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Patrick Chamoiseau. Solibo Magnificent. Rose-Myriam Rejouis, Val Vinokurov, trs. New York. Pantheon. 1998 ((r) 1997). xiii + 190 pages. $23. ISBN 0479-43236-1. The original of Solibo Manificent dates back to 1988, yet the intervening decade has not minimized the import of the work today. Reduced to a skeletal scheme, the novel could be considered a detective story-with a twist or two. Solibo Magnificent, an acclaimed but somewhat mysterious Martinican storyteller, is found dead in the Savanna, the central park of the island's capital, Fortde-France. The police arrive in full force and, not believing that, according to the local bystanders, he died "throat snickt by the word," launch into a full-scale French-style investigation of the event. They detain...