Almost fifty titles, including fiction and non-fiction works by several of the regions leading writers, will debut at CARIFESTA.
Over seven days, new and reprinted works, including novels, short story and poetry collections, anthologies, journals as well as historical studies will be launched at the CARIFESTA X book launch. According to head of the CARIFESTA X book exhibition sub-committee, Petamber Persaud, the primary goal of the book launch and festival is to reinvigorate the literary arts. Guyana has a rich literary history, he reminds, although the years have witnessed a dwindling of libraries and bookstores. He says it is hoped that the festival will promote more entrepreneurship while creating an enabling environment for emerging writers. On the latter point, he says there is need for writer’s grants for work and for publishing. There are also plans to organise biennial book fairs between every staging of CARIFESTA to build on the momentum that is usually generated by the festival.
The festival book launch will begin tomorrow at the National Park (Thomas Lands, Georgetown), although it will be officially opened at a ceremony on Sunday at 2 pm.
Fiction and poetry titles to be launched include “Billingsly-The Bear With A Crinkled Ear” by E.R Braithwaite; “Molly and the Mustard Stick” by David Dabydeen; “Selected Poems” by Ian McDonald; “Fictions” by Ruel Johnson; “Into a Boston Night” by Sasenarine Persaud; “The Chalice Project” by Lisa Allen Agostini; “King of Carnival” by Willi Chen; “Into the Mosaic” by Marlene St. Rose; “A Troubled Dream” by Jacques Compton; “The Hangman’s Game” by Karen King-Aribisala; “East of Centre” by Elly Niland; and “Short and Sweet” by Bobby Fernandes. Additionally, the “Caribbean Anthology of Poems for Carifesta” edited by Petamber Persaud, three volumes of Barbados’ “BIM” journal, “Callaloo VI” by the British Virgin Islands’ Callaloo Poets as well as “Meenachi-Fourth Volume of New Poems by Rajandaye Ramkissoon Chen” will also be launched.
Meanwhile, non-fiction works, dominated by Guyanese history titles, include: “The Discoverie of Guiana” by Sir Walter Raleigh; “The History of British Guiana” by A.R.F Webber; “A History of Theatre in Guyana 1800-2000” by Frank Thompson; “Guyana” (Second Edition) by Arif Ali; “Ira Aldridge Celebrated 19th Century Actor” by Martin Hoyles; “Shridath Ramphal, Com-monwealth Statesman” edited by Richard Bourne; “No Mother, No Land” edited by Kampta Karran; “Themes in African Guyanese History” by Professor Winston McGowan, David Granger and Dr. James Rose; “The Life and Works of Bill Rogers” by Roger Hinds; “An Introduction to Theatre Arts” and “The West Indians” by Jacques Compton; and “A Black Studies Primer” by Professor Keith Sandiford.
Launchings will be daily from 12 pm (although some titles will be showcased at special venues that will be published). No tickets are necessary.
A four-day series of selected readings, dubbed “A Festival of Words,” has also been organised for the festival. It will feature readings and recitals from prose, poetry and dramatic works as well as several spoken word and dub poetry performance pieces. There will also be an open mic night.
Among the personalities who will be featured are Austin Clarke (Barbados), Earl Lovelace (Trinidad and Tobago), and Ian McDonald, Pauline Melville, David Dabydeen, Sasenarine Persaud (Guyana). Readings are scheduled to be held at the Umana Yana (Kingston, Georgetown) on Saturday August 23, Monday August 25, Wednesday August 27 and Friday August 29. 6 pm-8 pm. No tickets are necessary.
A book fair will be opened during the festival, running from August 23 to August 30 at the National Park.
