C O L U M N
DEUS EX MACHINA
i n d u s t r y   r e p o r t s

Publisher Spotlight:
Peepal Tree Press

IN AN age in American publishing where all you hear from insiders is the same old despair over bottom line business practices and the commodification of literature (Sara Paretsky, at the Whidbey Island Writers Conference in March 2004, made the bitter but realistic comparison between her latest book and pallets of toilet paper being sold at Costco as a duet of tree byproducts, for instance), it's refreshing to see the visions of small independent presses pushing through these dismal trends. Peepal Tree Press, the world's leading publisher of Caribbean writing and a strong supporter of the magical realist form, is one such house.

Founded in 1985, Peepal Tree continues to serve as a wholly independent publishing company, putting forth up to 15 titles annually. This may seem small when compared to what the big houses are producing in the US. But imagine the effort that must go into publishing books inside a community where even paper is a luxury?

The press concept was born on a former sugar estate in Guyana in 1984. Peepal Tree Press founder Jeremy Poynting recalls: "My friend Rooplall Monar was acting out several of the stories he had written, but was in despair at their ever seeing the light of day. Writers in Guyana usually went to the local printery, or Sheik Sadeek with his Adana, but in those bad, grim Burnham days, there was no paper to be had, even smuggled. I volunteered to organise the printing of a small run (400 I think) back in England."

The peepal tree, native to the Caribbean, is a fig variety with light grey bark that is smooth and peels in patches. Its heart-shaped leaves rustle in the slightest breeze and its fruit are purple when ripe.

Poynting points to a poem by early Indo-Guyanese poet Jacob Chinapen, which described estate workers sitting under a peepal tree telling stories at the end of the day, as providing the key inspiration behind the publishing house's name.

While Peepal Tree may specialize in Caribbean writing, Poynting credits the publishing house's focus "on what George Lamming calls the Caribbean nation, wherever it is in the world..." They also shine their spotlight on Black British and South Asian authors as well. The Peepal Tree Press list boasts more than 160 titles which include academic works, nonfiction, poetry and fiction.

Their willingness to publish short-story collections also sets them apart. Almost one third of their fiction titles are short-story collections, many of these from writers such as Earl Lovelace, Olive Senior, Wilson Harris, Opal Palmer Adisa, Robert Antoni and Michelle Cliff.

"What continues to attract so many contemporary Caribbean writers to the form?" Poynting asks. "There is, in the first place, an urge to tell stories that remains closer to an oral tradition of storytelling (whether African or Indian in origin) than is the case in Western cultures."

With regard to literary magical realism, Poynting writes: "Peepal Tree has published a number of novels that are either explicitly in the magical realist tradition or have elements of that genre's features." He recommends the seven titles below as excellent examples of magical realist writing from the Caribbean:

marina ama omowale Maxwell's CHOPSTIX IN MAUBY

Hazel Campbell's SINGERMAN ~ the novella length story 'Jacob Bubbles' has two levels of time interacting

Cyril Dabydeen's DARK SWIRL ~ brings a Guyanese folkloric monster to fictive life

Denise Harris's WEB OF SECRETS ~ also involves similar fabulous elements

Andrew Jefferson-Miles's THE TIMEHRIAN ~ very explicitly magical realist

Anthony Kellman's THE CORAL ROOMS ~ moves from conventional narrative to dreamlike magical elements

Cherie Jones's forthcoming collection of stories, THE BURNING BUSH WOMEN ~ mixes realist and magical realist stories, particularly the title story

Peepal Tree Press will be announcing a new Caribbean/Black British drama series shortly and plans a reissue programme of Caribbean classics.—Tamara Kaye Sellman

Contact information for Peepal Tree Press:
Peepal Tree Press
17 King's Avenue
Leeds LS6 1QS
United Kingdom
Telephone +44 (0)113 2451703
Secure online bookstore and website

Tamara Kaye Sellman is founding editor and publisher of MARGIN.
respond to this column

margin home | contents | links | reading list | marginalia | contributors | staff | guidelines | kudos | subscriptions | contact us

Layout, design & revisions © Tamara Kaye Sellman, Webmaster
Active home URL: http://www.magical-realism.com
(also: https://www.angelfire.com/wa2/margin/index. html)

COPYRIGHT NOTICE

TERMS OF USE: This site contains copyrighted materials, including but not limited to text and graphics. You may not use, copy, publish, upload, download, post to a bulletin board, include in any weblog or otherwise transmit, distribute or modify any elements of this site in any way, except that you may download one copy of such contents on any single computer for your own personal, non-commercial use, provided you do not alter or remove any copyright, author attribution or other proprietary notices.

Rev'd 2004/05/31