Papillote Press

In the first quarter of the 20th century, Daniel Thaly of Dominica, then a British Caribbean colony, was one of France’s most celebrated poets. He was educated in Martinique and then at medical school in France before returning to Dominica. His illustrious reputation crumbled when radicals in the emerging anti-colonial Negritude movement criticised his work. From then on he wrote little. Here for the first time in English (and French) we can read a selection of his lyrical and passionate poems - many about Dominica - alongside an introduction that pieces together what little is known of his life.

Much admired by Nobel laureate Derek Walcott, the poetry of the St Lucian poet Irvin Desir is published here for the first time. Often visionary, these poems contain such images as “fireflies heave for heaven” and “you filled this cluttered room like a handful of clove”. Published in only a few anthologies during his life, this posthumous collection at last brings to our attention a voice too long unknown. Islander viiI shall see you through the cold shoreline where the wind carries and slides over the sandwherever we search death haunts us everywhere the distracted petals have goneour words fade, fade like mist over the mountain our words add to the silence like lifting dust.