GREAT BAY, St. Martin (March 30, 2016)—The Virgin Islands Public Library has received a gift pack of books published in St. Martin as a promotion of the St. Martin Book Fair and of book publishing and literary readings in the Caribbean, said Jacqueline Sample, president of House of Nehesi Publishers (HNP).
HNP projects director Lasana M. Sekou was in Tortola on March 18-19 to meet with educators and writers about the upcoming anthology Where I See The Sun – Contemporary Poetry in the Virgin Islands.
“This was a very good networking opportunity to promote the 14th annual St. Martin Book Fair in June. At the same time, HNP titles are hands-on examples of diversified book publishing in the Caribbean region,” said Sample.
Sovereignty of the Imagination by George Lamming, The Frock & Other Poems by Laurelle “Yaya” Richards, and The Essence of Reparations by Amiri Baraka are some of the HNP books that were presented to the library by Sekou on behalf of the publisher and the St. Martin Book Fair. A previous-year book fair program booklet was also included in the book pack.
Dr. Pat Turnbull, senior Virgin Islands educator, Verna Penn Moll, author, Richard Georges, Head of Humanities, Social Sciences, and Communications at H. Lavity Stoutt Community College, and April Glasgow, poet and slam organizer, were among the interested persons who discussed with Sekou the HNP plans to publish the new Virgin Islands poetry collection.
Conscious Lyrics Foundation and HNP organize the St. Martin Book Fair, June 2 – 4, 2016. The St. Maarten Tourist Bureau is the strategic partner of the literary festival. The island-wide book fair is also organized in collaboration with LCF Foundation and the University of St. Martin.
Librarian Kimberly Malone (L) receiving books published in St. Martin from Lasana M. Sekou, HNP projects director, at the Virgin Islands Public Library, Road Town, Tortola (3/19/16).