By Lincoln DePradine

For a dozen years, Richard A. Byron-Cox had been writing, rewriting, editing and researching the lives of Africans who were enslaved on plantations in the Caribbean.

The work, finally completed, was published as “The Story of Paulene Bramble. Book One: Spring’s Blossoms and Young Thorns”.

The 487-page softcover book, comprising 17 chapters, was released at the end of August.

It’s a history of the Caribbean covering the period between 1800—including the emancipation of chattel slavery in 1838—and 1939, which was the start of World War II.

“This book tells the story of our people but not in statistics but in people’s lives – the pain, the suffering, the racism, the classism, the misogyny and everything else. But, more than anything else, the poverty,’’ said Vincentian-born Byron-Cox, who has a PhD. in public international law.

A multilingual lawyer and father of four, Byron-Cox also has lived in Germany and has been a university lecturer and a diplomat, who worked with the United Nations for more than 25 years.

The only thing that is fictional about the book are the characters, including the main protagonist Paulene Bramble, said Byron-Cox. “Everything else is real,” he told The Caribbean Camera.

“Until 1838, we were considered estate stock and not people. The issue was not just an issue of becoming free; but how we humanize ourselves. Because their purpose and their mission, even to this day, is the dehumanization of Black people. The standard of humanity is not them; the standard of humanity is us,” Byron-Cox said.

“The book tells the story of who we are and where we came from. But, more than anything else, it deals with our battle for our humanization.”

“The Story of Paulene Bramble” is “a fitting tribute to a region that is undeniably a treasure trove of historical events. It is both conscientious and entertaining, revealing both the strengths and shortcomings of individuals and the larger implications these create in the Caribbean and global society,” said University of the West Indies, Dr Jacinth Browne-Howard, in the book’s preface.

“The juxtaposition of abuse with the racial tensions that define the time also reminds the reader of the devastating effects of the slave trade.”

“The Story Paulene Bramble” is Byron-Cox’s second literary work; he’s also author of, “Were Mama’s Tears in Vain”.

Byron-Cox also has written on politics, economics and law.

Local Journalism Initiative Reporter