British Jamaicans have been present in the UK for over three generations and have left an indelible mark on British culture and society. How could they not? With over three hundred thousand “yardies” living in the UK, they have influenced everything from food, to slang to music, just to name a few. One of their more prolific members, Candice Carty-Williams, is firmly planting the black, yellow and green flag into the literary sphere of the UK along with the rest of the world with her latest novel, People Person. 

Title: Time Come: Selected Prose

A world-class literary event, the Calabash International Literary Festival is back — May 26-28, 2023! The free to all three-day word fest, founded in 2001 by novelist Colin Channer, poet Kwame Dawes, and producer Justine Henzell, has taken a leap ‘For Word’ this year after a long 5-year absence.

Brooklyn, NY - The Brooklyn Caribbean Literary Festival, (BCLF), returns this year to celebrate its milestone fifth season in New York City.

LONDON, UK – Jamaican writer, Kwame McPherson, has won the overall prize of the 2023 Commonwealth Short Story Prize, defeating nearly seven thousand entrants worldwide for the £5,000 (One British pound=US$1.27 cents) prize.

“Deep breath. Grab a fistful. Cut. The blade slice halfway through one lock and he have to cut again, sawing his way through. He stare at the black coils as they fall in the bag at his feet. Something catch in throat. Like walking uphill. Another fistful and the hill steeper, and it harder to breathe.”

Toronto, Ontario – Jamaican-Canadian entrepreneur and curry enthusiast turned author Elizabeth Ainsworth has introduced an exceptional addition to the world of culinary delights with her latest e-book masterpiece, ‘Esmen’s Curry Cookbook’.

MARIGOT/GREAT BAY, St. Martin —The 21st annual St. Martin Book Fair has been postponed for reasons related to the health of the lit fest coordinator Shujah Reiph, said the Book Fair Committee (BFC) on Monday.

Toronto, Canada — Jamaican-Canadian journalist and writer Desmond Loren Brown makes his debut as an author of fiction with his children’s book publication, The Boy and the Honeybees.

Trinidad – Trinidad & Tobago-based wedding expert and Editor-in-Chief of TrinidadWeddings.com Simone Sant-Ghuran, has released her wedding planning guide book for engaged couples, on Amazon entitled ‘It's Knot Difficult: A guide to wedding planning Your Way with a little help from a pro!’

Kingston, Jamaica – Digicel Foundation is reaffirming its dedication to promoting literacy through a generous donation of $600,000. This contribution will specifically assist in establishing Resource and Reading Rooms and supporting literacy programs at the primary level. The four recipient schools, two of which cater to Special Education Institutions, will each receive an equal portion of the donation. This commitment was made by Digicel Foundation in conjunction with the Read Across Jamaica Day festivities, which took place on Tuesday, May 9, 2023.

Ravaged by World War 2, Britain’s desperate call to the commonwealth for help to rebuild the country was eagerly taken up by many of its Caribbean colonial subjects. Attracted by the prospect of employment in the motherland, or simply seeking a new kind of life, on 22 June 1948 the first batch or newcomers arrived on the Empire Windrush. Welcome signs greeted the ship filled with British citizens from Jamaica, Barbados, Trinidad & Tobago, and other islands. But the reception they expected did not match the reality as it dawned on local British folk that ‘these people are too different from us’.