Jamestown
By Matthew Sharpe
(Mariner Books, Paperback, 9780156031714, 416pp.)
Publication Date: May 2008
Other Editions of This Title: Hardcover
Categories: Literary
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A group of "settlers" (more like survivors) arrive in Virginia from the ravished island of Manhattan, intending to establish an outpost, find oil, and exploit the Indians controlling the area. But nothing goes quite as planned (one settler, for instance, keeps losing body parts). At the heart of the story is Pocahontas, who speaks Valley Girl, Ebonics, Old English, and Algonquin—sometimes all in the same sentence. And she pursues a heated romance with settler Johnny Rolfe via text messaging, instant messaging, and, ultimately, telepathy.
Deadly serious and seriously funny, Matthew Sharpe’s fictional retelling of one of America's original myths is a history of violence, a cross-cultural love story, and a tragicomic commentary on America’s past and present.
MATTHEW SHARPE is the author of the novels The Sleeping Father and Nothing Is Terrible, as well as the short-story collection Stories from the Tube. He teaches creative writing at Wesleyan University. His stories and essays have appeared in Harper's Magazine, Zoetrope, BOMB, McSweeney's, American Letters & Commentary, Southwest Review, and Teachers & Writers. He lives in New York City.
PRAISE FOR JAMESTOWN
"A work of hectic brilliance and immense sadness."—Laura Miller, Salon
"Sharpe's wit relies primarily on the juxtaposition of profundity and silliness, tragedy and absurdity, a kind of Catch-22 about the 17th century for the 21st century. Jamestown is packed with marvelous material, moving and funny and deeply provocative."—The Washington Post Book World
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