Bob Dubois, 30, forsakes his dead-end job in New Hampshire to begin a new life in Florida. Here, he meets up with Vanise Dorsinville, a young Haitian mother who seeks refuge from poverty by fleeing to America.
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First Sentence
It's December 21, 1979, a Friday, in Catamount, New Hampshire. Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Excerpt | Back Cover
It's December 21, 1979, a Friday, in Catamount, New Hampshire. Read the first page
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
8 of 8 people found the following review helpful
By A Customer
Format:Paperback
This novel immediately draws the reader in. It centres on two very different characters; a white blue-collar worker, a married man with kids who wants more from life; and a young Haitian woman who, along with her young nephew, tries to escape the abject poverty and violence of her country. From opposite ends of the spectrum they both attempt to pursue the American Dream, with dramatic consequences. It's the difficulties of these two journeys that are explored by this underrated writer. The characters seem to live parallel lives, but their paths do eventually cross in a dramatic way.
I found all the characters completely believable, and was especially impressed by the depiction of Haitian life. It is a book that deals with the issues of racism, immigration, capitalism, and individual responsibility in an intelligent, non-polemical way. This is far from a preachy book, it is storytelling at it's best. I'd recommend this Book, and indeed this writer to anyone who enjoys a good read.
I found all the characters completely believable, and was especially impressed by the depiction of Haitian life. It is a book that deals with the issues of racism, immigration, capitalism, and individual responsibility in an intelligent, non-polemical way. This is far from a preachy book, it is storytelling at it's best. I'd recommend this Book, and indeed this writer to anyone who enjoys a good read.
0 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
This book is a bit like a sandwich made of stale bread but with a tasty filling. The beginning and end are chewy and lumpy, filled with cosmological ramblings that almost put me off, but if you persist, you will be rewarded with a good read.
The novel is set in the mid-80s and consists of two stories. One traces the lives of a young white American and his family from New Hampshire who migrate to Florida in search of a better life and end up living in trailer park territory amongst a bunch of no-hopers, criminal and low lifes.
The other recounts the life of a young black woman from Haiti and her harrowing attempts to get to Florida and escape the poverty and misery of her homeland.
After 300 pages, the two characters' paths cross - finally and fatefully - in a heartbreaking climax.
The author does a good job of presenting the American and describing his rages and frustrations as he tries to cope with his chaotic life.
However, he is not so successful with his presentation of Haitians, Jamaicans and other Caribbean types. Nor can he resist the temptation to indulge in clichéd images and describe voodoo-type black magic ceremonies with chickens and goats having their throats cut and people dancing themselves into trances.
This is definitely worth reading, particularly if you know Florida which is almost like a separate part of the United States, to some extent, with its mixture of American, Latin and Caribbean cultures.
One final point. This book is really packaged for the modern age. The novel is followed by an appendix containing lengthy material about the author, extracts from his diary, photos of the original manuscript with corrections, and other items. Smart marketing indeed.
The novel is set in the mid-80s and consists of two stories. One traces the lives of a young white American and his family from New Hampshire who migrate to Florida in search of a better life and end up living in trailer park territory amongst a bunch of no-hopers, criminal and low lifes.
The other recounts the life of a young black woman from Haiti and her harrowing attempts to get to Florida and escape the poverty and misery of her homeland.
After 300 pages, the two characters' paths cross - finally and fatefully - in a heartbreaking climax.
The author does a good job of presenting the American and describing his rages and frustrations as he tries to cope with his chaotic life.
However, he is not so successful with his presentation of Haitians, Jamaicans and other Caribbean types. Nor can he resist the temptation to indulge in clichéd images and describe voodoo-type black magic ceremonies with chickens and goats having their throats cut and people dancing themselves into trances.
This is definitely worth reading, particularly if you know Florida which is almost like a separate part of the United States, to some extent, with its mixture of American, Latin and Caribbean cultures.
One final point. This book is really packaged for the modern age. The novel is followed by an appendix containing lengthy material about the author, extracts from his diary, photos of the original manuscript with corrections, and other items. Smart marketing indeed.
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
4.1 out of 5 stars
48 reviews
35 of 38 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
Excellent
26 May 2000
By Christopher A. Smith
- Published on Amazon.com
Format:Paperback
This is Banks' finest novel.
Bob Dubois, is a powerful and well developed protagonist; a blue-collar worker in snowy New Hampshire who tries to escape the hopelessness of his dead-end existence and fizzling marriage by traveling south to Florida. But Bob loses control of his situation, and his predestined path is dictated by forces outside of his control, just as plate tectonics dictates the drift of our wayward continents.
Dubois is a beautifully written character. He's a moral man who tries to do the right thing, and in the end it's his morality that brings the tragedy to its conclusion. On the other side of this collision course are two Hatian immigrants with which Bob shares everything and nothing. Banks once again shows his knowledge of Caribbean cultures - a reoccurring theme in his novels.
Love, sex, desperation, hope, good vs. evil, racism, free-will versus destiny, these are all elements interwoven into a tightly written story. An excellent novel.
37 of 42 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
Morally adrift in contemporary America
8 Jan 2001
By RL
- Published on Amazon.com
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
Truly a great book of the past few decades. Continental Drift parallels the lives of two individuals co-existing in North America. The main character, Bob Dubois, is a mediciocre, who flees his drab life in New Hampshire for the riches of Florida. In the process, Banks comments on racism, sex and materialism. In contrast, is the tragic story of a young Haitian woman seeking the American dream. Bob Dubois is a ghost of man morally; adrift in a society that rewards greed, consumerism and de-emphasizes love and committment. The Haitian story reflects on poverty and the moral bankrupcy it extracts. Russell Banks is one of our best writers today. Don't miss this book.
43 of 50 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
Incredibly thought provoking,beautifully written
22 Dec 1999
By Julie Smedley
- Published on Amazon.com
Format:Paperback
This was one of the best books I've ever read. I learned alot from this book,alot about my own life and the lives of the people around me.Russell Banks hits quite a few nerves in his depiction of the American Dream and all the trappings of our overly materialistic,shallow lives. Banks beautifully blends two seperate lives on a collision course with destiny.Human nature at its best and its worst.Everyone should be able to identify with the main character Bob Dubois, a tragic figure who doesnt know who he is or what he wants.Life just happens to him. On the other side is Vanise Dorsinville and her nephew Claude two poor Haitians who seek a new life in America.The misery they endure will haunt you.Banks' knowledge of the Haitian culture was phenominal.What a remarkable book!
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4.1 out of 5 stars
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