeous tapestry. Bacchus paints a society that is a riot of color and a melding of cultures. The Christmas party on pages 31-36 is a good example of this. The party guests enjoy meatballs with sourie sauce, channa, Portuguese cake, chow mein, and roast pork while listening to Eddie Fisher sing Christmas carols. The guest list also reflects Guyana’s rich and layered culture. The people claim Chinese, Asian Indian, African, Portuguese, and even Scottish descent. As the tension in this book illustrates, imperial powers stole Guyana’s resources through centuries of oppression and exploitation, but Under the Tamarind Tree also teaches us that Guyana’s abiding treasure is its multiculturalism. This book is not just Richard Cheong’s story. It is an elegy for Guyana. My only complaint about this book is that Mildred is not as well sketched as she might have been. In the final scene where she reveals many ugly truths, she comes off as a harpy. We do understand that her adult life was informed by the trauma she endured nevertheless, her unyielding hatred for Richard reveals a pathology we need to know more about.
~ JUDGE, ANNUAL WRITER'S DIGEST SELF-PUBLISHED BOOK AWARDS 2020.

“Under The Tamarind Tree” by Rosaliene Bacchus. Published by Lulu 2019 is sweeping grand drama about Richard Cheong’s life set against the troubled history of Guyana gaining its freedom from Great Britain. We are quickly drawn into Richard’s life in 1950 with the birth of his first child. He is the good father, fighting against the times and convoluted half hidden histories of an extended family and the sad efforts of his parents and siblings to even act like decent human beings. He survives and takes care of those he loves without help from anyone, including a wife he loves and loses and distant sisters who have no patience for him. His trials are a reflection of the world around him in the emerging nation, with all of its political and racial violence and plots and demons racing the streets to destroy them. He will succeed and survive in the end because that is all he knows, even though he is also driven by demons of his own. We are given the wonderfully exotic world of Guyana and its cultural diversity and incredible mix of ethnicity and religion. And it is alive and teems about the reader like a maelstrom of a fantastic world. This book is a joy to read and it will make you cry, so beware. I guarantee you won’t want to put it down.

~ AMAZON REVIEW BY DAN McNAY, AMERICAN AUTHOR OF FOUR NOVELS. DAN LIVES IN LOS ANGELES, SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA.

I don't know Rosaliene Bacchus but I have read her blog, which led me to order a copy of the novel. I wasn't sure what to expect. Just because someone manages to produce an interesting blog is no guarantee that they can write a convincing and entertaining novel. The fact that it is self-published, I thought, was perhaps not a good sign. In other words, I was prepared not to like it, and if that had been the case, I wouldn't be bothering to comment here.

However, the fact is, I think this is one of the most interesting books I have read in years. I cannot understand why it didn't find a publisher. It is well-written throughout, and there is not a word out of place. It has a very spare style and much of the story is told through natural and convincing dialogue. At first, I thought it was going to be the history of a marriage and its collapse. There is that strand in the story, but it also takes us through the modern history of Guyana and the ethnic conflicts which divided the different groups there - black descendants of slaves, East Indian descendants of indentured workers, and other groups like the Portuguese and the Chinese. I knew absolutely nothing about this history of race riots and murders. In many ways, it reminded me of the recent history of my own country, especially when the police colluded with the rioters, watching and refusing to intervene while the most appalling atrocities were committed.

I liked the central character, who is linked by family and friendship to many of the warring ethnic factions. It is powerfully written and many of the images and characters will stay fresh in my memory for a long time. Without giving too much away, there is also a mystery at the heart of the story which I am glad to say is resolved in the end.

Anyway, I read it on Kindle but I'm going to buy a paper copy. Don't let the self-publishing fool you into thinking that there is anything amateurish about this novel. It is very well-written and well worth reading.

~ SEÁN, UNITED KINGDOM, AMAZON REVIEW

I read “Under the Tamarind Tree” in two sittings. I spent a whole day and evening reading over 200 pages. It was gripping from beginning to end, and ultimately charming. I especially liked the insight into Guyanese culture, ethnic and religious interplay, as well as political goings-on during the transition from British rule to “independence” in the 1950s and early 1960s. It is such an alien world to me, but your novel made me fall in love with it and want to see it for myself. It also made me wonder what Guyana is like now, with the oil discoveries and hook-up with Exxon-Mobil. The food sounds delicious. What struck me most about your protagonist, Richard Cheong, was that despite all his troubles, he remained kind to everyone throughout, even though I was annoyed with his selfishness in the beginning. Of course I liked the chicken farm but I could never kill a chicken. Since I’ve known chickens personally, I haven’t been able to eat them, either, but still eat eggs.

~ AMERICAN BLOGGER KATHARINE OTTO

I finished reading “Under the Tamarind Tree” last night, or should I say early this morning. I was halfway through when I began reading last night and past midnight there were still a hundred pages to go so I shut down and got ready for bed but I couldn’t let go of the story, got up, booted up and read until I got to the end. Must have been about 2:00 AM.

What a story! So well told. One doesn’t need to be back-grounded in Guyana history to read your novel, the history tells itself throughout. The characters are believable and constant. What a movie your story would make.

Your novel is a “can’t put it down” writing. I’ve read thousands of novels over the years as time constraints forced me to learn speed reading and I can tell you that “Under the Tamarind Tree” ranks up there with the best of them if not actually at the very top. I’m amazed, honestly. I know I shouldn’t be but this took me like a whirlwind. Only one thing disappointed me: it ended way too soon.

Thank you for opening a window of life on another part of the planet I know so little about.

~ FRENCH CANADIAN BLOGGER, SHA'TARA, BLOGGING AT BURNING WOMAN

ALSO SEE BOOK REVIEW BY GUYANESE-CANADIAN AUTHOR TREV SUE-A-QUAN

AUTHOR ROSALIENE BACCHUS

Reaching minds and hearts through storytelling

Under the Tamarind Tree: A Novel
by Rosaliene Bacchus

CARIBBEAN FICTION

PRAISE FOR UNDER THE TAMARIND TREE: A NOVEL

An achingly beautiful book

ALSO SEE BOOK REVIEW BY AMERICAN BLOGGER HENRY LEWIS

5.0 out of 5 stars Fantastic Book

ALSO SEE BOOK REVIEW BY AMERICAN AUTHOR ROBERT A VELLA

5.0 out of 5 stars Haunting and beautifully written

ALSO SEE BOOK REVIEW BY GUYANESE-CANADIAN AUTHOR KEN PUDDICOMBE

Gripping from beginning to end.

ALSO SEE BOOK REVIEW BY AMERICAN AUTHOR JOANNE MACCO

What a story! So well told.

UNDER THE TAMARIND TREE: A NOVEL
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