New Day

New Day is set in 1944, on the eve of universal adult suffrage in Jamaica, and the rise of nationalism which followed. The story alternates between the memories of John Campbell, an old man who recalls the years of drought, repression and rebellion that so tainted his native land, and the present of his grand-nephew Garth, a leader of the nationalist and trade union movement. The Campbell family are committed to peaceful, constitutional ways to progress; yet outbreaks of violence, past and present, are never far from view.

Introduced by Nadi Edwards.

Victor Stafford Reid (1913-1987) was born in Kingston, Jamaica. His first novel, New Day (1949) was a landmark in Caribbean writing for its use of Jamaican nation-language as the language of fiction, and its broad historical sweep announced the Jamaican people''s urge to sweep away colonialism. His second novel, The Leopard (1958), was a major artistic statement of the Anglophone Caribbean''s belated involvement with Africa. He wrote one further historical novel, The Jamaicans (1979), and four novels for children: Sixty-Five, The Young Warriors, Peter of Mount Ephraim and Nanny-Town. He was awarded the Order of Jamaica in 1980, and the Norman Manley Award for Excellence in Literature in 1981.