When Pamela O’Cuneen heard her diplomat husband was being transferred to Suriname, her first reaction was: ‘Suri-where?’ Neither she nor anyone she spoke to had heard of the country. Having spent sixteen years in Africa – a story told in her first book, Culture Shock and Canapés – she was prepared for surprises, but Suriname, the mysterious land of seven cultures, proved to be a multi-layered experience that tested all her powers of cultural adaptation.
Hummingbirds in My Hair describes Pamela’s move from rainforest Suriname to carnivalesque Trinidad where, beneath the sound of steel pans and soca music, a dark and violent history of enslaved people still influences politics today.
Those who read and enjoyed Culture Shock and Canapés will welcome this second episode of diplomatic travels and travails, revealing that what goes on inside embassy walls in developing countries is not just endless champagne and silver spoons. The book unrolls with humour, delighting in a lively procession of multicultural characters and animals, and includes a variety of recipes collected along the way…