About the Author

Andrea Levy was born in England to Jamaican parents. Her radio appearances, and readings at literary festivals, bookshops and libraries have helped her to build an enthusiastic following. Andrea is the winner of the 2004 Orange Prize for Fiction.

Reviews

'Every scene is rich in implication, entrancing and disturbing at the same time; the literary equivalent of a switch-back ride' The Sunday Times, 29/2/04 -- The Sunday Times 20040229 '[A] moving, funny, honest novel' Elle 13/2/04 -- Elle 20040213 'A bevy of luminaries have garlanded Andrea Levy's fourth novel with advance praise - and it's no surprise. Using elements of her own family background, Levy has vividly animated London in the immediate aftermath of World War II... She weaves a wonderfully detailed and vibrant story' Red magazine, February 2004 issue -- Red magazine, February 2004 issue 20040123 'I enjoyed SMALL ISLAND enormously and wish it every success. It conjures up so vividly the era of the 1940's and expresses so vividly through the lives of its four protagonists the conflicts and racist attitudes that existed at that time. A wonderful insight into a little understood period' Joan Bakewell -- Joan Bakewell 20031001 'Small Island is never less than finely-written, delicately and often comically observed, and impressively rich in detail and little nuggets of stories' Evening Standard, 2 February 2004 -- Evening Standard 20040202 'A beautifully crafted, compassionate novel, well worth reading' Bulletin with Newsweek, 4/5/04 -- Bulletin with Newsweek, Australia 20040504 '[Hortense] has guts and this portrait of her world is created with strong feeling that is subtly, and brilliantly, rendered' Sydney Morning Herald, 1/5/04 -- Sydney Morning Herald 20040501 'Levy's greatest achievement in SMALL ISLAND is to convey how English racism was all the more heartbreaking for its colonial victims because it involved the crushing of their ideals... Small Island is too thoughtful a novel to promise its characters a happy ending, but it is generous enough to offer them hope' --The New York Times Book Review -- The New York Times Book Review 20040501 'Andrea Levy's beautifully wrought novel is a window into 1948 England!Levy demarcates class lines effortlessly--sparing postwar England nothing of its racism--as she weaves a bristling, funny, angry tale of love and sacrifice' Entertainment Weekly -- Entertainment Weekly 20040501 '[A] perfectly crafted tale of crossed lives and oceans...From Kingston to London to Calcutta, Levy deftly directs her story with twin reins of violence and humor!Happily, the hype is warranted-- SMALL ISLAND is a triumph' --San Francisco Chronicle -- San Francisco Chronicle 20040501 'Don't be deceived by the modest size of Andrea Levy's SMALL ISLAND when you see it on bookstore shelves... The truth is it's a sizable epic spanning three hemispheres and several decades -- a revealing and accomplished novel...There are some extraordinary descriptions of wartime London here!Levy deftly and generously captures the moment when the arrival of immigrants from far-flung parts of the Empire was shockingly fresh to all involved' -- Michael Upchurch, Seattle Times -- Seattle Times 20040501 'An endearing tapestry! Levy's character Gilbert is unstoppable. It seems likely that he wrestled the pen right out of Levy's hand. Sometimes an author needs to know to step aside while the inspiration rolls. Gilbert rules' --Dayton Daily News -- Dayton Daily News 20040501 'Alluring!Gilbert's earthiness offers a delicious counterpoint to Hortense's prideful ambition [in a] spellbinding story [with] a surprising, heart-rending climax!An enthralling tour de force that animates a chapter in the history of empire' --Kirkus Reviews -- Kirkus Reviews 20040501 'Andrea Levy's captivating fourth novel sweeps into a US edition with much-deserved literary fanfare!This deceptively simple plot poises the characters over a yawning abyss of colonialism, racism, war and the everyday pain that people inflict on one another!All [the characters] are achingly human' --Publishers Weekly -- Publishers Weekly 20040501 'A worthy winner of the 2004 Orange Prize for Fiction...Levy does not set out to preach, and her light touch, wry humour and down-to-earth, almost gossipy tone make this novel as readable as it is challenging' The Sunday Times, 19/9/04 -- The Sunday Times 20040919 'Soon you will be enchanted. It is good enough to compete against anything written this year' Jasper Gerard, News Review, Sunday Times 13/6/04 -- Jasper Gerard, News Review, Sunday Times 20040613 'Small Island is an astonishing tour de force by Andrea Levy. Juggling four voices, she illuminates a little known aspect of recent British history with wit and wisdom. A compassionate account of the problems of post war immigration, it cannot fail to have a strong modern resonance' Sandi Toksvig, Orange Prize judge, 8/6/04 -- Sandi Toksvig, Orange Prize judge 20040608 'Small Island is a brilliant picture of the dented dreams of Jamaicans in post-war Britain' Financial Times, Dec 04 -- Financial Times 20041204 'Levy offers her readers rich satisfaction from both story and character' The Times, 10/7/04 -- The Times 20040710 'This won the Orange prize for its insight, compassion, wealth of historical details and its cracking plot' Independent on Sunday, 11/7/04 -- Independent on Sunday 20040711 'Levy's book brings freshness and humour as well as indignation and pity to its survey of social and racial prejudice half a century ago' The Sunday Times, 28/11/04 -- The Sunday Times 20041128 'Levy's trinity of voices gently refutes the idea that the story of West Indian immigration has anything to do with (free) teeth or glasses' Guardian, 9/10/04 -- Guardian 20041009 'This splendid, well-told novel follows four intertwined lives that collide in post-war London and culminate in the birth of multicultural England! Levy's novel will find happy readers among fans of Michael Ondaatje and Kazuo Ishiguro -- or anyone who enjoys a good, long read. It's all here: exceptional dialogue, clever narrative, and a rich story that tells us something new about our shared history' Joel Turnipseed, Minneapolis Star-Tribune -- Minneapolis Star-Tribune 20041009 'A touching, eloquently written story!Andrea Levy expertly captures the turbulence of a time of momentous change' Sunday Telegraph, 17/10/04 -- Sunday Telegraph 20041017 'It's more than a novel, it's a recreation of a largely unexplored episode of our history!the narrative voices seem so authentic that it is easy to become lost in their sometimes dark, sometimes joyous worlds' Daily Express, 15/10/04 -- Daily Express 20041015 'Levy handles themes of empire, prejudice, war and love with a lightness of touch and an uplifting generosity of spirit' Age, Melbourne -- Age, Melbourne 20041126 'Levy tactfully delves into her family history while tackling the heavy issues of prejudice, assimilation and love in the ordinary lives of Jamaican migrants' MX, Melbourne, 31/5/04 -- MX, Melbourne 20040531 'A spellbinding story! An enthralling tour de force that animates a chapter in the history of empire' Kirkus Reviews, 15/2/05 -- Kirkus Reviews 20050215 'Levy's must-read novel seems to gain stature with time' Sunday Express magazine, 12/6/05 -- Sunday Express magazine 20050612 'Levy's novel of two couples--one black, one white--contending with the racism and bleakness of postwar England...manages to deal comically, often hilariously, with some seriously grim issues' --Newsweek -- Newsweek 20050612 'Here is the book I have been waiting for... an ample, sprawling story of nearly 450 pages, mirroring an expansive inner and outer landscape, spanning two islands and three continents, and incorporating a hybrid cast of humanly idiosyncratic characters; and above all, a book in which the author, Andrea Levy, never once forgets she is telling a story, delighting us, improbably, in this nasty tale of race, with the effervescent style of Dickens' Globe & Mail, Toronto, 12/6/04 -- Globe & Mail, Toronto 20040612 'What a deserved winner she is. It was a very good shortlist but in my opinion Small Island stood out at the longlist stage - for its writing, its wit and the impressively light touch she brought to the subject' Minette Walters, 15/6/04 -- Minette Walters 20040615 'Very ambitious and beautifully written! in addition [it's] funny and fiercely satirical' Richard Eyre in the Guardian, 16/6/05 -- Guardian 20050616 'Small Island is a slyly humorous, rich feast of a book' Mail on Sunday, 17/10/04 -- Mail on Sunday 20041017 'Small Island is a great read, delivering the sort of pleasure which has been the traditional stock-in-trade of a long line of English novelists. It's honest, skilful, thoughtful and important. This is Andrea Levy's big book' Guardian 14/2/04 -- Guardian 20040214 'Andrea Levy gives us a new urgent take on our past' Vogue 13/2/04 -- Vogue 20040213 'Wonderful...seamless...a magnificent achievement' Linda Grant -- Linda Grant 20031001 'With this funny, tender, intelligent fourth novel Andrea Levy looks set to become as commercially popular as she is critically acclaimed' Sainsbury's magazine, February 2004 -- Sainsbury's magazine 20040201 'It is a work of great imaginative power which ranks alongside Sam Selvon's THE LONELY LONDONERS, George Lamming's THE EMIGRANTS and Caryl Phillips' THE FINAL PASSAGE in dealing with the experience of migration' Linton Kwesi Johnson -- Linton Kwesi Johnson 20031001 'Small Island operates on a larger canvas than Levy's previous novels. It's neither splashy nor experimental, but for thoughtfulness & wry humour cannot be faulted' Telegraph 21/2/04 -- Telegraph 20040221 'A brilliantly deft and humane account of two ordinary couples in post-war London' Evening Standard, 3 February 2004 -- Evening Standard 20040203 'Small Island is as full of warmth and jokes and humanity as you could wish...Such a rich saga, stuffed full of interlocking narratives' Time Out, 2 February 2004 -- Time Out 20040202 'Funny, poignant and profoundly moving!Small Island deals with the weighty themes of empire, prejudice, love and war with such humour and compassion that Levy has been praised for her even-handedness by some, condemned for it by others' West Australian, 1/5/04 -- West Australian 20040501 'A terrific book' Alan Plater -- Alan Plater 20031001 'A cracking good read...I think what appealed to me most was the passion and anger in the writing all the way through, yet it was always leavened with a particularly wry sort of humour -- the sort that, tho' you find yourself smiling, you at the same time realise you almost shouldn't be' Margaret Forster -- Margaret Forster 20031001 'An impressive break-through novel' Publishing News, 23/1/04 -- Publishing News 20040123 'What makes Levy's writing so appealing is her even-handedness. All her characters can be weak, hopeless, brave, good, bad - whatever their colour. The writing is rigorous and the bittersweet ending, with its unexpected twist, touching... People can retain great dignity, however small their island' Independent on Sunday, 25/1/04 -- Independent on Sunday 20040125 'An involving saga about the changing face of Britain' Mirror, 6 February 2004 -- Mirror 20040206 'It's an engrossing read - slyly funny, passionately angry and wholly involving' Daily Mail, 6 February 2004 -- Daily Mail 20040206 'I know it is a fiction, but I emerged from the book full of admiration for the patience and resilience of that generation...Levy has written one of those rare fictions that tells you things you didn't know but feel you should have known...the writing is deft and striking, without being pretentious' Sunday Herald, 8/2/04 -- Sunday Herald 20040208 'Levy's story is a triumph in perspective!a triumph of poise, organisation and deep, deep character -- the sort of work that can only be achieved by an experienced novelist' Age, Melbourne 17/4/04 -- Age, Melbourne 20040417 'Everything about the plot, characters and clever end twist of SMALL ISLAND [is] beautifully drawn! This is an epic book that brings the patois of Jamaicans alive, fills the world of war-torn London with amazing detail and is a great history lesson about the era when England changed forever as migrants braved bitter racism to flood her shores' Herald Sun (Melbourne), 10/4/04 -- Herald Sun (Melbourne) 20040410 'Every scene is rich in implication, entrancing and disturbing at the same time; the literary equivalent of a switch-back ride' The Sunday Times, 29/2/04 -- The Sunday Times 20040229 'What makes Levy's writing so appealing is her even-handedness. All her characters can be weak, hopeless, brave, good, bad - whatever their colour. The writing is rigorous and the bittersweet ending, with its unexpected twist, touching... People can retain great dignity, however small their island' Independent on Sunday, 25/1/04 -- Independent on Sunday 20040125

Adult/High School-This novel examines class, race, and prejudice in London in 1948, when a new multiracial England began to form. Through four principal narrators comprising two married couples, the author brings to life the dreams and fears of a generation. Gilbert, a Jamaican newlywed who served in the RAF during World War II, hopes for a prosperous future in London, though his experience of racial discrimination tells him this won't be achieved easily. His young wife, Hortense, is more naive. Arriving from the colonies prepared to take up a teaching career, she is soon in despair over rude rejections and her struggle to make herself understood, literally and figuratively, by white working-class neighbors who don't seem to comprehend the pristine English she learned on her home island. Even the small comforts provided by their affable landlady are soured when Queenie's long-missing husband returns and is less than pleased to meet the black boarders. As these mismatched pairs relate their sides of the story, the author's linguistic skill pitches their voices perfectly within time and place. Though none of the characters is very likable, all are nuanced personalities who make the book intriguing and believable throughout, even a final plot twist involving a coincidence of Dickensian proportions. Affecting, funny, and sad, this is a masterful depiction of a society on the verge of major changes.-Starr E. Smith, Fairfax County Public Library, VA Copyright 2005 Reed Business Information.