- ASIN: B0C2Q722HZ
- Publisher: Matador
- Publication date: 16 April 2023
- Language: English
- Print length: 281 pages
- ISBN-13: 978-1805145592
- Genre: 1960’s Counterculture Memoirs
The BookViral Review:
Islands is a powerful memoir that blends a personal coming-of-age journey with sharp historical reflection. In it, John Furlong looks back on his transformative travels with his friend Mike in 1969, capturing the exhilaration of youth while confronting the harsher realities of politics, colonialism, and the search for deeper meaning.
The first section of the book is set in Manhattan during a period of immense cultural upheaval. Fresh out of university, John and Mike arrive in New York eager for adventure and opportunity. Through John’s eyes, the city becomes a vibrant microcosm of “Alternative America”: anti-war protests, feminist activism, gay liberation, civil rights, communal experiments, and the pervasive influence of drugs and meditation. At first, this kaleidoscopic mix of ideas and movements seems intoxicating. John works, makes friends, joins encounter groups, and revels in the intellectual and emotional energy of the moment. Yet gradually, he begins to sense the hollowness behind the slogans and self-discovery exercises, questioning whether this heady scene truly offers the authenticity he craves.
Among the most vivid figures John meets in New York is Becky, a young sculptor struggling to define herself in a male-dominated world. Becky, with her sharp wit and fierce honesty, embodies the feminist awakening of the time. Her voice punctuates the narrative, challenging the men around her to face uncomfortable truths about gender, privilege, and power.
John’s disillusionment sets the stage for the second and most striking part of the memoir: the Caribbean. Travelling south through St Kitts, Antigua, Guadeloupe, Dominica, and Grenada, John and Mike are confronted with a reality far removed from the intellectual debates of New York. Along with Becky, they encounter both the beauty of unspoiled island life and the stark evidence of colonial neglect. Poverty, corruption, and the lingering scars of slavery sit uneasily beside idyllic beaches and vibrant cultures. Furlong’s reflections here are sharp and compassionate, with Becky’s outrage at the poverty and inequality they encounter helping to frame John’s own developing political awareness. Whilst the contrast between dreamlike landscapes and harsh truths adds both tension and depth to the narrative, drawing readers into the moral complexities of postcolonial societies.
The pivotal moment arrives on the small island of Carriacou, where John and Mike meet Father Pat, a radical Marxist priest who embodies the possibility of revolutionary change. Father Pat invites John to help build a community newspaper, plunging him into the politics of resistance and justice. The project falters when Father Pat is recalled to the United States, leaving John with unanswered questions about the priest’s true role and about his own commitments. Decades later, Furlong uncovers the remarkable truth: Father Pat went on to play a key role in Grenada’s 1979 Marxist-Leninist revolution, a bold but ill-fated experiment in social transformation.
What elevates Islands beyond a straightforward travel memoir is its structure. By alternating between youthful immediacy and the reflective voice of age, Furlong allows the reader to experience both the raw energy of discovery and the tempered understanding of hindsight. His prose is engaging, often tinged with humour and humility, yet always attentive to the broader historical forces at work. The book also benefits from vivid portraits of the people John meets—from eccentric roommates in Manhattan to impassioned islanders whose lives illuminate the contradictions of postcolonial society.
Islands ultimately speaks to the universal search for authenticity. It captures a generation’s restless questioning, the desire to find something “real” in a world of shifting ideals, and the sobering realisation that both personal and political revolutions are fraught with complexities. Furlong’s journey reminds us that sometimes the greatest lessons lie not in finding final answers, but in recognising the questions that continue to shape us across a lifetime. It is a memoir that lingers, inviting readers to reflect not only on one man’s search for meaning but also on how history itself shapes and reshapes the identities of those who live through it.
Our Verdict
Islands will appeal strongly to readers of memoirs that blend personal reflection with social history. Those drawn to works such as Geoff Dyer’s Yoga for People Who Can’t Be Bothered to Do It, Colin Thubron’s travel writing, or Pico Iyer’s meditations on culture and belonging will find much to admire here. It will also resonate with anyone who lived through—or remains fascinated by—the counterculture of the 1960s and the struggles of the postcolonial Caribbean. For readers of historical memoirs, political travelogues, or stories of youthful journeys that echo across decades, Furlong’s book offers a compelling, thoughtful, and highly readable contribution.
It is an unreservedly recommended Golden Quill read.
