If I Survive You [Paperback]

SHORTLISTED FOR THE 2023 BOOKER PRIZE

If I Survive You is the debut book by Jonathan Escoffery, published on September 6, 2022, by MCD Books. It is a collection of eight interlinked short stories that follow the struggles of an immigrant family from Jamaica who built a new home in Miami. The story's main character is Trelawny, an American-born son of immigrants who grapples with identity, familial and cultural issues through various phases of adolescence and adulthood.

The book was released to wide acclaim, with reviewers praising Escoffery's narrative style, technical skill, and use of humour. It was shortlisted for the 2023 Booker Prize and was a finalist or longlisted for several other awards.

The story follows a Jamaican immigrant family that moves to Miami in the 1970s. It is told through eight connected short stories.

The main character is Trelawny, the young son of Topper and Sanya; they moved to Miami in the 1970s in search of stability after political violence erupted in their hometown of Kingston, Jamaica. The parents struggle to build a home and find meaning in their new circumstances, faced with long-standing systemic inequities in America, and a feeling of living outside the mainstream. They deal with the havoc of Hurricane Andrew, economic uncertainty and a disconnect from their two sons, Trelawny and Delano, both who face their own struggles with identity. Much of the book is delivered from Trelawny's perspective, with stories following his coming of age, his turbulent relationship with his father, as well as his struggle to belong in any one place and with any one community.

Growing up, Trelawny does not feel accepted by his family or with peers, caught between the cultural pressures imposed by his family and the draw of fitting in with American ideals. His identity and allegiances are regularly questioned because, as the book depicts, these are typically determined around racial lines in America. Trelawny feels pressure to live up to his Jamaican roots at times while being drawn by America's promises of opportunity and individualism. Trelawny perceives his brother Delano, as preferred by his father. This is especially true following a rift between his parents that leads to their separation, and him living with his mother, while his father agrees to custody of Delano.

Nonetheless, Trelawny survives the pains of adolescence and decides to pursue college in the Midwest. Here, he faces an alternate view of his race. He is decidedly perceived as Black in the predominantly white Midwestern college he chooses. Any ambiguity around his race which he faced in Miami, a city of many backgrounds, ethnicities, and cultures is gone. At first, he takes comfort in this different space, but begins to miss Miami and moves back with hopes of building a life. Jobless, he seeks help from his father. But after a violent fight between them, he finds himself homeless. He begins to take on odd gigs, answering off-beat Craigslist ads, and eventually landing himself a job at a building management office of a Miami Beach apartment complex. His main responsibility becomes badgering financially distressed tenants to pay rent.

Meanwhile, his brother Delano's luck deteriorates. The contracting business he runs goes under and his wife takes his two sons and leaves for another state. Trelawny eventually moves in with his brother to their childhood home, which Delano rents from their father. Their relationship remains competitive and tense, leading to a battle to buy their father's house. Underlying every struggle in the book is a will to survive, and, ultimately, hope.