Publication Date: May 17, 2025
Felicity Alexander should be charming audiences at New York’s Metropolitan Opera, not under house arrest in Grenada in October 1983, as rumours swirl that United States troops are preparing to invade.
Born and raised in Winnipeg, the daughter of a Grenadian woman and an absent white father, Felicity is blessed with enviable beauty and an extraordinary singing voice. Arriving in London to study opera in 1965, she finds early success and joy on stage, as well as a sense of belonging in the arms of the charming Claude Buckingham. Members of the West Indian Students Association, Claude and his friends are law students and activists. They plan to return to Grenada to overthrow the corrupt dictator, “Uncle” Percy Tibbs.
Felicity and Claude’s intense affair cannot survive their diverging destinies. Claude brings revolution to Grenada and becomes a minister in the new Black Pearls of Freedom government; Felicity devotes herself to music, conquering the racism and sexism of the opera world to rise to international stardom. The brighter she shines, the more she struggles to find her place and purpose in life.
Her career in ascendance, Felicity accepts an invitation to perform in Grenada. The red sky of revolution calls to her almost as much as the hope of Claude’s embrace. But their reunion is interrupted by a coup. Surrounded by soldiers and guns, Felicity’s voice is born anew.
Felicity Alexander makes a name for herself as a world-renowned opera singer, but it is the invitation to Grenada that fires up her spirit.
Author Zilla Jones delivers a historical fiction novel in The World So Wide, which spans a 25-year period.
The story begins with Felicity under house arrest in Grenada, along with various governmental officials. Her presence, ostensibly to perform in the musical showcase, offers another opportunity for her to reunite with her one true love. However, political unrest alters her plans, plunging her into a series of tragic events that unfold via a number of past and present segments.
While the story celebrates the unique culture of Grenada and its inhabitants, the sporadic use of broken English is sometimes hard to follow. Additionally, the portions of the book taking place in the present (1983) made me wonder if this was the second installment in a series because I didn’t have enough framework.
Felicity is a complex character who, although a gifted singer, fails to elicit much sympathy. Her messy past, coupled with efforts to expunge the memory of her father, do little to endear her to readers.
The World So Wide combines a story of lost love with a political revolution in Grenada.
Zilla Jones is an African-Canadian anti-racist educator, lawyer, mother, and singer of Caribbean, Chinese, and European heritage, writing on Treaty 1 territory (Winnipeg). She was born in the UK and now lives in Winnipeg, Manitoba. She is a winner of the Journey Prize, a finalist for The Writers’ Trust Bronwen Wallace Emerging Writers Award, and a finalist for the CBC Short Story Prize. Her writing has appeared in many literary journals including The Fiddlehead, Prairie Fire, The Malahat Review, and Bayou Magazine.
