Literature: Walcott's home becomes a museum

from the NY Times

To commemorate the talents of the Nobel-Prize winner Derek Walcott, the poet’s childhood home in Castries, Saint Lucia, has become a museum.

The two-level home houses Mr. Walcott’s many watercolor paintings as well as exhibit photographs of his childhood and decades-long career. Called Walcott’s Place, the pale yellow house with white trim is at the intersection of Chaussee Road and Grasse Street. Located a few blocks from the home of the Nobel-Prize winning economist Sir Arthur Lewis, the museum also honors Mr. Walcott’s twin brother who died in 2000, Roderick, who was a playwright and theater director.

The home has served as a reference point for many poems by Mr. Walcott, including his epic work, “Omeros.” A studio space for art and writing workshops will be completed in a few years.

Suggested donations are $5 for adults and $2 for children under 12.

Literature: Bocas entries Open for 2017

The 2017 OCM Bocas Prize for Caribbean Literature, the latest round of the region’s most prestigious literary award, is now open for entries. Sponsored by One Caribbean Media, the prize, now in its seventh year, includes a cash award of US$10,000 for the overall winner and US$3,000 each for two genre category winners.

With past winners including both eminent established authors and talented newcomers, the OCM Bocas Prize is coveted by Caribbean writers all over the world, who qualify by being of Caribbean birth or citizenship.

The cross-genre prize is judged in three categories: poetry, fiction, and literary non-fiction. The 2017 Prize is open to books published in the calendar year 2016. The overall winner is selected from the three category winners.

Chairing the distinguished panel of Caribbean and international judges is the celebrated Jamaican literary scholar and poet Professor Edward Baugh, who is joined by ten other internationally based writers, academics, and publishing professionals.

There are two deadlines for submissions: 10 November, 2016, and 11 January, 2017, depending on the publication date of an eligible title.

In the 2016 round, the short fiction collection The Pain Tree by Olive Senior was the overall winner of the OCM Bocas Prize. Other winners in past years have included St. Lucian Nobel Laureate Derek Walcott and Trinidadian novelist Earl Lovelace.

“This cross-genre prize lines up the best talents, old and new, allowing them to rub shoulders as no other prize does. We are pleased that each year we can signal to the reading public the very finest of what’s on offer from Caribbean writers and help in promoting the work of our wordsmiths, wherever they may live,” says Marina Salandy-Brown, founder and director of the Bocas Lit Fest, the NGO behind the Prize and three annual literary festivals in Trinidad and Tobago.

The 2017 NGC Bocas Lit Fest runs from 26 to 30 April, 2017, at the National Library and the adjacent Old Fire Station, Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago. Title sponsor is the National Gas Company, lead sponsor is First Citizens, OCM is a main sponsor.

Literature: Unseen Godfather of the "Latin Lit" boom, dies

Gregory Rabassa, a translator of worldwide influence and esteem who helped introduce Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Julio Cortazar and other Latin American authors to millions of English-language readers, has died.

A longtime professor at Queens College, Rabassa died Monday at a hospice in Branford, Conn. He was 94 and died after a brief illness, according to his daughter, Kate Rabassa Wallen.

Rabassa was an essential gateway to the 1960s Latin American "boom," when such authors as Garcia Marquez, Cortazar and Mario Vargas Llosa became widely known internationally. He worked on the novel that helped start the boom, Cortazar's "Hopscotch," for which Rabassa won a National Book Award for translation. He also worked on the novel which defined the boom, Garcia Marquez's "One Hundred Years of Solitude," a monument of 20th century literature.

Garcia Marquez often praised Rabassa, saying he regarded the translation of "Solitude" as a work of art in its own right.

"He's the godfather of us all," Edith Grossman, the acclaimed translator of "Don Quixote" and several Garcia Marquez books, told the Associated Press on Tuesday. "He's the one who introduced Latin-American literature in a serious way to the English-speaking world."

Rabassa's other translations included Garcia Marquez's "The Autumn of the Patriarch," Vargas Llosa's "Conversation in the Cathedral" and Jorge Amado's "Captains of the Sand." In 2001, Rabassa received a lifetime achievement award from the PEN American Center for contributions to Latino literature. He was presented a National Medal of Arts in 2006 for translations which "continue to enhance our cultural understanding and enrich our lives."

Survivors include his second wife, Clementine; daughters Kate Rabassa Wallen and Clara Rabassa; and granddaughters Jennifer and Sarah Wallen.

Culture: The IOJ, Where Jamaican Culture Lives

As the cultural repository for Jamaica, the IOJ encourages Literature Science and Art through our many themed exhibitions with the aid of our friendly and knowledgeable tour guides. 

Currently the Institute of Jamaica h five (5) major exhibitions: 

• Historical Exhibition: Come see the archaeological evidence and portrayal of the lives of the Taino people (once referred to as the Arawaks), whom Christopher Columbus first encountered in Jamaica in 1494. The “Taino Exhibition” is a must see!

•  Cultural Exhibition: In the “Rastafari Exhibition”, explore how a faith emerged in Jamaica as a liberation movement that has become a worldwide phenomenon, often associated with the likes of Bob Marley in the international community. Using historic objects, images, installations and interviews “Rastafari” brings to life the story, of a unique cultural group, its beliefs and practices.

• Historical Exhibition:  Take a step back in time to the “Uprising: Morant Bay 1865” which explores the post emancipation rebellion, led by Jamaica’s national heroes, Paul Bogle and George William Gordon.  The exhibition explores what led to the tragic events of October 1865, using remarkable images, original artifacts, social media, newspapers and multimedia presentations to tell its story.   

• Art Exhibition:  The “National Exhibition for Art & Craft in Schools”, showcases the artistic talents of Jamaican high school in categories such as painting, leather craft ,  fabric work, sculpture, jewellery-making, and drawing. An inspiring presentation that displays the skill of our nation’s students!

• Music Exhibition:  This exhibition themed “Curating Music: Building a National Collection”showcases musical artifacts and instruments that were donated by musical greats such as Ernie Smith, and the Jolly Boys, the Skatalites, Sly and Robbie.  This exhibition is perfect for lovers of music and culture!

Book your tour today, by contacting Georgette Francis, Programmes Manager, Programmes Coordination Division at 922 – 0620, exts: 284 / 350, #312-9486 or emailgfrancis@juniorcentre-ioj.org.jm.

Books: HBO "Contracts" James' 'Seven Killings" for series

HBO has optioned screen rights to Marlon James’ novel, A Brief History of Seven Killings (Oneworld), for a series adaptation.

James’ novel, which was published last year, takes inspiration from the real-life incident when gunmen attacked Bob Marley’s house in 1976. Spanning three decades and crossing continents, the story chronicles the lives of a host of characters, from slum kids to drug lords and the CIA. The book won both the Anisfield-Wolf Fiction Prize for books that contribute to our understanding of racism and cultural diversity and the OCM Bocas Fiction Prize for Caribbean Literature.

HBO plans to produce an ongoing series, with award-winning screenwriter Eric Roth penning the script. Roth’s credits include adapting books into screenplays for Oscar-nominated films such as “Munich”, “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” and “Forrest Gump”, as well as acting as the executive producer of Emmy-winning series “House of Cards”.

Oneworld is releasing the paperback edition of A Brief History of Seven Killings this June. It will publish James’ debut novel, John Crow’s Devil, in November, and it has also published his second novel, The Book of Night Women.