Published in 1983 by Karnak House,

is the first poetry collection by Guyanese writer, Grace Nichols. The collection garnered critical acclaim upon its release, winning the Commonwealth Poetry Prize that same year. As Laurence A. Briener notes, the 1980s brought the increasing presence of women’s work to Caribbean poetry (230). Lorna Goodison’s first collection,

, was published in 1980, with other seminal female writers, including NourbeSe Philip and Michelle Cliff, also releasing work in that year. By the time of the

in 1988 – seen as a “founding event of Caribbean women’s writing” (Cudjoe 5) – Nichols’ was part of a growing cohort of women writers…

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Citation: Howley, Ellen. "i is a long-memoried woman". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 29 May 2019 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=14252, accessed 31 October 2024.]

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