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The World So Wide
Felicity Alexander should be charming audiences at New York’s Metropolitan Opera, not under house arrest in Grenada in October 1983, as rumours swirl that United States troops are preparing to invade.
Born and raised in Winnipeg, the daughter of a Grenadian woman and an absent white father, Felicity is blessed with enviable beauty and an extraordinary singing voice. Arriving in London to study opera in 1965, she finds early success and joy on stage, as well as a sense of belonging in the arms of the charming Claude Buckingham. Members of the West Indian Students Association, Claude and his friends are law students and activists. They plan to return to Grenada to overthrow the corrupt dictator, “Uncle” Percy Tibbs.
Felicity and Claude’s intense affair cannot survive their diverging destinies. Claude brings revolution to Grenada and becomes a minister in the new Black Pearls of Freedom government; Felicity devotes herself to music, conquering the racism and sexism of the opera world to rise to international stardom. The brighter she shines, the more she struggles to find her place and purpose in life.
Her career in ascendance, Felicity accepts an invitation to perform in Grenada. The red sky of revolution calls to her almost as much as the hope of Claude’s embrace. But their reunion is interrupted by a coup. Surrounded by soldiers and guns, Felicity’s voice is born anew.
The World So Wideis a nimble clearseeing portrait of a generations complex inheritances preceding and extending from the Grenada Revolution As sharp and clear as a stream in sunlightThe World so Wideis Jones beautiful musical astute and richly earned entrance into the tome of vital Caribbean diasporic literature
—Canisia Lubrin author of Code Noir
Jones has created a vibrant memorable character whose confidence in her own talent has accompanied her through every misfortune and whose inner strength endures
—Stacey May Fowles, The Literary Review of Canada
Zilla Jones lavish saga spanning four countries and fifteen years is a comingofage account of its star diva Felicity and indeed the island of Grenada itself Jones makes the glorious and tragic island story one about people both the architects of ideological hope and the victims of their own hubris miscalculation and disappointment Their passions political cultural and romantic unfold to create layers of tension and misunderstanding unity and division in their personal lives as surely as their bold dreams create hope and pride and then disaster on the international stage Felicity who straddles two worlds black and white finds her voice through music which becomes her lifes calling In this telling she bucks suffocating strictures of family religion and the various mores of society Jones distance from formal facts of history frees the reader from nitpicking the details but it also widens our perspective to human and therefore universal truths and to the effects of the colonial experience and the agonizingly personal toll it takes in the drive to free ourselves from the toxic yoke of colonialism
—Rachel Manley author of The Fellowship The Black Peacock and the Governor Generals Literary Awardwinning Drumblair Memories of a Jamaican Childhood
Historical fiction packs the same punch as a fiveact opera in Zilla Jones muchanticipatedThe World So WideWith a heart as complex as Grenadas turbulent past heroine Felicity Alexander witnesses her homeland brace against waves of political change Standing ovation and flowers thrown at Jones feet for this brilliant first novel
—Catherine Hernandez author and screenwriter of Scarborough the book and film
TheWorld So Wideimmerses us in the complex inner life of opera prodigy Felicity a defiant tumultuous spirit with an insatiable heart Propelled by loss and family history Felicitys ambitions and desires collide against the reverberations of Grenadas colonial history Jones addresses the complexities of diasporic identity with candor and sensitivity in this affective story about a woman and a nation constrained by the horrors of the past Jones explores the transcendent connections forged through art and love and the ways in which political acts of bravery are driven by a profound yearning for acceptance community and a sense of belonging From the grey streets of London to the verdant landscapes of Grenada to the stage Felicity emerges as a beacon of light This work is a captivating exquisite and unforgettable journey
—Denise Da Costa author of the Toronto Book Awardlonglisted And the Walls Came Down
The novel does a terrific job of using Felicitys personal story to bring history albeit fictionalized to life illuminating the fascinating story of Grenadas revolutionary government which deserves to be better known
—, Pickle Me This
Fascinating A woman returns to her roots in Zilla Joness entrancing historical novelThe World So Wideabout lost love amid a revolution
—Karen Rigby, Foreword Reviews
I adore Felicity Alexander the woman at the heart of this novel She is complex delightfully melodramatic and passionate about sex opera and politics Hers is a voice oh so full that refuses to be neither circumscribed nor colonized Read this novel and fall in love
—David Bergen author of The Time in Between
Jones novel is a gift and a magnificent read that will leave readers crying for an encore
—Kathryne Cardwell, Winnipeg Free Press
Jones clearly did her research guiding us expertly into the violent bloody heart of the implosion of a revolution Her writing too shines most brightly when were in Grenada
—Susan Sandford Blades, Prairie Fire
The World So Widecombines a story of lost love with a political revolution in Grenada
—Amy Wilson, Novels Alive
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Details
Dimensions:
414 Pages
8.5in * 5.5in * 1in
434gr
Published:
April 26, 2025
Publisher:
ISBN:
9781770867758
Book Subjects:
Featured In:
Language:
eng
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