A starred Deadbeat, isolation, and racehorses
A huge thank you to Publishers Weekly for this starred review of DEADBEAT.
It’s always gratifying when a reader ‘gets’ a book and I really couldn’t have asked for a better response.
I’ve been working with a brilliant team to make a documentary about young people in Mauritius.
Traveling around the island and talking to people from different backgrounds, it’s clear that young people need opportunity. This generation of 16- to 25-year-olds is so switched on. They are informed and ambitious and want to make a difference. They don’t need handouts or direction; they need chances and connections.
We spent time at Safe Haven Halfway Home, a refuge for women and children, and even young people who have experienced the worst of life show the determination and ambition to change their circumstances for the better. Older generations have a responsibility to empower young people with the opportunities they need to improve their lives.
Spending time with women who have suffered abuse has been an eye-opening experience. We tend to think of abuse at its most extreme, but it takes many forms, and it has been troubling to hear how many women live with near constant psychological, financial and emotional abuse. It’s an issue that transcends national boundaries and it seems a huge number of women carry the burden of this misery in silence and isolation.
Somewhere in the education syllabus, alongside the histories of kings and queens and the geography of oxbox lakes, we need to get better at teaching boys and girls the fundamentals of relationships. We need to educate boys about the importance of healthy communication and help them understand that control is not love. We must empower girls by teaching them to identify the warning signs of unhealthy relationships and helping them understand that they don’t have to accept abuse in its various forms and that isolation and suffering should not be the norm. We need to do more than pay lipservice to equality and individuality, we need to educate people about equity and autonomy.
The production team has been moved by the stories that have come out of Safe Haven, so I expect it’s a place and topic we’ll revisit in future.
If you are fortunate enough to visit Mauritius, I would recommend leaving your sunkissed sandy beach for at least one day to venture inland to experience the unique Champ de Mars racecourse. Part of the fabric of Port Louis, Champ de Mars is the second oldest horseracing track in the world and is an experience unlike any other. Hopefully this montage will give some sense of the place.
And if your tastes skew to the more luxurious side of life, check out this short video fronted by yours truly, which gives a brief insight into the way in which one of the 5-star hotels on the island is trying to foster better environmental stewardship throughout its supply chain.
While I’m on the road, I’m spending a lot of time listening to Cercle sets. This one by Above & Beyond in Guatape, Colombia is a current favourite:
Until next time, wishing you and yours the very best,
Adam