Krik? Krak! (1995)

Krik? Krak! (1995) is a historical and postcolonial short story collection by Haitian-American writer Edwidge Danticat, consisting of nine short stories plus an epilogue. The collection is written mostly from the perspective of different female narrators living in Haiti and in New York City. The book follows these characters as they deal with the loss, separation and trauma resulting from Haiti's colonial history, the mass killings of Haitians during the Parsley Massacre in 1937 and the oppression of the Duvalier regime. The epilogue ties the stories together through the narrator's reflections that every Haitian woman's story is connected and is carried on by new generations. The book was finalist for the National Book Award for fiction in 1995.

Title of the book

The title of the book is a Haitian Creole term referring to the Haitian tradition of call and response storytelling inherited from their African ancestors. In the first short story, one person explains the tradition as "Someone says, Krik? You answer, Krak! And they say, I have many stories I could tell you, and then they go on and tell these stories to you, but mostly to themselves".

Plot

Krik? Krak! contains nine stories as well as an epilogue taking place in Port-au-prince and the fictional Ville Rose in Haiti, and in New York City.

"Children of the Sea"

Two nameless narrators, a boy who is fleeing Haiti on a small, leaky boat, and a girl who stays, are in love and write each other letters in their journals that the other will never read. The female narrator discusses arguments with her family, particularly with her father who opposes their love. She later finds out he gave up all his possessions to protect her from the macoutes. The male narrator narrates his experiences on the boat where he gets to know a pregnant teenager, Célianne, who was raped by a macoute. Célianne gives birth on the boat, the baby dies, and days later she throws it and herself overboard. As the boat leaks more and more and the passengers have to throw their possessions overboard and the narrator knows he has to give up his journal soon. The female narrator explains that black butterflies represent death. When she sees a black butterfly, she realizes that the male narrator has died.

"Nineteen Thirty-Seven"

"Nineteen Thirty-Seven" is narrated by Josephine, born on the night of the Parsley Massacre. Hours before Josephine's birth, her mother swam across a blood-filled river to Haiti from the Dominican Republic, where Haitians were slaughtered, including Josephine's grandmother. Every year, Josephine and her mother performed rituals at the Massacre River. Over time Josephine feels repressed when she tries to speak to her mother. Their lack of communication means that Josephine does not understand the meaning of the rituals. Her mother is now imprisoned as a witch and Josephine goes to visit her. The mother is frail and never says anything, but Josephine brings a Virgin Mary statue that her mother makes cry using wax and oil. When Josephine's mother dies, Jacqueline, another ritual performer, takes Josephine to see her body burned, and Josephine reflects on her mother's history and pledges to continue the rituals honoring her mother's sacrifices.

"A Wall of Fire Rising"

Guy, Lili, and their son, Little Guy, live in poverty in a one-room shack. Guy works as a cleaner of bathrooms at a nearby plantation. When Little Guy gets to play a revolutionary at school, and his parents are impressed with his lines about bravery and patriotism. Little Guy spends all his time learning lines while Guy dreams of stealing the plantation's hot air balloon. Lili does not approve, but one day she sees Guy flying in it. Guy captures the neighborhood's attention and jumps out and dies. Little Guy recites the lines from his play over his father's dead body.

"Night Women"

"Night Women" concerns a prostitute who describes her nightly routine of putting on makeup and nice clothing for the men who visit her. She practices her profession next to her young, sleeping son's bed, and she reflects on her immense love for him. She tells him she gets made up before bedtime because she is waiting for an angel to come, but she worries he will someday find out the truth, especially as she sees him becoming older and more sexually aware. If he ever wakes to find her with one of her regular married men, she will tell him it is his father, visiting for one night. When he asks about the angels, she tells him they have not come yet.

"Between the Pool and the Gardenias"

The story is narrated by Marie who is a maid working on a wealthy plantation. One day, she finds a dead baby in the street. She names it Rose and keeps the baby with her as she goes about her work. Marie tells Rose about her life, including her miscarriages, her cheating husband, and the Dominican pool-cleaner who slept with her once. Marie pretends the household where she works belongs to her and imagines her female ancestors visiting her. After a few days when the baby starts to rot, she covers it with perfume, but she finally decides the flies are trapping Rose's spirit and she buries Rose by the gardenias. The Dominican calls the police, claiming Marie killed the baby for evil purposes.