Review: The Hermit of Africville

By | Jul 20, 2010

Regular Halifax Magazine contributor Jon Tattrie recently wrote his second book. Published by Pottersfield Press, The Hermit of Africville is the story of Eddie Carvery. A one-man social-justice movement, Carvery was born in the erstwhile Halifax neigbourhood on Africville in 1946. During his childhood, he saw his community crumble due to government indifference, before it was bulldozed in the 1960s. The pain of losing his roots never left him. By 1970, Carvery had returned to the site, determined to live in Seaview Park to protest the loss. For 40 years, he’s lived there, practically as a hermit.

Tattrie delves into one of the darkest moments in Halifax’s history. He depicts Carvery, warts and all—a flawed, damaged and inflammatory figure, yet passionate, commited and sensitive. In many ways, Carvery’s own personal struggles have mirrored those of the community he champions. This passage, from Chapter 34, is telling: “For centuries, Halifax raped and robbed Africville and then blamed it for bleeding. There was a lot of anger in the disposed community of Africville in the years after its destruction. Guilt, too… Africville always called to him. He felt like a traitor when he wasn’t in Africville, like a soldier abandoning his post.” That, in a nutshell, is Carvery and the soul of this story.

Insightful, personal without preaching or platitudes, this is a deep, powerful and thoughtful work. With careful journalistic research and a flare for storytelling, Tattrie tells an important story that’s too often glossed over or ignored. Making a story like this real and relatable is no easy feat, but Tattrie does it well. This is an important book, a major contribution to Halifax’s history.

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