London: Palgrave Macmillan, 2021. xxviii, 538 pp. (B&W photos.) US$120.00, ebook. ISBN 978-981-16-5285-1.
The COVID-19 pandemic presented unique challenges for countries and governments around the world. These challenges were further exacerbated for islands and small island states due to their economies’ reliance on tourism and remittances. While mainstream media has often privileged the experiences and challenges faced by larger nation-states, COVID in the Islands looks to share the multi-faceted impact COVID-19 has had on the Caribbean and Pacific regions and within several island nations.
The map of the Caribbean and Pacific regions at the book’s opening serves as a visual reminder to the reader of not only the size of these regions but also the many countries that call the Caribbean and Pacific home. The volume’s expert contributors, from an array of professional backgrounds, to include academia, not-for-profits, policymakers, healthcare specialists, and tourism operators, exemplify the richness of the Caribbean and the Pacific.
The book’s 29 chapters are grouped under five key themes: COVID-19 responses, public health challenges, focused community experiences of COVID-19, public policy, and economies. The book is structured so that the reader is transported between the Caribbean and Pacific regions, visiting 17 different countries and learning about the challenges and unique scenarios each experienced during the global pandemic. The countries treated are Jamaica, New Zealand (Aotearoa), French Polynesia, New Caledonia, Wallis and Futuna, Tuvalu, the Federated States of Micronesia, Kiribati, Tonga, The Bahamas, Vanuatu, Fiji, Solomon Islands, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Australia, and Trinidad and Tobago. The editors preface that this selection of nations was intentional to allow for comparing and contrasting the pandemic in two regions (the Caribbean and the Pacific) dominated by small island developing states (SIDS).
COVID in the Islands contributes to the growing body of literature on COVID-19 and, more significantly, begins to address the literature gap pertaining to the impact COVID-19 has had on SIDS. While having parameters to what countries to include is helpful in narrowing the focus of the work, over 30 Caribbean and Pacific countries are not represented or featured due to fact they are not considered SIDS. While Campbell and Connell do not explain why they made exceptions for French Polynesia and New Caledonia (formally, overseas territories of France), they do note that covering the Caribbean and Pacific “however fitfully and unevenly” (vii) was a challenge, which is why, despite wanting to include other island countries from other regions, they chose not to.
The introductory chapter begins with a quote from Arundhati Roy, who remarked that COVID-19 could be viewed as a portal between worlds. The portal analogy is apt as each chapter provides readers a glimpse of life prior to the pandemic as well as the hopes and dreams of what the future might look like. While the Caribbean and the Pacific are not often mentioned or spoken about together, this study brings the two regions together in a way that allows for learning about the unique histories, populations, and cultures of each region, while also allowing the reader to discern commonalities and similarities.
This intertwining of regions not only gives voice to each country’s unique COVID-19 experience, but also broadens the reach of each contributor’s piece, connecting the various regions treated through collaboration and dissemination. I first came across this book as a doctoral candidate while exploring the experiences of Samoan women and COVID-19. As I read it, I was surprised by the similarities in the challenges SIDS in the Caribbean and Pacific faced with the pandemic, particularly regarding the economy and tourism.
Each chapter within this book has been written in a way that engages and connects the reader, but chapter 2, “Public Health and Political Imperatives: Balancing Lives, Livelihoods, and Democracy in Jamaica’s COVID-19 Experience,” by Christopher Tufton, does this especially well. It sets the tone for the book by presenting the lived experiences of the people, which privileges the contributors’ experiences and creates a space within the COVID-19 literature to have these experiences archived and accessible to future generations. In doing so it becomes a repository of invaluable knowledge for future generations.
The book begins with a population health focus as contributors discuss their unique government and community responses to navigate COVID-19 and maintain health and wellbeing within their communities. The economy is then discussed, particularly regarding closed borders and the vulnerabilities of being an isolated nation or island during such an uncertain times.
Given that many countries profiled rely on tourism, there are chapters that detail how this industry—with a focus on the Caribbean and Fiji—were impacted and supported during the pandemic. The unique economic challenges faced within the Pacific are highlighted in chapters discussing transnational remittances and the pause of seasonal labour programs. Writings about the Jamaican labour force touch on the transitioning of work from in-person to virtual spaces and assesses the future of the Jamaican workforce. The book’s focus then turns to food security and how the re-idigenization of daily life helped many. The chapters that close the book speak to communities and how the pandemic tested and impacted spirituality, human rights, self-reliance, and physical environments.
COVID in the Islands showcases the successes and challenges SIDS have experienced during the global pandemic while highlighting the resilience and perseverance of Caribbean and Pacific peoples. With its thorough and unique discourse, this book will provide invaluable knowledge and prove a reference for governments, academics, and laypeople looking to better understand COVID-19 or prepare for future pandemics.
Sarah McLean-Orsborn
University of Auckland, Auckland