New Beacon Books is a British publishing house, bookshop, and international book service that specializes in Black British, Caribbean, African, African-American and Asian literature.[1][2][3] Founded in 1966 by John La Rose and Sarah White, it was the first Caribbean publishing house in England.[4][5] New Beacon Books is widely recognized as having played an important role in the Caribbean Artists Movement, and in Black British culture more generally.[6][2] The associated George Padmore Institute (GPI) is located on the upper floors of the same building where the bookshop resides at 76 Stroud Green Road, Finsbury Park, London.
 | |
| Status | Open Tuesday-Saturday 11am - 6pm (Thursday 11am - 8pm) |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1966 |
| Founders | John La Rose (1927–2006), Sarah Swinburne White (1941–2022) |
| Country of origin | United Kingdom |
| Headquarters location | 76 Stroud Green Road London, N4 3EN |
| Nonfiction topics | Black culture; Black British, Caribbean, African, African-American and Asian literature |
| Official website | https://www.newbeaconbooks.com/ |
History
editNew Beacon Books started out as a publishing house that was run out of the Hornsey, North London, flat of John La Rose and Sarah White.[3][4][7] It was named after the Trinidadian journal The Beacon, which was published between 1931 and 1932.[2][8] In 1967, La Rose and White moved New Beacon Books to new premises, in Finsbury Park, where the company also began to function as a specialist bookstore.[2] Early publications included La Rose's first poetry collection, Foundations (1966), Tradition, the Writer and Society: Critical Essays by Wilson Harris (1967), and a new edition of John Jacob Thomas's 1889 polemic, Froudacity (1969).[9][8]
Other notable works published by New Beacon Books include: Edward Kamau Brathwaite's History of the Voice: The Development of Nation Language in the Anglophone Caribbean (1984); Erna Brodber's novels Jane and Louisa Will Soon Come Home (1980) and Myal (1988); Martin Carter's Poems of Succession (1977); Bernard Coard's How the West Indian Child is Made Educationally Sub-normal in the British School System (1971); Lorna Goodison's I am Becoming my Mother (1986); Mervyn Morris, The Pond (1973) and Shadowboxing (1979); and Andrew Salkey's A Quality of Violence (1978).
The 50th anniversary of New Beacon was celebrated with a series of events held during the latter part of 2016,[10] including an International Poetry Night on 3 December, with internationally acclaimed poet and GPI trustee Linton Kwesi Johnson, at the British Library.[11]
Commercial viability
editIn late 2016, the directors of the bookshop decided to close it down on the grounds that it was no longer economically viable. A particular problem was that it lacked a functional website, and was losing its specialist niche to online booksellers. The physical setup had not essentially changed since the 1980s. The shop's imminent closure was announced at the 50th-anniversary celebrations in December 2016.[12]
However, in early 2017 a volunteer New Beacon Development Group swiftly reopened the shop with reduced hours and set about gathering support.[12] Crowdfunding raised £11,248, which helped the shop to undertake a major refurbishment and create a website, permitting online browsing and shopping. The renovations were completed in August 2017 and normal hours were reestablished,[13] with a re-launch taking place in October 2017.[14]
In December 2021 New Beacon Books announced a move to online-only sales,[15] but after raising money through another crowdfunding campaign, with the original stated target being reached within 24 hours,[16][17] the bookshop announced it would be able to keep its physical location open.[18] The directors were reported as stating: "For the foreseeable future, New Beacon Books will continue to be based at its current premises. We will be continuing to look at ways for a long-term sustainable future."[19]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ Donnell 2002, p. 299.
- ^ a b c d Phillips 2011.
- ^ a b Sankar 1996.
- ^ a b Alleyne 2002, p. 41.
- ^ Johnson 2006.
- ^ Walmsley 1992, pp. 90–91.
- ^ Busby, Margaret (16 February 2022). "Sarah White obituary". The Guardian.
- ^ a b Alleyne 2002, p. 42.
- ^ Walmsley 1992, p. 90.
- ^ Palmer, Carl (15 August 2016), "UK's First Black Publisher And Bookshop Celebrates 50th Year", The Voice.
- ^ Bidisha (6 December 2016), "Beacon of hope: The tiny bookshop that gave a big voice to black writers", BBC – Arts.
- ^ a b "The Story of New Beacon Books". New Beacon Books. Retrieved 30 November 2019.
- ^ Gelder, Sam (8 August 2017). "Finsbury Park's New Beacon Books set to begin new chapter this weekend". Islington Gazette. Retrieved 30 November 2019.
- ^ "New Beacon Bookshop Launch". Shades of Noir. University of the Arts, London. 16 November 2017. Retrieved 29 January 2023.
- ^ Ambrose, Tom (29 December 2021). "Dismay as UK's first specialist black bookshop forced to close". The Guardian. Retrieved 29 December 2021.
- ^ Ambrose, Tom (1 January 2022). "UK's first black bookshop weighs move to new site after £50k raised to save it". The Guardian.
- ^ New Beacon Books website.
- ^ Schofield, Blanca (10 January 2022). "New Beacon Books: Finsbury Park shop escapes closure after Crowdfunding campaign". Islington Gazette. Retrieved 11 January 2022.
- ^ Wood, Heloise (4 January 2022). "New Beacon Books saved after crowdfunder raises £76k within days". The Bookseller.
Sources
edit- Alleyne, Brian W. (2002). Radicals Against Race: Black Activism and Cultural Politics. Oxford: Berg. ISBN 1-85973-527-4.
- Donnell, Alison, ed. (2002). "New Beacon Books". Companion to Contemporary Black British Culture. London: Routledge. pp. 299–300. ISBN 0-415-16989-5.
- Johnson, Linton Kwesi (4 March 2006). "Obituary: John La Rose". The Guardian. p. 39. Retrieved 29 June 2012.
- Phillips, Caryl (2011). "John La Rose". Colour Me English. London: Random House. ISBN 9781409028925.
- Sankar, Celia (September–October 1996). "A Caribbean publisher's radical beacon". Americas. 48 (English ed.). ISSN 0379-0940.
- Walmsley, Anne (1992). The Caribbean Artists Movement, 1966–1972: A Literary and Cultural History. London: New Beacon Books. ISBN 9781873201015.
Further reading
edit- Philippa Ireland, "Laying The Foundations: New Beacon Books, Bogle L’Ouverture Press and the Politics of Black British Publishing", E-rea [Online], 11.1 | 2013, 15 December 2013. DOI: https://doi.org/10.4000/erea.3524
External links
edit- New Beacon Books – official website
- Harris, Roxy, and Sarah White, "A short history of Black British Publishing | The Roots of Independent Black British Publishing", Bocas Lit Fest. Retrieved 24 August 2023.
- Beezmohun, Sharmilla (28 November 2016). "Foundations of a Movement". British Library. Retrieved 2 June 2021.
- John, Gus (5 December 2016). "Changing Britain through the Arts and Activism". Operation Black Vote. Retrieved 29 January 2023.
- "Belonging & Resistance: An evening of readings at New Beacon Books", Serpentine Galleries, 1 February 2022.