Becka's Buckra Baby

Becka’s Buckra Baby (1904) is a novel by Thomas MacDermot. Published under his pseudonym Tom Redcam by the All Jamaica Library, Becka’s Buckra Baby is a tragic story of race and class set in Jamaica. Understated and ironic, the novel critiques the social conditions of Jamaica under British colonialism. Mixing English with patois, MacDermot sheds light on the disparities between the island’s black and white communities, crafting a story now recognized as the beginning of modern Caribbean literature. Noel Maud Bronvola is peculiar. Her peculiar name, chosen by a peculiar father, has always set her apart. When her father dies, Noel chooses to remember him by his commitment to the people—despite widespread corruption, he chose to act honorably and spent years waiting for a promotion within the government that would never come. In his memory, Noel dedicates herself to helping others. She gets an education, becomes a teacher, and develops personal relationships with her young students from a poor black neighborhood in Kingston. One day, struggling with her desire to get married, she decides to present a gift to one of her students. Just before Christmastime, Noel brings a doll to Becka’s mother, who politely accepts a toy her daughter will have no time to play with. Neither of them could predict the tragedy to come. This edition of Thomas MacDermot’s Becka’s Buckra Baby is a classic of English literature reimagined for modern readers.

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