HannaTitle: CRB: Caribbean Review of Books
Editor: Nicholas Laughlin
Publishers: Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago: Media and Editorial Projects Ltd.
Reviewed by: Mary Hanna
Erudite and kindly, Mr. Samuel B. Bandara (1944-2006) was the original inspiration behind the first issues of the Caribbean Review of Books (CRB) in the '90s. He was known for his passion for knowledge and his enthusiasm in sharing it, and is sorely missed by his many friends at the library of the University of the West Indies, Mona, where for many years he headed the Acquisitions Department.
Mr. Bandara would be pleased and proud with the new CRB, edited by Nicholas Laughlin and with a power-packed editorial board that includes David Dabydeen, Edwidge Danticat, Jane King, E.A. Markham, Ian McDonald, Annie Paul, Kim Robinson-Walcott and Olive Senior. The new CRB comprises a dozen published issues from May 2004 to February 2007 on a quarterly basis, and is a delight to the book-hungry mind and eye.
The issues are beautifully packaged in soft-cover with 37 pages of clean type with no printer's errors. They include opinionated and delightful reviews by knowledgeable scholars, as well as some poems and stories, and occasionally, a pointed letter responding to an article or editorial (like Carolyn Cooper's lively response to Kwame Dawes' review of her recent new text on dancehall Sound Clash). These responses lend gusto to an already exciting mix of offerings.
Regular writers in CRB are Edward Baugh and Annie Paul of Jamaica, with articles also by Mervyn Morris. The journal lends itself to original offerings, including detailed reviews of art books (like Annie Paul on Judy-Ann MacMillan's beautiful text) and in-depth articles on musicians (Garnette Cadogan's 'Reggae Messiah', on eight books about Bob Marley) and on dance.
Excitement and brilliance
This intermedia coverage lends excitement and brilliance to an already exciting mix of reviews which are backed with Marginalia, a column presenting news about Caribbean books and writers. Advertisements of online issues and Caribbean offerings from small presses like Sandberry Press and Periwinkle Publishers (Jamaica), and West Indian books from University presses, bring welcome information to those seeking the cutting edge of publications in this burgeoning field.
CRB is a forum for the book-minded in the Caribbean and beyond. The articles are lengthy and detailed, written by specialists in the particular field. For example, Brendan de Caires writes on Wilson Harris's 'Ghost world', Edward Baugh on Lorna Goodison's 'Controlling the Silver', and Jeremy Taylor on Edric Connor ('O Pioneer'). These are but a taste of what is contained within these slender issues. Nicholas Laughlin writes a column about writing under the heading 'Notebook', while Laurence Breiner offers a definitive article on the life and times of poet Eric Roach. It is exciting to open a new issue and see what it contains; the information and on-target reviews bring Caribbean writing to the attention of scholars and lay readers alike.
Anu Lakhan writes on Edwidge Danticat's 'The Dew Breaker' in the August 2004 issue of CRB while Jeremy Taylor reports on Stokely Carmichael's memoirs. This issue also offers a short story by Phyllis Shand Allfrey from a new publication and Annie Paul reviews 'Brother Man', which was re-issued by MacMillan at that time. This article also appears online. In November 2004, Anu Lakhan writes on cricket and West Indian nationhood while Annie Paul reviews Colin Channer's 'Passing Through'. Nicholas Laughlin writes on poetry books by James Christopher Aboud and Vahni Capildeo and in November 2006, Vahni Capildeo writes a retrospective of Martin Carter. The mix of writers is always exciting and balanced, enhancing the community of scholars and artists and binding them closer in a dialogue of production and intellectual effort. CRB is a perfect venue for the discussions that cross issues and the detailed articles that grace each issue.
The most recent issue, February 2007, contains Edward Baugh writing on Kei Miller, the compendium article on Bob Marley, Anu Lakhan on cricket, and, in the closing offering, Kenneth Ramchand writes on Peter Minshall. It is a brilliant combination of reviews and 'Etc's' bringing to the fore knowledge of writing, publishing, and the West Indies. Books that draw on the various parts of the Caribbean are privileged so that there is a clear mix of scholarly offerings as well as some poetry and the occasional story or 'talk back' letter.
CRB is a gift to the Caribbean from a wise and wonderful editorial board. It is a fine journal with high standards and scholarly articles that nevertheless appeal to the lay reader. I enjoyed every moment of my involvement with each issue and urge the reader to subscribe so as not to miss one issue.
Walking compendium
In closing, I would like to quote Annie Paul, who worked with Mr Bandara on the original CRB, speaking about him:
'For those of us who knew him, Sam Bandara was a walking compendium of information; a living, breathing, talking archive of knowledge about Caribbean and scholarly publishing. The Caribbean Review of Books which was published at Mona in the early 1990s was his brainchild. I was a novice to publishing in those days, and working with Samuel Bandara and Janet Liu-Terry to produce CRB was a great learning experience.
'Mr Bandara's CRB editorials were as prolix as he was in person (we often joked that no one could find his 'off' button), and if he noticed the drastic slashing I subjected them to, he never let on. He was an easy person to work with, a rather unworldly type who might have strolled out of an R.K. Narayan novel, the smell of cigarettes preceding him by several feet. Inevitably, lung cancer set in.
'Mr. Bandara kept the small publishing community at UWI up to date with the latest trends in the dissemination of scholarly information. Open Access, a popular global movement for free access to scholarly and scientific knowledge, became his crusade in the last few years of his life. He was an indefatigable cataloguer and bibliographer. He is sorely missed.'
