The Dragon Can't Dance - Reviews

Reviews

Describing the novel as "a landmark, not in the West Indian, but in the contemporary novel", C. L. R. James also said: "The Dragon Can't Dance is a remarkable canvas of shanty-town life in which Lovelace's intimate knowledge of rural Trinidad and the Carnival as a sustaining cultural tradition are brilliantly brought to life."

Most critiques and reviews of The Dragon Can't Dance have proven to be positive. "Aside from a few review notices of his first two novels, Earl Lovelace had received little critical treatment until the publication of The Dragon Can't Dance. Since the appearance of that work, it has become one of the most highly acclaimed contemporary Caribbean novels". Many critics comment on Lovelace's use of unconventional local Trinidadian style and dialogue, describing it as difficult at times to follow, but generally his style is said to be poetic, all-consuming, and informative.

One blogger, Hazel, who has a substantial following of her review blog, gave The Dragon Can't Dance a five-(out-of-five) star review and had to say about the book: "I had forgotten how stunning this book is. On this rereading, I found the prologue, on poverty and futility, so poignant and painful that I was minded to desist, and pick up something light and insubstantial instead. I persisted and am rewarded with an engaging narrative of the stories of individuals; the ripening girl destined for whoredom; the vigorous young man seeking to release his energy in warfare; the frustrated artist, with a single annual outlet for his creativity; the outsider, seeking to be seen, to be recognized."

"I am not doing Lovelace and his novel justice. But I recommend it highly, to mature readers who appreciate lyrical writing, and do not require a happy ending. It may take some time, as well to adjust to the dialogue which is in Trinidadian dialect."

Other reviews by various sources that support Hazel's review include:

• "Essential reading, and deserving of warm welcome after such long delay" – Michael Upchurch
• "A wonderful work, filled with insight, depth, and truth."
• "Caribbean writer Lovelace, whose Salt won the 1997 Commonwealth Writer's Prize, returns with a story (first published in England in 1979) that offers a defining and luminously sensitive portrait of postcolonial island life."
• "Kaleidoscopically colorful characters and a faithful ear help make this quest for personhood one of Lovelace's best works."