- Paperback: 512 pages
- Publisher: Tindal Street Press; New edition edition (8 Mar 2004)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0954130383
- ISBN-13: 978-0954130381
- Product Dimensions: 19.4 x 13 x 4.4 cm
- Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 680,017 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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More About the Author
Product Description
Toronto Star
‘An unqualified masterpiece’
Review
'There is a mesmerising stillness to Austin Clarke's latest novel ... Out of a single act of retribution [he] has spun an entire history, one in which freedom, love and even languor all have their place' New York Times 'The beauty of THE POLISHED HOE lies in the poetry of its telling and the marvellous voice of Mary-Mathilda. The value of the novel lies in its patient exploration of the sacrifices that are made for the sake of survival' The Washington Post 'A richly crafted novel which eludes, defies categories; it is variously wistful and agonising, ironic and sensual; a tragic tale, relentlessly wrought' Commonwealth Prize Jury Citation A magnificent, breathtaking plunge into the secret depths of human relations ... a wonder-filled gem' Ottawa Citizen 'Austin Clarke has transcended the earlier achievements of his already illustrious career with The Polished Hoe by composing a Faulknerian evocation of the Caribbean voice, recounting a somnolent, nocturnal dialogue between a black murderess and a black constable, both of whom confront the racist horror of their own past as they divulge the secrets of both their love and their loss.' Christian Bok, Jan Geddes and Lesley Kruger, jurors for the Trillium Book Award
Inside This Book
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First Sentence
My name is Mary. Read the first page Browse Sample Pages
Front Cover | Copyright | Excerpt | Back Cover
My name is Mary. Read the first page Browse Sample Pages
Front Cover | Copyright | Excerpt | Back Cover
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
4 of 6 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
A long, langorous account of marvellous ambition. Though the time frame is a single night, the novel seems to embrace the whole history of a thinly disguised Barbados. The voice of Miss Mary-Mathilda is wonderfully realized, the rhythms reverberating in your head long after you put the book down. Thoroughly deserves all the prizes it's won.
0 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
The Polished Hoe is an intense read. Most of the novel is the form of a dialogue between Mary Mathilda, the mistress of Mr Bellfeels and the Sergeant. It is implied that Mary-Mathilda has killed Mr Bellfeels and called the police to confess, although the exact circumstances remain fairly obscure.
What follows is a claustrophobic analysis of history, race and slavery in Bimshire (Barbados). The issues are complex, and social status seems to depend on the exact racial mix - and slavery having led to few people having exclusively black heritage or exclusively white heritage. We assume that Mary-Mathilda is black, and we assume that Mr Bellfeels is white, but these assumptions are challenged as the discourse unfolds. Secret after secret comes pouring out. Bimshire has been a seething pot of discontent, resentment and double standards and the lid is taken off.
Much of the narrative is timeless - it feels as though it might as well have been set in the 1850s as in the 1950s such is the enduring power of the departed white ruling class; the prejudice; the inequality in society. In this context, the Sergeant is torn between his duty as a policeman to solve crime and bring perpetrators to court; and his duty to his people - the people of African heritage - who are fighting against decades, centuries even, of injustice. Meanwhile, we are reminded that across the water in the USA, segregation was alive and well.
The novel is told in strong Bimshire patois, and this can be a little offputting, although one does become acclimatized to it. What is more disturbing, perhaps, is realizing ones own prejudices as one imagines that the patois is a sign of unsophisticated people. In truth, the philosophical concepts that Mary-Mathilda and the Sergeant cover are very complex and the arguments, although set out in patois, are rigorous.
This is an intense, claustrophobic read. It isn't quick. It isn't a page turner. It's like a James Kelman of the Caribbean. But it does pose profound questions and does offer real insight into the legacy of white colonialism.
What follows is a claustrophobic analysis of history, race and slavery in Bimshire (Barbados). The issues are complex, and social status seems to depend on the exact racial mix - and slavery having led to few people having exclusively black heritage or exclusively white heritage. We assume that Mary-Mathilda is black, and we assume that Mr Bellfeels is white, but these assumptions are challenged as the discourse unfolds. Secret after secret comes pouring out. Bimshire has been a seething pot of discontent, resentment and double standards and the lid is taken off.
Much of the narrative is timeless - it feels as though it might as well have been set in the 1850s as in the 1950s such is the enduring power of the departed white ruling class; the prejudice; the inequality in society. In this context, the Sergeant is torn between his duty as a policeman to solve crime and bring perpetrators to court; and his duty to his people - the people of African heritage - who are fighting against decades, centuries even, of injustice. Meanwhile, we are reminded that across the water in the USA, segregation was alive and well.
The novel is told in strong Bimshire patois, and this can be a little offputting, although one does become acclimatized to it. What is more disturbing, perhaps, is realizing ones own prejudices as one imagines that the patois is a sign of unsophisticated people. In truth, the philosophical concepts that Mary-Mathilda and the Sergeant cover are very complex and the arguments, although set out in patois, are rigorous.
This is an intense, claustrophobic read. It isn't quick. It isn't a page turner. It's like a James Kelman of the Caribbean. But it does pose profound questions and does offer real insight into the legacy of white colonialism.
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
39 reviews
15 of 16 people found the following review helpful
Enriched with native tongues
27 Jun 2003
Format:Hardcover
Austin Clarke's Giller Prize winning novel THE POLISHED HOE takes place on the island of Bimshire (also known as Barbados) in the "Wessindes." During one long night of confession and reflection between Bimshire lawman, Sarge, and Miss Mary Gertrude Matilda, a kept woman on the Bellfeels plantation, Clarke's characters ruminate about the lives they have led. Mary calls the police station and tells them she must confess her crime. Sarge comes to the Great House where Miss Mary resides to record her statement, but is caught in a whirlwind of memories about the woman he grew up with, his own experiences and transgressions, and the contempt circulating the island regarding Mister Bellfeels.
Enriched with native tongues and a sort of stream of consciousness writing, this is a novel that brought to mind some of the great writers of all time. The prose was lilting, and I often found myself caught in a reverie as the characters related memories from their lives. It is not a book for the drama lovers who live for fast paced reads; rather it seems to have been written for those who love narration, historical fiction, and carefully crafted characterizations.
Reviewed by CandaceK
The RAWSISTAZ Reviewers
13 of 14 people found the following review helpful
Rum-soaked Caribbean cadences
4 Aug 2003
Format:Hardcover
Almost mimicking the sense of time on a West Indian island, this mesmerizing novel begins slowly and then warms up with the Caribbean heat of noon's overhead sun. Now an old woman still living on a big-island plantation, Mary-Mathilda, in the process of confessing something having to do with the 'hoe' of the title to the local cops, reminisces about her past, chronicling the plantation's history as well as her own. The novel explores the brutality of plantation life not in the fields but in the Big House where as a girl, Mary M caught the manager's eye and became his mistress, the mother of his only son. Separated from her own people by her comforts and privilege, she is also separated from the white establishment by the barriers of racism, servitude, and sexual exploitation.
8 of 8 people found the following review helpful
A good read albeit a circuitous one
17 Aug 2004
Format:Hardcover
I am always interested in Caribbean fiction. This is definitely not a quick read on the train ride home. This book brings the horror of the slavery and post-slavery era home. Up close and personal. By telling the stories of the characters in his book, Clarke forces the reader to take a bigger bite of what has already left a bad taste in the mouth. The struggles of the "heroine", Mary Matilda, her mother and grandmother as well as the other characters in the book are painstakingly painted. I must say though that I found the pace a little slow at time. Clarke shifts between time and place, stretching dialogue and story to the near breaking point.
Altogether a good read but be patient. Reminds me of "A Hundred Years Of Solitude".
Sherman
CaribbeanAbroad.com
Altogether a good read but be patient. Reminds me of "A Hundred Years Of Solitude".
Sherman
CaribbeanAbroad.com
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