"Breath, Eyes, Memory" (1994), the novel born from Edwidge Danticat's childhood in Haiti and immigration to New York City, was one of the great literary debuts of recent times, marking the emergence of an impressive talent in addition to opening up an entire culture to a broad general readership. This gifted author went on to win the American Book Award in 1999 for her novel, "The Farming of Bones" (1998), attracting further critical acclaim.

Offering an accessible guide for readers and critics alike, this book is the first publication devoted entirely to Danticat's unique and remarkable work. It is also distinctive in that it addresses all of her published writing up to "The Dew Breaker "(2004), including her writing for children, her travel writing, her short fiction, and her novels. The book contains an exclusive interview with Danticat, in which she discusses her recent memoir, "Brother, I'm Dying" (2007), winner of the National Book Critics Circle Award. It also includes an extensive bibliography.

With contributions from Danticat's fellow creative writers from both the Caribbean and the United States as well as leading scholars of Caribbean literature, this collection of essays aims to enrich readers' understanding of the various geographical, literary, and cultural contexts of her work and to demonstrate how it both influences and is influenced by them.

Contributors

Madison Smartt Bell * Myriam J. A. Chancy * Maryse Conde * J. Michael Dash * Charles Forsdick * Mary Gallagher * Regine Michelle Jean-Charles * Carine Mardorossian * Nadeve Menard * Martin Munro * Nick Nesbitt * Mireille Rosello * Renee H. Shea * Evelyne Trouillot * Lyonel Trouillot * Kiera Vaclavik

"An affecting meditation on loss and exile" ANGEL GURRIA-QUINTANA, Financial Times Windsor Laferriere left Haiti in fear of his life. He has lived in Montreal for thirty-three years, and when his father dies in New York, himself an exile for half a century, Windsor travels there to attend the funeral, and then back to Haiti to inform his mother of the death. In Haiti, Windsor is faced with the grim truth of life in his homeland - the endemic poverty, the thwarted ambitions and broken dreams. But only here can he become a writer again . . . The Enigma of the Return lives where fiction, poetry and autobiography meet. These creative tensions sustain a narrative of astonishing beauty, clarity and insight. "Looks set to become one of the great poetic statements of homesickness and return . . . It should be read by all exiles everywhere" Ian Thomson, Independent "A poetic, melancholic tour de force . . . a compelling, intense, stark and poignant exploration of living life as an outsider . . . The great Haitian novel" Jo Lateu, New Internationalist

"L'interrogation n'a pas change a 56 ans: pourquoi ne profite-t-on pas de tout ce qui nous arrive pour changer notre vie?" -Dany Laferriere Le 5 mars 2009, le Centre de litterature canadienne de l'Universite de l'Alberta recevait l'auteur acclame, Dany Laferriere dans le cadre de la conference commemorative Henry Kreisel. La University of Alberta Press et le Centre de litterature canadienne sont fiers de faire paraitre une version ecrite de la conference de Laferriere.