Bernard and the Cloth Monkey

"So many reasons. One is that it crosses boundaries in what it’s prepared to talk about, and it does that without melodrama or sensationalism. It’s a really quiet novel; Bernardine Evaristo described it as exemplary, a “quietly outstanding novel”. That’s certainly my sense. As I was reading it, I was thinking, wow, it’s saying such important things, but doing it in such a way that it’s very accessible. Two: it’s absolutely beautifully written. I was so drawn to the prose, to the rhythms of the prose. And to the sense of place. One of the things that the novel is doing is allowing Black people to simply belong in the space that they’re occupying. That’s not contested, you know? It’s taken for granted: they’re Black and they’re British. So for me, when it was first published, this was pretty extraordinary. I didn’t manage to read it then, I didn’t know of its existence, which tells you something about the poor dissemination of Black literature. “Black Britain is a very, very important part of British culture. If our voices aren’t heard, we’re not getting a representative picture of the country” I lectured in English at Manchester Metropolitan University for many years, and I really liked teaching Black British literature. But the problem was always that the books were so quickly out of print, or were so hard to get. I couldn’t put them on the list because students couldn’t get hold of them. This book also has an incredibly clever title. I was initially thinking: What sort of book is this? Is it a children’s book? But as you go through the novel, the reason for the title becomes apparent. It’s like unpeeling and onion, its so layered. You unpeel one section, then the next, and gradually the secrets of the family are exposed, but in a very clever, careful and considered way. It’s also concise, under 300 pages. I don’t feel there’s an extra word anywhere in it. It’s pared back, yet creates atmosphere and a sense of longing. Ultimately, hope too. And that’s what I really value in novels. Well, this book seems really timeless. It could come from any period. It could be from the 1990s. It could just have been published yesterday, it has that sort of appeal. So although, obviously, some Black British novels are very much of their time, I don’t feel that’s the case at all with this particular book."