"A Tall History of Sugar is a gift for grown-up fans of fairy tales and those who love fiction that metes out hard and surprising truths. Forbes's writing combines the gale-force imagination of Margaret Atwood with the lyrical pointillism of Toni Morrison."
—New York Times Book Review, Editors' Choice
"A mesmerizing love story that takes place over 50 years in Jamaica."
—Tayari Jones in O, the Oprah Magazine
"Curdella Forbes's A Tall History of Sugar is the most recent in an impressive new wave of novels by Jamaican writers—from Marlon James's Booker Prize–winning A Brief History of Seven Killings to Kei Miller's Augustown, Marcia Douglas's The Marvelous Equations of the Dread, and Nicole Dennis-Benn's Patsy, among others. Forbes provides an eclectic, feverish vision of Jamaican 'history' from the 1950s to the present glimpsed through the experiences of an abandoned mystic-child named Moshe, whose translucent skin and mismatched eyes defy racial category. Who he is and who he becomes—like the country itself—is a riddle that unfolds in episodic bursts and linguistic flourishes."
—Vanity Fair, one of the Best Books of 2019
"Jamaican patois is just part of what animates A Tall History of Sugar by Howard University professor Curdella Forbes, who centers her memorable novel around a folktale of soul mates Moshe Fisher and Arrienne Christie. An adult Arrienne narrates the mysterious Caribbean fantasy."
—Essence, an October Book Pick
"[A]n epic tale of two soul mates: Moshe Fisher, born with mismatched eyes and pale skin that bruises easily, and Arrienne Christie, 'her skin even at birth the color of the wettest molasses, with a purple tinge under the surface.' Arrienne is his protector at school—and later his lover—but how they eventually wind up together is part of this unconventionally crafted story that spans decades, from the years before Jamaica's independence to the 2010s. Forbes's sentences are the stars here; it's a book that rewards slow, careful reading." —BuzzFeed
"Haunting, intriguing, and absorbing . . . A memorable read."
—New West Indian Guide
"The premise—Moshe was born with skin that can't be classified as either black or white—is ingenious, and the novel is an epic modern fairytale that offers the pleasure of being steeped in Forbes's poetic, intoxicating sentences right from the opening line."
—The Guardian (UK), recommended by Sara Collins
"Forbes's skillful and instinctual use of local languages and dialects further taps into a rich Jamaican oral culture, in a story that dreams of being read aloud."
—The Irish Times
"One of the season's most talked-about new releases . . . For readers interested in the history of Jamaica, the impact of colonialism, and the enduring power of relationships, this is a perfect book to pick up this fall."
—Bookish, one of Fall 2019's Must-Read Novels
"Forbes’s fairy-tale (anti)romance interrogates what it means to love across time and space, through and despite language . . . Tall History is a folk interpretation of real, larger-than-life History, an interpretation by which we mean to survive that history."
—SX Salon
"History is ever present in the novel, both as a metaphor and metonym, with Jamaica being the frame in which such a story as Moshe's and Arienne's could have happened if it had been true. The novel is historically accurate. A Tall History of Sugar is both a love story, and a story about the lasting legacy of slavery and the impact of the colonial system on Jamaica."
—The Rumpus
"A Jamaican fairy tale set in 1958, A Tall History of Sugar is a love story between an odd, intriguing child, Moshe, and his soul mate Arrienne, whom he meets on the first day of school. Where Moshe is laconic and excels in the realm of the visual, Arrienne acts as both narrator and translator in a story that spans slavery, colonialism, and the aftermath of both."
—The Undefeated, a Can't Miss Books of 2019
"Unbelievably unique and also crushing . . . It's a hard-hitting [book], but it's so incredible."
—All The Books (BookRiot podcast), recommended by Liberty Hardy
"Curdella Forbes seamlessly weaves Jamaican English and the Queen's English in this captivating novel . . . Part love story and part historical fiction, A Tall History of Sugar is a refreshing take on race and colonialism that moves between Jamaica and England."
—Electric Lit
"Curdella Forbes writes a prose charged with history's disquiet and turbulence in a melody poised and slant against it. The melody is an act of love, many times broken, here fabulously (in the strict sense of the word) sutured to withstand the ongoing tyranny of sugar."
—Literary Hub, selected by Ishion Hutchinson as the Best Book Read in 2019
"Forbes lets her novel sing with all the languages of Jamaica and Britain. She has an uncanny knack for patois and dialect, including Jamaican English, the Queen's English, and everything in between. In some ways this book tells a story of a love too deep to become romantic. In other ways it's a novel of colonialism and its tragic aftermath of racism and economic despair. But most of all, the book is a journey. The characters so vivid, their depictions so intimate, that the skin of the pages themselves almost pulse beneath the reader's fingers. A powerful journey into the souls of two lovers, two countries, and the people caught in the wakes of empires."
—Kirkus Reviews, starred review
"Forbes's novel, rich in metaphors and biblical and fairy-tale allusions, explores the cyclical nature of birth and death, and the overwhelming and terrifying power of love. It is also a forceful critique of colonialism . . . Born to this complicated heritage, Moshe and Arrienne discover their voices in art and social protest as Jamaica grapples with independence and identity. A fascinating post-colonial blend of romance, social history, and myth."
—Booklist, starred review & a best new book of the week
"In her immersive modern fairy tale, Forbes unspools an unlikely love story as well as a haunting, hypnotic piece of postcolonial Jamaican history...Arrienne's recount moves in hopscotch fashion, but it's driven forward by her enchanting voice, to which Forbes brings an electric lyricism. Her dialogue beautifully captures the lilt and variety of Jamaican patois . . . Forbes's ambitious, fantastic tale will appeal to fans of multigenerational sagas."
—Publishers Weekly, starred review
"A love story that spans eras and decades."
—Bookstr, one of Bookstr's Three to Read selections of the week
"This one is not to be missed."
—Jacksonville Journal-Courier
"A Tall History of Sugar will leave you with many emotions and questions but it will keep you reading because you wonder where it leads."
—Carry on Friends
"A deftly scripted novel that is unreservedly endorsed and recommended."
—Midwest Book Review
"A Tall History of Sugar is captivating from the very first page. Mythic in dimension yet movingly human in its details, alive with atmospheric richness, it heralds a fascinating new voice in English-language fiction."
—Jennifer Egan, Pulitzer Prize–winning author of Manhattan Beach
"Curdella Forbes gives us Moshe and Arrienne, two mesmerizing and unforgettable characters who travel through this wonderful novel in the most unpredictable directions. Through them, a tall history is told of a relationship that no reader will ever forget."
—Terry McMillan, author of Waiting to Exhale
"From the opening lines of her brilliantly revelatory A Tall History of Sugar, Curdella Forbes convinces us that it is yet possible to transform English into a language of seductive power, surprise, and fresh truth. She tells a compelling archetypal love story of human complexity that is rooted in an acute sense of the history of Jamaica, and one that speaks with such ease and beauty that the language seems wholly new and splendidly accessible. Curdella Forbes has achieved something resonant and remarkable in this delightful novel."
—Kwame Dawes, author of City of Bones
"Curdella Forbes has proven herself to be a lineage holder in the tradition of Gabriel García Márquez and Isabel Allende. A Tall History of Sugar is a wise and sagacious story about the one thing that matters most of all in the universe: love. Forbes has a deep understanding and compassion for her characters and a keen knowledge of the world they inhabit. It is an important book, no doubt."
—Michael Imperioli, author of The Perfume Burned His Eyes
"
I'm so impressed by this book! Curdella Forbes weaves a magical, melodic, folkloric tale of characters that I feel I utterly know, that are iconic in personality and description, yet somehow remain mysterious to me, leaving them constantly on my mind. Set in Jamaica, heavy on patois, I felt immersed in the inner world of these two unforgettable characters."
—Rebecca Fitting (co-owner, Greenlight Bookstore, Brooklyn, NY)
"Four years before Jamaica gains independence from colonial rule, a mysterious little boy named Moshe is born. This epic novel follows his story, and that of his soul mate, through their otherworldly love story set against the backdrop of Jamaica's history. The author took inspiration from Jamaican folklore for this one, so you can bet I'm excited to read it."
—SyFy Fangrrls, One of Eight New SFF Books to Read in October"
★ 2019-07-15
A tale of love and struggle that crosses decades and continents.
This is Forbes' (Ghosts, 2014, etc.) fifth work of fiction, and she writes with the confidence and poetic nerve of a seasoned veteran. In 1958, four years before Jamaica's independence from Britain, a woman named Rachel finds an abandoned baby in a wicker basket. She names him Moshe, or Moses, and raises him as her own. Moshe was born with skin that had not yet fully developed. He's neither black nor white. He's bluish, with his veins visible beneath his thin, translucent skin. One eye is blue and the other is brown, and the hair on the front of his head is bleach blond while the hair on the back is black. Moshe's appearance marks him: "The child seemed to represent some kind of perverse alchemy that had taken place in the deep earth, between tectonic plates, where he was fashioned. People said the boy just looked like sin. Big sin at work when he was made." As a child, Moshe's only friend is Arrienne, who in many ways is all that Moshe is not. She is loud, assertive, strong, and, in later years, becomes a political activist. He is solitary, insecure, and quietly artistic. Yet the love between them stretches across decades and follows Moshe as he leaves Jamaica and finds fame as an artist in England. Forbes lets her novel sing with all the languages of Jamaica and Britain. She has an uncanny knack for patois and dialect, including Jamaican English, the Queen's English, and everything in between. In some ways this book tells a story of a love too deep to become romantic. In other ways it's a novel of colonialism and its tragic aftermath of racism and economic despair. But most of all, the book is a journey. The characters so vivid, their depictions so intimate, that the skin of the pages themselves almost pulse beneath the reader's fingers.
A powerful journey into the souls of two lovers, two countries, and the people caught in the wakes of empires.
