In the early 1970s, political upheaval and economic collapse had created a climate of chaos and violence in the island nation.
In 1973, at the age of 18, Bissoondath left Trinidad and settled in Ontario, where he studied at York University and received a Bachelor of Arts in French in 1977.
Bissoondath was interviewed by Ali Lakhani in the journal Rungh about his views on writing and life.
[1] He won the Writers' Trust of Canada's Gordon Montador Award in 1995 for Selling Illusions.
[2] Bissoondath has received honorary doctorates from Glendon College, York University[3] and Université de Moncton.