All Decent Animals

Oonya Kempadoo''s moving third novel All Decent Animals looks at the personal and aesthetic choices of a multifaceted cast of characters on the Caribbean island of Trinidad―a country still developing economically but rich culturally aiming at world-class status amid its poor island cousins. It is a novel about relationships examined through the distinct rhythms of the city of Port of Spain.Loyalties love conflicting cultures and creativity come into play as Ata a young woman working in carnival design but curious about writing and her European boyfriend Pierre negotiate the care of their friend Fraser a closeted gay man dying from AIDS. The contradictory Trinidadian setting becomes a parallel character to Fraser''s Cambridge-derived artistic sensibility and an antagonist to Ata''s creative journey.All Decent Animals is a forthright inquiry into the complexity of character social issues and island society with all the island''s humor mysticism and tragedy.