Caribbean Review of Books

The Caribbean Review of Books, or CRB, is a quarterly magazine published in Port of Spain, Trinidad, reviewing books of Caribbean interest—by Caribbean authors or about the Caribbean—and printing original fiction, poetry, and other literary material. It is the second periodical to use this name.

The first Caribbean Review of Books, 1991-94

The original Caribbean Review of Books was founded in 1991 by the University of the West Indies Publishers' Association (UWIPA) in Mona, Jamaica. Edited by Samuel B. Bandara, acquisition librarian at the university, it was intended to be "the complete source for Caribbean book news" (as stated below the masthead of Issue number 1, dated August 1991), and combined book reviews with bibliographical information, interviews, and other features. It was .[1]

When some crucial UWIPA resources were absorbed into the newly founded University of the West Indies Press in 1993 and no external funding could be secured, The Caribbean Review of Books ceased publication.

The revived Caribbean Review of Books, 2004–

A revival of The Caribbean Review of Books was one of the early objectives of the Caribbean Publishers Network (Capnet), founded in 2000. When external funding again proved difficult, one of Capnet's founding members, a small publishing house in Trinidad called Media and Editorial Projects Limited (MEP) decided to take responsibility for the project.

In May 2004, under publisher Jeremy Taylor and editor Nicholas Laughlin,[2][3] the new Caribbean Review of Books--CRB for short—was launched as a quarterly magazine aimed at general readers, supported by subscriptions and advertising. Its primary content was reviews mainly fiction, poetry, biography, history, and current affairs books, as well as books about art and culture.

The CRB became an independent non-profit organisation in 2006, and secured a grant from the Prince Claus Foundation, and continued support from MEP. However, like its predecessor, the CRB suspended print publishing in mid-2009. It was re-launched in May 2010 as an online publication,[4] to coincide with its sixth anniversary. In November 2013 issue the CRB began a partnership with the Bocas Lit Fest, Trinidad and Tobago's annual literature festival.[5]

References

  1. ↑ Glenford D. Howe (ed.), Higher Education in the Caribbean: Past, Present and Future Directions, University of the West Indies Press, 2000, p. 299.
  2. ↑ Eric Banks, "Scott McLemee on the Caribbean Review of Books, the Crisis in Haiti, and the 'Economy of Attention'", Critical Mass, National Book Critics Circle, 27 January 2010.
  3. ↑ Scott McLemee, "Economy of Attention", Inside Higher Ed, 27 January 2010.
  4. ↑ Nicolette Bethel, "The Caribbean Review of Books • A Bimonthly Review of Caribbean Literature, Art, and Culture", Blogworld, 15 January 2011.
  5. ↑ "Caribbean Review of Books Is Back", CaribLit, 14 November 2013.

External links