‘Black Marks’ by Kirsten Dinnall Hoyte
An introspective look at identity, both social and cultural, from the eyes of an amnesia victim
By Amber Drea
Published: April 12th, 2006 | 9:15pm
Told in the first person point-of-view, Kirsten Dinnall Hoyte’s debut novel Black Marks examines the collision of race, sexuality, class, and nationality. Georgette Collins awakes one day with self-inflicted amnesia, knowing little about who she is or where she came from. She goes through the motions of her job as a reference librarian, attempting to avoid human interaction, but eventually begins to piece together her past through letters found at her father’s apartment.
Mimicking the randomness with which memories return, the narrative is a collage of moments from different periods in Georgette’s life, often connected by a feeling, a word, or an image. During a scene at a nightclub with her wealthy, blond girlfriend Amanda, a fight breaks out between two drag queens and one calls the other “niggerish.” The slur provokes a flashback to Georgette’s childhood when her grandmother Nina, a proud Jamaican woman, spits the same obscenity. While inventive, the disorder of chronological events can sometimes be confusing, causing the reader to flounder for understanding alongside Georgette.
The most compelling sections of the book occur when Hoyte allows the story to unfold naturally with dialogue and character interaction. Particularly interesting chapters depict Georgette’s alcoholism treatment at a state rehab facility and her relationship with Amanda, who represents the white girls Georgette grew up with while attending private school in the Boston area.
Her grandmother Nina remains a strong figure throughout, from Georgette’s residence in Jamaica as a child and her visits thereafter to a letter written by Nina, which Georgette reads long after her grandmother’s death. Other characters play significant roles in Georgette’s search for her identity: her cousin Lydia, who mirrors the teenage Georgette; her brothers Chris and Alex, who simultaneously antagonize and protect her; her father Michael, the parent whom she most emulates; and her boyfriend Malcolm, who serves as her attempt at being straight and acceptable.
In a voice that’s insightful, honest, and peppered with patois, Hoyte writes of an artist’s journey to find herself with clarity and precision.
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Akashic, $14.95, 200 pages
Issue #35
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