About me

American-Caribbean author and musical artist.

The story of

Lili Dauphin

Lili Dauphin is a well-known Caribbean-American author and a best of generation chronicler whose enduring works are promises for tomorrow. Her prose is inductive and compelling with vividness, from the inner lives of her characters’ complexities, through innocent desires and hope, to the colorful Caribbean landscapes of the New World. Young readers speak of her work with enthusiasm and rapture. Born in Haiti, the young writer-to-be arrived in North America with a mind full of experiences, a heart of remembrances, and an empty suitcase, it did not take very long for her passionate output to exceed her personal belongings as she continued to write.

Books Published

Music Songs

Storyline

Lili weaves her stories from the fabric of her difficult though transcendent childhood encounters that lead the reader with dignity through a storytelling style, void of artifice and pretense. Her writer’s voice is a capturing rhythmic graciousness. Her creativity and mastery of her new found language add to its growth, in the same ambitious yearning that takes hold of all first generation authors who land on the shores of a dynamic, ambitious and forgiving culture. The task is always how to resonate; how to see; and how to present. But it all comes out in the end. As a result, the natural outgrowth for this remarkable author is a range of stories that are miraculous and hilarious as life itself – her life’s history as wondrous extrapolations, transformations and human anticipation. No reader is alone, since the characters find a place, and the path is always human endurance, in a listened-in lesson for her, and revelation for us.

In 2006, Lili’s debut novel Crying Mountain begins with raw material from her childhood journal, and the story follows Tilou, a young girl in a village named Tiville, so close to the rest of the world, yet so far. Through Tilou’s personal journey and a hurricane, discovery and understanding of that world floats out of the story like a wave of its own, in a coming of age story that illustrates how human will perseveres against great odds; how the convoluted aftermath of Haiti’s historic ambition, valor and ultimate disenfranchisement are never spared the merciless untimely cycle of nature’s powerful wrath of another kind of destructive storm.

I Will Fly Again continues another young girl’s tale. This time, Lili opens the door to our hearts and the gates of a surprising story of a girl enslaved by members of her own family. In reality, the story formulates a gripping first look into the harsh world of the restaveks, or child slaves of Haiti.

My First Sin is the story of an innocent yet intelligent nine-year-old girl who encounters betrayal and loss. The challenge of her spirit is bound by dutiful ritual and blind faith as she moves to preserve truth and validity in her treasured friendships, but most of all, in herself.

Lili revisits Tilou with Golden Soul, a story about an abandoned puppy in Clay Rouge. The unfortunate pooch is further rejected by a superstitious community that forces him to endure unbearable prejudice because of his physical characteristics. Forsaken, the dog becomes the focus of Tilou’s love, devotion and her determination to provide him with a home. The task is arduous, but throughout her ordeal, Tilou maintains cheerfulness and courage as she leads Golden Soul to freedom. It is a story of how trust, loyalty and friendship can drive a young girl to realize noble potential.

Other books by the author include I Will Touch the Sun, for which she received the Irwin Award for Best Inspirational Campaign.