New anthology of Caribbean poetry published
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This is a digitised version of an article from The Cayman Compass's print archive. Occasionally, the digitisation process introduces transcription errors, or other problems.
See the article in its original context from May 1986.
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"The Penguin Book of Caribbean Verse in English", published in Britain in March, will be available from leading bookshops through the Caribbean.
This 450-page compliation is edited by Paula Burnett, an Englishwoman who lived in Jamaica during the 1970s, where she developed a love of Caribbean literature. She has produced the first comprehensive Caribbean anthology to reflect the parallel traditions of literary poetry. and oral verse born from song.
The book spans 200 years, and contributors - some anonymous - come from every corner of the Caribbean, including Jamaica, Guyana, Grenada, Barbados, Dominica, Montserrat, Panama, Trinidad and St. Vincent.
In the oral tradition, the book traces the history of Caribbean poetry from the slave song of the 18th century to the modern performance and dub poets. Prominent among the latter was the late Michael Smith. Then there is his fellow Jamaican Linton Kwesi Johnson, who now lives in Britain and enjoys wide popularity in western Europe for his spoken verse, presented to a musical accompaniment.
The most celebrated recent exponent of verse into song was the legendary Jamaican reggae musician Bob Marley. His 1971 hit song "Trenchtown Rock" appears in this new anthology. Also included are works by the man who first used the word 'reggae' on record, F "Toots" Hibbet of Toots and the Maytals; and by two other reggae performers, Jamaican Jimmy Cliff and Guyana's Eddy Grant.
Two poems by the Jamaican nationalist leader Marcus Garvey (1887-1940) - "Keep Cool" and "Centenary's Day" are included.
While in the literary tradition, there are examples of the works of such established writers as Derek Walcott from St. Lucia and Edward Braithwaite from Barbados, and of many of the exciting younger Caribbean poets. The new Penguin collection also finds room for Caribbean poets now based in North America and Western Europe, and for British writers with Caribbean connections, such as Jean Rhys (1890-1979), author of "The Wide Sargasso Sea", who was born in Dominica.
"The Penguin Book of Caribbean Verse in English" is available from all local stockists of Penguin books in the Caribbean, or from Penguin Books Ltd., Harmondsworth, West Drayton, Middlesex, England UB7 ODA. (LPS)
