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Oct. 15, 2009 By Vangerry OLDHAM
"Passing Jacks"
Passing Jacks

(The newest addition to our literary treasury)

“Let me tell ya bout back in da day, bout how it was when I was young.”

Sound familiar? No doubt upon hearing this, you would heave a great sigh, get comfortable, and prepare yourself for a good, long listen. Ours is a culture rich with tradition, and oral history is one of our oldest traditions.
If you want to know about ‘back in the day’ – how things were done, how people lived and loved, the real story behind Bahamian culture, ask your Grammy. If you want to read it, you will have to look long and hard, and more than likely, you will not find a great wealth of... More > resources.
There are a few authors who have taken up the task and committed our stories to paper – but they are indeed few. It is for this reason that we must celebrate and embrace the established Bahamian writers and the new addition to the collection.
Vangerry Oldham is no newcomer. Oldham has graced our libraries with ’Inside-out’, ‘Long Memory’, a musical play ‘Belthera’. ‘Devil’s Vacation’ is in preparation.
Now, after years of hard work, Vangerry has done it again. ‘Passing Jacks’, the culmination of thirty-plus years of inspiration, is 157 pages of pure, simple, authentic and superbly satisfying Bahamian literature.
Gerry Oldham has a writing style that reflects his years spent as a teacher; it is clear, concise, and to the point – which is always: The Real Bahamas.
The husband and wife team of Van and Gerry Oldham has generously poured out its joint hearts into the creation of this anthology and offer it up to be kept and held dear by Bahamians. Eleuthereans – do you remember ‘Cuz Archie? What about the Fishers? Teachers – do your students know about Andy Deveaux? Bahamians – do you know the words to the National Hymn?
If your answer to any of these questions is ‘No’, then ‘Passing Jacks’ should be on the top of your ‘things I buy today’ list. It is our responsibility to ensure that our cultural history remains a viable, tangible thing to be passed on for all to know. It is a gift to our children that cannot be left to dry on the lips of the last one told.
‘Passing Jacks’ offers a glimpse into the ‘true’ Bahamian culture, and takes you deeper than you’ve been before. Oldham himself will tell you that there is more to this Country than Junkanoo, and he lays it all out in his newest to Bahamian literature.
There is so much more than text between the covers of this collection. There is warmth, a feeling of familiar that unfolds as soon as you read the dedication:
‘Come and see…
What we have seen!
Come and live…
Where we have been!
Share our hearth,
Our hearts,
Our own…

Reap the fruit,
Our seed is sown.

‘The Nassau Guardian’, Bahamas
Tesia Rolle

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Product Details

ISBN 978-1-4116-6872-0
Copyright Standard Copyright License
Publisher Vangerry OLDHAM
Published January 3, 2006
Language English
Pages 182
 
Binding Perfect-bound Paperback
Interior Ink Black & white
Dimensions (inches) 6.0 wide × 9.0 tall

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