Jamaica used to be the source of much of Britain's wealth a tropical paradise for the planters a Babylonian exile for the Africans shipped to the Caribbean. It became independent in 1962. Jamaica is now a country in despair. It has become a cockpit of gang warfare drug crime & poverty. Haunted by the legacy of imperialism its social & racial divisions seem entrenched. Its extraordinary musical tradition & physical beauty are shadowed by casual murder police brutality & political corruption. Ian Thomson shows a side of Jamaica that tourists rarely see. He met ordinary Jamaicans in their homes & workplaces; & his encounters with the white elite who still own most of Jamaica's businesses & newspapers are unforgettable. Thomson brings alive the country's unique racial & ethnic mix; the all-pervading influence of the USA; & the increasing disillusionment felt by its people who can't rely on the state for their most basic security. At the heart of the book is Jamaica's tense uneasy relationship with Britain to whom it remains politically & culturally bound.