Caribbean (novel)

Caribbean
First edition cover
AuthorJames Michener
LanguageEnglish
GenreHistorical
PublisherRandom House
Publication date
1989
Publication placeUnited States
Media typePrint (hardback)
Pages672pp.
ISBN0-394-56561-4

Caribbean (1989) is a historical novel written by James A. Michener, which describes and explores the history of the Caribbean region from the pre-Columbian period of the native Arawak tribes until about 1990.[1]

The author mixes fact and fiction, as he notes in the foreword. For example, the story about the island of All Saints is purely fictional, though the book's map shows it as an island in the location of Saint Lucia.[2][3]

In researching the book, Michener traveled the Caribbean for three years and consulted over 400 books.[4]

  1. ^ Albin Krebs (October 17, 1997). "James Michener, Author of Novels That Sweep Through the History of Places". The New York Times. Retrieved March 1, 2017.
  2. ^ The island of All Saints bears almost identical history to that of St Lucia and has many landmarks in common, with similar names. In other examples, Michener has taken well-known sites and placed them on the Atlantic side of "All Saints' instead of the Caribbean.
  3. ^ Herbert Mitgang (November 2, 1989). "Books of The Times; The Caribbean as Lead Character in a Michener Novel". The New York Times. Retrieved March 1, 2017.
  4. ^ Warren, Michael (November 29, 1989). "Michener portrays the troubled times of the islands in the sun". The Canberra Times. p. 31.