The Wind Knows My Name

Samuel arrives in New Orleans, and he’s shocked by the lively culture combining Caribbean and South American music, food, and lifestyle. At a jazz show, a woman named Nadine LeBlanc pulls him aside and introduces him to her friends as Mr. Bogart, referring to the actor Humphrey Bogart. Nadine is wealthy by birth, and she’s rebellious, rejecting the life her parents led, which they want for her too: marriage and children. She takes Samuel to parties, jazz performances, and cultural experiences, including a Haitian fortune teller. Samuel returns to England, and against her parents’ wishes, Nadine follows him two years later to get married. In England, she adapts to her lack of money and connections, and she quickly makes new friends in the Caribbean community of London, joining them at parties and protests. A local doctor reveals, following a protest, that Nadine is pregnant. Although Samuel lived in the area for years, he only makes friends with Nadine’s help.

Nadine becomes invested in the Caribbean culture, and she expresses her love of it through weaving fabrics with bright colors. She gives birth to a daughter, Camille, in 1961, and, in 1968, Samuel, Nadine, and Camille move to California.