The Heart Does Not Bend

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Family loyalty, betrayal and the redemptive power of love are at the heart of this poignant and unforgettable novel set in Canada and Jamaica.When Maria Galloway dies, she leaves everything to her spoiled, wayward grandson, Vittorio. Her only granddaughter, Molly, whom she raised from infancy, is left to confront the unyielding bitterness Maria harboured against her. As Molly begins to trace the complex interrelationships in her loving but divided family, she recalls her idyllic childhood, spent in her grandmother’s sky-blue house in Jamaica. There, surrounded by a jungle of coconut, mango and avocado trees and enveloped in the smells of mouth-watering sweet cakes and spicy Jamaican foods, she received her grandmother’s pure and simple generosity, and the return of unconditional love.But as Molly enters adolescence, she grows increasingly aware of her grandmother’s vulnerabilities and disappointments, her human frailties. When Maria decides that things might get better if she leaves Jamaica and joins her adult children in Canada, she takes Molly with her. But it isn’t long before she, a woman who has always lived on her own terms and has never been afraid to speak her mind, clashes with her children. Even Molly falls into disfavour when Maria discovers that she is romantically involved with a woman.From generational saga to tender love story, The Heart Does Not Bend is a vivid and heartfelt portrayal of an indomitable matriarch and the women who must free themselves from her.Review“The Heart Does Not Bend is guided by an emotional and intellectual honesty, making it both a highly entertaining and a thoroughly rewarding novel.” -- Quill and Quire“The Heart Does Not Bend is an achingly rich, sensuous text…. Keep an eye on this author, because The Heart Does Not Bend is a refreshingly simple but undeniably intense addition to this country’s literary legacy.” -- NOW Magazine“The Heart Does Not Bend is as much a story of familial love and loss as it is an important and interesting exercise in writing -- and for the reader, in reading -- against the grain.” -- Shani Mootoo, Globe and Mail“[T]he outspoken Maria stays with the reader, as possibly one of the most vivid characters ever to rise up from the printed page….The Heart Does Not Bend is a sensuous book, full of smells (fish to floral), sights (those Jamaican Blue Mountains), sounds (the chatter of crickets and neighbours) and tastes.” -- The Gazette (Montreal)“This is a frank, vivid and sad tale about a family divided by distance, jealousy and disappointment. But Makeda Silvera’s first novel is also a tale about love and hope restored…. Silvera weaves wonderful descriptions throughout the story, engaging every sense…. The Heart Does Not Bend is a worthy first novel -- startling, genuine and yet, extremely draining.” -- Victoria Times Colonist“[The Heart Does Not Bend is] a novel of delicate eloquence…. Silvera does several things that impress when it comes to language…. Her dialogue is pure patois, delightfully expressive, but democratically measured…. [T]his portrait of a family is also a poignant saga of Jamaican society. In Maria, Silvera has created a completely idiosyncratic figure, strong and weak, generous and intolerant, the nove... From the Inside FlapFamily loyalty, betrayal and the redemptive power of love are at the heart of this poignant and unforgettable novel set in Canada and Jamaica.When Maria Galloway dies, she leaves everything to her spoiled, wayward grandson, Vittorio. Her only granddaughter, Molly, whom she raised from infancy, is left to confront the unyielding bitterness Maria harboured against her. As Molly begins to trace the complex interrelationships in her loving but divided family, she recalls her idyllic childhood, spent in her grandmother?s sky-blue house in Jamaica. There, surrounded by a jungle of coconut, mango and avocado trees and enveloped in the smells of mouth-watering sweet cakes and spicy Jamaican foods, she received her grandmother?s pure and simple generosity, and the return of unconditional love.But as Molly enters adolescence, she grows increasingly aware of her grandmother?s vulnerabilities and disappointments, her human frailties. When Maria decides that things might get better if she leaves Jamaica and joins her adult children in Canada, she takes Molly with her. But it isn?t long before she, a woman who has always lived on her own terms and has never been afraid to speak her mind, clashes with her children. Even Molly falls into disfavour when Maria discovers that she is romantically involved with a woman.From generational saga to tender love story, The Heart Does Not Bend is a vivid and heartfelt portrayal of an indomitable matriarch and the women who must free themselves from her.