Niven Govinden brilliantly evokes the bleak comedy and deranged exhilaration of modern life. This is the sound of the suburbs’- Jake Arnott
Amal is driving Claud from London to her parents’ country house. In the wake of Claud’s miscarriage, it is a journey that will push their already strained relationship towards a possible collapse.
Over the course of twenty-four hours, Black Bread White Beer captures the inner lives of this thirtysomething, upwardly mobile couple as it deals with festering, unaddressed issues-mixed-race marriages, parental pressures, the tension between humanism and organized religion-and the loss of their unborn child.
With Amal and Claud on the verge of true commitment and true adulthood, Black Bread White Beer casts a critical eye on a society in which, despite never-ending advances in social media communications, the young still find it difficult to communicate. Keenly capturing the abandon, selfishness, hazards and pleasures that come with giving your life to another, Niven Govinden has written a devastatingly honest and passionate portrait of a marriage.
About the Author
Niven Govinden is the author of We Are the New Romantics and Graffiti My Soul. His short stories have appeared in numerous publications, including Five Dials, Time Out, First City, Teller, Pen Pusher, Shortfire Press, BUTT, and on BBC Radio 3. He was recently shortlisted for the 2011 Bristol Prize for his story ‘Marseille Tip’. |
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Black Bread White Beer