Heart for laughter and tears

Author's name: Maryse Condé

Guadeloupe... this magical place, which we hardly ever hear about, is transformed in Maryse Condé's books into the center of the entire world, captivating us without us even realizing it. In this book, she takes us back there, recounting her childhood stories, beginning with her birth in La Pointe, where her mother's cries in labor blended with the sounds of the carnival drums taking place in the city at the time. As she grew older, Condé considered this a sign, a sign from which she learned how to conceal even the greatest pain under a smile.
In this deeply warm and humane book, the Guadeloupean writer recounts her childhood and adolescence, and how, surrounded by a strict mother and a reserved father, she followed the path of rebellion that ultimately led her to her destiny of becoming a writer.