Voodoomation: The Book of Foretelling.

Voodoomation: The Book of Foretelling by Garfield Linton Karu Press, November 2000, $9.95, ISBN 0-971-2690-5

"I'm at the bottom of Hilltop 412. Every morning I'm at the bottom of this hill." So goes the poetic, chant-like opening of the first story, "Hilltop 412" in Linton's dazzling, yet dizzying, collection of short stories. If Linton's syntax seems awkward at the outset, keep in mind, it is only the beginning of this lovely, seductive little book that invites you into a world that's difficult to describe except as magical.

At the core of this is the language--rich varieties of patois and Creole. Turn of the Century Voodoo practitioners such as Doctor John, Marie LaVeau and Mammy Pleasant have a special place in my reference library right next to Chaucer, Milton and Shakespeare. Unfortunately, time, distance and the overlay of American culture frequently mutes any attempt to recapture that past. However, in Voodoomation, the lost religion is not only found, it comes alive to dance and sing on every page. It is chock full of inverted folk wisdom, which is sometimes mocking, sometimes golden, sometimes as borrowed as it is true.

But Linton's words are not always easy to read. He is interested in authenticity and in the unwinding of the tale, which is often a patchwork or hopscotch through an idyllic community where the living and the dead coexist and commonplace events are presented in uncommon terms. This is complicated by the fact that these fables are related, if tenuously, and characters visited in the beginning return, as in a novella, toward the end.

Adjusting to Linton's rhythmic accent and reshuffled grammar requires a bit

of patience. There's clever word play and soft alliteration. Participles dangle, metaphors are not only extended but mixed, infinitives are split and ambiguous pronouns abound. Unable to understand what was always going on in a given moment, I opted to relax and go along for the ride, enjoying the total effect of Linton's primary gift, his stunningly beautiful and original imagery.

Most of Linton's folktales take place in an island village setting, but even the inner city becomes murky and ghostly as its new, ill-at-ease resident tries to adjust. In the latter half of the book, Voodoomation becomes less fable-like and more satirical, bordering on the essay, as in the story "Slithera" which is fraught with snake imagery and ironies in which Linton turns trite phrases like "snake in the grass" and "fish out of water" into poignant musings.

Death, the African Diaspora, rebirth, rescue and regeneration are the themes that constantly recur as Linton's people and spirits meet, conflict and converge. All are awash in a beautifully rendered emotional landscape. If by stringent standards this is a flawed book, it is, without argument, the striking debut of one beck of an exciting writer.

Wanda Coleman is the award-winning author of several collections of poetry and fiction, including A War of Eyes and Other Stories, and Mambo Hips & Make Believe (Sparrow Press).