Book Review: Must Reads For Youth

Bermuda Unwrapped by Jackie Stevenson (All ages)

Unravel the vibrant history of our beautiful island home in Jackie Stevenson’s illustrated novella, Bermuda Unwrapped.

Beginning with aesthetic hand-drawn visuals of Bermuda’s birth through precise diagrams and detailed descriptions, Stevenson shows our island’s volcanic evolution until modern-day in the first three Where, How and Now sections. This includes interesting little-known facts, such as about Bermuda’s 200 cave systems, the two theories of the island’s formation, and the mysterious Bermuda Triangle of course! Whether you’re a local or a tourist, everyone can learn something new from Stevenson’s informative graphic novella.

This thorough background on Bermudian history provides the reader with a solid foundation before launching into descriptions of the natural and cultural landscape: Natives, Invasives, Architecture, History, Cuisine, and Culture.

The Natives section highlights Bermuda’s most celebrated and unique plants and animals. This part begins with drawings of plants such as Bermuda Cedar Juniperus Bermudiana and Bermuda Palmetto Sabal Bermudana. I found these precise, yet artistic illustrations to be captivating, as they showcase the many hidden beauties of our country.

This evolves into a colourful selection of birds, amphibians, fish and flowers – all of which were accompanied by a few bullet points to learn a bit about the species. Invasives fell as a subset of Natives, focusing on our island’s most infamous predator, the lionfish.

After this informative wildlife component, more of Bermuda’s iconic landscape is illustrated and described.

This includes my favourite part, an explanation of the legendary Bermuda Triangle! Stretching from Bermuda to Florida to Puerto Rico, Stevenson explains this mysterious “danger zone”.

Flowers, fruits, and (surprisingly) spiders are next on the agenda. I found it helpful that Stevenson differentiated between Bermuda’s endemic and introduced flora, as it assisted me in building a better mental picture of the rich history of local greenery.

The Architecture section that follows is surely the most beautifully drawn, with intricate sketches of pastel houses and white-stepped limestone roofs.

I thoroughly appreciated the technical breakdown of why our houses are structured in this way, as I feel that the practical significance of many traditional practices (such as covering roofs with lime mortar) is often unknown.

Understanding the reasoning behind these actions aids our comprehension of Bermuda’s exciting history and evolution.

Speaking of history, did you know that Shakespeare’s play, The Tempest, was inspired by the Sea Venture, the ship that wrecked off Bermuda in 1609?

In the next section, History, Stevenson illustrates a timeline from Bermuda’s discovery in 1505, to 1700s privateering, to modern-day – even discussing Little Bermuda, the first tracking station for USA space missions!

Now, onto everyone’s favourite part: the food! The Cuisine section displays many traditional dishes, such as codfish and potatoes, cassava pie and fish chowder. Which one is your favourite? I know mine is Johnny bread – email me your favourite recipes!

The final section, Culture, is a collage of cultural visuals, practices and facts. I particularly like the Mark Twain quote at the end of the book: “You can go to heaven if you want. I’d rather stay in Bermuda.”

After living abroad, one can definitely appreciate the beauty of Bermuda much more. Stevenson’s heartfelt hand-drawn gratitude for our island home draws our attention towards everything we may take for granted, such as the pink beaches and valuable cultural events (Cup Match, Bermuda Day, et cetera). Re-discovering the magic of Bermuda is what Bermuda Unwrapped is all about.

• On a final note I would like to hear your thoughts on my column, any comments on Bermuda Unwrapped, or any recommendation of whatever you’re reading at the moment. Contact me at bookspacebda@gmail.com to tell me all about it! For frequent updates on what I’m currently reading, follow @bookspacebda on Instagram! Thanks again, Ms Stevenson, for sending me your book!