Ms. Hen reviews The Lesson

Ms. Hen in space

The Lesson

Cadwell Turnbull

Blackstone Publishing

2019

Ms. Hen decided to read this because she heard the author on a podcast talking about the book. When he talked about his inspiration to write this, he said that in the movies it always happens that aliens land in New York or LA, and not in a place that is unexpected. Mr. Turnbull is originally from the Virgin Islands, so he set the novel there.

THE LESSON is about people on St. Thomas who experience the Ynaa landing. Derrick is a young man fascinated by the Ynaa, and his friend/girlfriend Patrice is terrified of them, and leaves the island to go to college stateside. When the Ynaa land, they tell the people that they will help them with medicine and technology, but they do not tell them at first that the Ynaa are prone to violence and will tear apart humans that upset them in the least bit.

Derrick works as an assistant to Mera, the ambassador for the Ynaa. The other people on the island don’t like the fact that he works for her, and distance themselves from him. Jackson, Patrice’s father, was kicked out by his wife because she becomes involved with a woman, and he is attempting to write a book about the invasion. Some people think of the Ynaa as invaders and others occupiers.

This novel reminds Ms. Hen of other books she has read. The style with which it is written is reminiscent of THEIR EYES WERE WATCHING GOD by Zora Neale Hurston, in the way that the characters speak in dialect most of the time, but the other writing is not in that voice.  THE LESSON also reminds Ms. Hen of science fiction that is not too heavy on science, but more focused on philosophy and psychology such as Ursula K. Le Guin and Octavia Butler.

Ms. Hen noticed a lot of food appears in THE LESSON. The characters are always eating, or preparing food, and it all sounds delicious. Some novels have no food in them at all, and some are bursting with meals and eating. Ms. Hen thinks that this has to do with the culture of the setting or the preference of the author. Everybody eats, and food either plays an important part in the characters’ lives or does not exist at all.

There are a lot of chickens, hens, and roosters in this novel, which Ms. Hen enjoyed. Also, lots of other animals appear in the narrative, which does not happens in every book Ms. Hen reads. She loves animals, being an animal herself. One significant mention of a rooster Ms. Hen noted is the section when Jammie’s rooster flies away, “The unkempt grass along the path had caught fire, and within minutes the chicken coop would be up in flames, too.” Ms. Hen was upset when the prize rooster, or cock, as he is referred to, flies away, but then is happy for him when she discovers his purpose is cockfighting, something which Ms. Hen does not approve.

Ms. Hen thinks THE LESSON is an important novel because it teaches us about power and strength, and the complicated situations that humans can get themselves into. It’s not only about occupation and invasion by aliens, but the history of the islands. Ms. Hen read a while ago that if we come into contact with aliens, we should pray that we find them first, because the history of exploration has not gone well for the people who live in the lands that get invaded. This novel is an example of how this could happen, and how frightening the idea can be, but Ms. Hen is a hen who does not fear the future.