In the following excerpt from an interview conducted in St. Kitts, West Indies, Phillips speaks to his identity as a writer, relates various literary and cultural influences in his work, and discusses his writing process.

In the following essay, O'Callaghan treats the intertextual aspects of Cambridge by examining the novel's relation to slave narratives and travel journals or diaries.

In the following essay, Sarvan and Marhama examine the representation of historical violence and its consequences in The Final Passage, A State of Independence, and Higher Ground.

In the following interview, Phillips discusses the genesis of Cambridge and comments on the different cultural influences at work in his writings.

In the following interview, Phillips talks about his literary success and his responsibilities as a writer.

In the following excerpt, Pierpont analyzes Cambridge in the context of Phillips's other works.

In the following review, Griffin gives a favorable assessment of Crossing the River, concluding that "the book's final pages [are surely among the most powerful and beautiful pages written in contemporary literature."]

In the following review, Smith laments the lack of "a vision of transformation" in Higher Ground.

In the following review, Burroway considers Crossing the River "a brilliant coherent vision" and "a book with an agenda."

In the following review, Jaggi finds Cambridge to be "a masterfully sustained, exquisitely crafted novel."

In the following review, Jaggi relates Phillips's own comments on Crossing the River.

In the following excerpt, Barnes discusses the myth of resettlement in The Final Passage, concluding that Phillips "only partially illuminates its theme."

In the following review, Rubin determines that The European Tribe "is a significant book, but an uneven one."

In the following review, Maja-Pearce pans A State of Independence, faulting its "appalling prose style and indifferent characterisation."

In the following review, Eder finds "a singular freshness" in Phillips's characters in A State of Independence.

In the following review, Lee suggests that the essays in The European Tribe are too brief for "sustained analysis" since Phillips's focus is too broad.

Below, Bery calls The European Tribe "an uneven, thin-textured book."

In the following review, Reynolds likens the structure of Crossing the River to "a consciousness of the burdens of slavery."

In the following review, Lively complains that the theme of oppression in Higher Ground "sticks out too much."

In the following review, Montrose finds little to fault in The Final Passage, noting that Phillips "has clear potential as a novelist."