Featured Book: I’ve Been Meaning to Tell You

David Chariandy addressed his memoir I’ve Been Meaning to Tell You (McClelland & Stewart) to his thirteen-year-old daughter, along with a question for her: “What is the real story, the truest meaning, of our origins?” Three years ago, African-American author Ta-Nehisi Coates published Between the World and Me, a bestselling memoir in the form of a letter addressed to his son. Chariandy’s work could be seen as a Canadian answer: his question unites various narratives specific to his and his family’s life in Toronto. He explores the immigration of his father and mother, of South Asian and African descent respectively, from Trinidad to Canada; the celebration of black and queer creativity; and the joy and insecurity that accompanies parenthood. He also writes about the election of Donald Trump, contemplating how his exuberant daughter must be inwardly processing the violent ...