Cereus Blooms at NightShani Mootoo’s haunting debut took the international literary world by storm. A Book Sense selection and a finalist for the Giller Prize, the Chapters/Books in Canada First Novel Award, and the Ethel Wilson Fiction Prize, Cereus Blooms at Night is an exquisite cross-generational history filled with thrilling passion and alluring mystery. Set in the fictional Caribbean town of Paradise, Cereus Blooms at Night unveils the mystery surrounding Mala Ramchandin, an aging, notoriously crazy woman suspected of murdering her father. When a judge finds Mala unfit to stand trial, she is delivered, frail and mute, to the Paradise Alms House and into the care of Tyler, a vivacious male nurse, who becomes the unlikely storyteller of Mala’s extraordinary life. In luminous, sensual prose, Mootoo explores identity, gender, and violence in a celebration of our capacity to love despite cruelty and despair. |
Contents
Section 1 | 3 |
Section 2 | 5 |
Section 3 | 26 |
Section 4 | 105 |
Section 5 | 107 |
Section 6 | 117 |
Section 7 | 122 |
Section 8 | 142 |
Section 9 | 156 |
Section 10 | 191 |
Section 11 | 233 |
Section 12 | 243 |
Section 13 | |
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Common terms and phrases
Ambrose Ambrose E Ambrose's asked Aunt Lavinia back stairs began bird body Boyie breath cereus Chandin Ramchandin chest chief constable child cleaver door drawing room dress El Dorado Park Elsie eyes face father feel felt fence fingers floor front gramophone hair hand head hear heard Hector inside ixora kitchen knew Lantanacamara Larissa Lai leave legs lips looked Mala Ramchandin Mala's Mama Mammy Mavis Miss Ramchandin Mohanty morning mother moths mouth mudra Nana never night nurses odour Otoh Otoh's Pappy Paradise Pilai plant Pohpoh and Asha porch pulled Reverend Sarah scent SHANI MOOTOO Shivering Northern Wetlands shrubs side Sister skin sleep smell smile snails spider silk standpipe stared stay stood suddenly talk tell thing thought tief took tree turned verandah waited walked wall watched whispered window woman wondered words yard