Ravaged by World War 2, Britain’s desperate call to the commonwealth for help to rebuild the country was eagerly taken up by many of its Caribbean colonial subjects. Attracted by the prospect of employment in the motherland, or simply seeking a new kind of life, on 22 June 1948 the first batch or newcomers arrived on the Empire Windrush. Welcome signs greeted the ship filled with British citizens from Jamaica, Barbados, Trinidad & Tobago, and other islands. But the reception they expected did not match the reality as it dawned on local British folk that ‘these people are too different from us’.
Louise Hare’s This Lovely City tells the compelling story of one such arrival whose dream begins to unravel because of his ‘otherness’.
Yes indeed, this lovely city of London can be magical, especially for a young ambitious Black man from Jamaica who is not only hardworking, but talented as well. A jazz musician, Lawrie Matthews works as a postman by day and plays at several Soho jazz clubs at night. Although living in what could be considered a closet compared to back home, Lawrie is one of the lucky ones. He’s also found the love of his life; a mixed-race girl who also favours him. But, things start to fall apart when he makes a gruesome discovery, one that will mark him and other black residents as suspects, naturally.
Real Characters
Hare, a Black British writer based in London, creates real characters and stories that are so believable the reader will empathise with them, celebrate, and advocate for their rights. In a past interview the writer noted how she can relate to her characters because of her own vulnerabilities “having been a minority since birth.” It is this ‘otherness’ that makes This Lovely City so fraught with emotional tension. It is believable because it is a reflection of the times back then, and indeed today’s reality.
One of the few Black writers being celebrated for their storytelling that paints authentic pictures of folks who look like them, Hare brings us into a familiar world plagued with racist stereotypical ideas about black and brown people.
A white woman screams as she walks through the park. Lawrie does the right thing, rushing to help and console her. He sees what has frightened her, retrieves it and calls the police. What happens next is a textbook knee-jerk racist reaction as Lawrie becomes the accused. He fights for his life with much dignity which inadvertently widens the net across the black Caribbean community, including his love, Evie. Her involvement becomes a core piece of the puzzle in the city filled with angst, suspicion, and believe it to not, opportunity.
Together, they laugh, they cry, they get lost in This Lovely City called London, a city that forced many of the new arrivals to swallow their pride and work toward the better life they sought in what they considered ‘the mother country’. But, in spite of all the fear, anger, and heartache the book leaves us with hope. Justice is meted out, but there is light ahead.
