Children of Heroes

Lyonel Trouillot's Children of Heroes, a short but compelling novel translated by Linda Coverdale, is a depressing but essential read for a feel of Port-au-Prince's urban landscape. The city itself becomes a character as Colin and his sister, Mariela, flee their slum neighborhood after killing their abusive father. From the slums to Boutilliers, the siblings experience the city in its totality for three days on the run, with extensive social commentary, the legacy of the nation and its heroes, and the relentless pursuit of poverty (and the law). The crushing poverty with the consequent class divide in the city of Port-au-Prince matches the dysfunction of Colin's family (and he is mostly the narrator, although I appreciate how the author 'mixes' it up by having a shift in narrator later on, and the creative way dialogue is expressed), the fighting stray dogs, who, like Haiti, fight over scraps. 

Despite the lack of a 'happy' ending, the novel succeeds by breathing life into the world of the two slum children, making their violent, alcoholic father and submissive, already-dead mother realistic, and capturing the dissolution of Haiti under the Place des Heros. The loss of dignity is even more supremely expressed when the protagonists of the novel are photographed by tourists, who, despite the dirty rags the fugitive children wear and their robotic smiles, loves what it represents. In spite of it all, their attempts to escape their world inevitably fails, and the harshness of life, nihilism, and decay continue, under the statues of the heroes of independence.

For those eager to read Haitian literature set in Port-au-Prince, this relatively short novel is an easy read and excellent place to start. One truly gets a feel for the city of Port-au-Prince through the prose and commentary of Trouillot, who manages to tell the story of slum children without condescension or criticism. These very same residents of the slums, the urban counterparts of the moun andeyo, search for dignity, self-respect, inclusion in the social fabric of the city, and become heroic in their struggle. I actually found myself feeling sympathy for some rather unpleasant characters in the novel, including the murdered father, as I am sure other readers will.

Favorite Quotes

"During those first hours after Corazón had died for real, after our race to escape the slum, we walked quietly around the Champ-de-Mars, where the statues of heroes look down indifferently from on high" (28).

"Life, good or bad, doesn't interest people. It's death that makes a splash" (49).

"In the slum, no one trusts visitors" (59).

"In our house, the punches, the screaming, the quarrels and prayers were the finishing touch to our poverty" (61).

"Our life killed Corazón. Our lousy life, so far from hope, and so close to death" (99).

"Not many of our locals have any dealings with the State. For good or ill. The State is far away. Its existence doesn't affect us, and it remembers us only when forced to by some misfortune" (104).

"The inscription beneath the bust pointed out that Carl Brouard had been a great poet. I think poets can go to hell. This one couldn't even manage to get his name on a pretty square" (107).

"It's just a faded piece of cloth fought over by dogs" (134).