Trinidadian Anthropologist Andrew Carr had a deep and abiding love for "Ole Time" Trinidad. In this scholarly study, written in the early 1950s and first published in 1955, he traces the cutlural beliefs, traditions and practices of the Rada, a group of African settlers from Dahomey (now Nigeria), in Belmont, Port of Spain, Trinidad, in the 19th and early 20th century. Carr describes the founding of the Rada Compound in the 1870s and how he experienced it in the 1950s, with the attendant changes in the religious practices and ceremonies, the musical and dance expressions, the sacrifices to the particular pantheon of the inhabitants, their food and their memories. "The existence, up until recently, of the Belmont Rada Community has helped in no small way to mould the personality of that very parituclar part of our capital city," writes Publisher Gérard A. Besson in his Note to the first edition in 1989.

A Rada Community in Trinidad

History

Carr, Andrew

Americas

Paria Publishing Company Ltd.

"We must remember... and we must remember everything." - Gerard Besson The Book of Trinidad, a perennial favourite with Trinidadians all over the world, is an eclectic mix of travelogues, recipes, newspaper reports, official records, the seminal work of historians and, perhaps more importantly, the oral traditions of the very old whose memories link back to the turn of the century. Fully illustrated with rare pictures from a wide range of sources, The Book of Trinidad has sold thousands of copies since its first publication in 1986. The history of beautiful Trinidad is a relatively short but multi-faceted one in comparison to its neighbouring islands in the Caribbean. The Book of Trinidad travels through centuries of Trinidad's life, exposing an experience in which the changing of seasons was the only constant in an otherwise timeless world. The remarkable thing in the development of Trinidad has been the make-up of its population. Literally, people from all over the world found a home in the island by virtue of their Catholicism or other considerations. Truly antique strains, such as the Rada from West Africa and Maronite Christians from the Ottoman Empire, Brahmins from India, French aristocrats, Corsican revolutionaries, Portuguese converted to Protestanism from Madeira, Chinese peasants, liberated Africans, and Shiite Muslims who have continued to the present to celebrate Muharrum (Hosay) were all poured into the mould of British colonialism and stamped by the prejudices of the time. Writers Bridget Brereton and Gerard Besson bring together the people of Trinidad by commemorating the memory of shared experiences among this plethora of cultures in the development of our beloved country. Brereton and Besson's collaboration in The Book of Trinidad draws together the collective experience of the nation's people to put together the colourful mosaic that is, in truth, our national patrimony. Bridget Brereton was a Professor of History and the Head of the History department at the University of the West Indies' St. Augustine campus. She has served on several occasions as the Principal of the University of the West Indies, St. Augustine, Trinidad. Gerard A. Besson is a publisher, writer and historian. He is the founder of Paria Publishing, a company that has produced around 100 titles in the field of history and folklore. In 2007, he was the recipient of the Hummingbird Medal (Gold) for Heritage Preservation and Promotion.

The Book of Trinidad (HARDCOVER)

Brereton, Bridget

Besson, Gerard

Folklore stories that make your hair stand on end! The folklore of Trinidad and Tobago has pan-Caribbean appeal, as it is shared in common with many former French territories in the region from Louisiana to Haiti, Guadeloupe, Martinique, Dominica and St. Lucia.The beautifully illustrated book has been celebrated as a milestone publication in Trinidad and Tobago.

Folklore & Legends of Trinidad and Tobago

Literature & Fiction

Besson, Gérard A

Mythology & Folk Tales

First in Trinidad by Michael Anthony Entertaining and informative shorts stories about the first times things happened in Trinidad This publication marks the inauguration of Paria Classics, a series of re-publications of some of the most outstanding historical works about Trinidad and Tobago. In this book, Dr. MIchael Anthony explores two centuries of ¿first times¿ in trinidad and Tobago: from the first settlers, to the first postal, electricity, and telephone service, to the first Olympic gold medal winner. His informative and entertaining writing style brings history to life. 6¿ x 9¿, 184 pages, softcover Illustrated in black & white ISBN 976-8054-51-4 US$ 15.00 Dr. Michael Anthony received his honorary doctorate from the University of the West Indies in 2003.

First in Trinidad

Anthony, Michael

Picture this: San Fernando, Trinidad, 1920.  Longing for the tropics, the young medicus Dr. Vincent Tothill signs up with the Colonial Service and comes to southern Trinidad, where he first works in the oilfields, then in the sugar factory, and eventually sets up private practice.  With Scottish wit and a subtle feel for the local parlance, he describes the people he meets and the events that mark the highlights of his sojourn.   Tothill will make you laugh out loud with his sometimes picaresque adventures, but his diary is also a valuable anthropological and historical document, describing the language and customs of Trinidadians in that period and the shortcomings that of the medical service of the Colonial Government. This book was first published by Blackie & Sons in Scotland and is lavishly illustrated with contemporary photographs, some taken by Dr. Tothill himself, and others added from Paria Publishing's extensive archives.

Trinidad's Doctor's Office

Biographies & Memoirs

Tothill, Dr. Vincent

Professionals & Academics

This study deals with the complex issues of race, history and politics in Caribbean society. In its first part, “François Besson”, it examines the fortunes of a French creole family between the mid-18th and early 20th centuries, and describes their experiences against the backdrop of the social and political conflicts occasioned by the excesses of plantation slavery and the upheavals of the French revolution. It looks at Julien Fédon’s revolution of 1795 in Grenada, examines the nature of the relationship between master and slave, the children of these unions, and the deadly divisions that were at times engendered as a result of the custom of the plaçage (concubinage), causing ‘victors’ or ‘victims’ of “The Cult of the Will” to emerge; thus influencing at times the destiny of these islands. The second part of the book, “Eric Williams”, studies the manner in which an historian-turned-politician, tragically afflicted by “The Cult of the Will” and perhaps convinced that history is destiny, used, in Trinidad and Tobago, the politics of inherited guilt and inherited victimhood to create scapegoats in an attempt to assuage his “Inward Hunger”, while making clever use of ‘Black Nationalism’ that was becoming popular in the 1950s. Revisionist in its scope, this book undertakes to change our understanding of the past, so that we may create a more useful future. It examines the points in time when the historical narratives of the country changed, occasioned by a shift in moral values, bringing about a different interpretation of its history. It ponders the question whether the presidency of Barack Obama may mark the end of the Eric Williams narrative of victimhood, scapegoating and irresponsibility as expressed in its politics, and herald the start of a new, New World narrative endowed with empowerment and responsibility. “Your thesis comes across as logical, though speculative at times, but put together with the deprivations he (Eric Williams) admittedly experienced at Oxford and at the Caribbean Commission, the victimhood narrative is plausible, and indeed has become disruptive of this country’s civility, democracy and ethnic harmony . . . You have created a serious challenge to orthodoxy. You have broken up quite a few myths, and in fact forcefully argued how the passion for psychic compensation and restoration by Williams has led to an intensely institutionalized culture of victimhood. A victimhood now challenged by Obama, a challenge which not only shifts the paradigm but holds better promise for spiritual growth and the shaping of a common humanity.” (Professor Emeritus Ramesh Deosaran) Gerard A. Besson is a publisher, writer and historian who specialises in the history of Trinidad and Tobago and has worked in all media in a career that has spanned four decades. In 2007, he was awarded the Hummingbird Medal (Gold) for Heritage Preservation and Promotion.

The Cult of the Will

Historical

This is the black-and-white edition of the book "The Cult of the Will".  This study deals with the complex issues of race, history and politics in Caribbean society. In its first part, "François Besson", it examines the fortunes of a French creole family between the mid-18th and early 20th centuries, and describes their experiences against the backdrop of the social and political conflicts occasioned by the excesses of plantation slavery and the upheavals of the French revolution. It looks at Julien Fédon's revolution of 1795 in Grenada, examines the nature of the relationship between master and slave, the children of these unions, and the deadly divisions that were at times engendered as a result of the custom of the plaçage (concubinage), causing 'victors' or 'victims' of "The Cult of the Will" to emerge; thus influencing at times the destiny of these islands. The second part of the book, "Eric Williams", studies the manner in which an historian-turned-politician, tragically afflicted by "The Cult of the Will" and perhaps convinced that history is destiny, used, in Trinidad and Tobago, the politics of inherited guilt and inherited victimhood to create scapegoats in an attempt to assuage his "Inward Hunger", while making clever use of 'Black Nationalism' that was becoming popular in the 1950s. Revisionist in its scope, this book undertakes to change our understanding of the past, so that we may create a more useful future. It examines the points in time when the historical narratives of the country changed, occasioned by a shift in moral values, bringing about a different interpretation of its history. It ponders the question whether the presidency of Barack Obama may mark the end of the Eric Williams narrative of victimhood, scapegoating and irresponsibility as expressed in its politics, and herald the start of a new, New World narrative endowed with empowerment and responsibility. "Your thesis comes across as logical, though speculative at times, but put together with the deprivations he (Eric Williams) admittedly experienced at Oxford and at the Caribbean Commission, the victimhood narrative is plausible, and indeed has become disruptive of this country's civility, democracy and ethnic harmony . . . You have created a serious challenge to orthodoxy. You have broken up quite a few myths, and in fact forcefully argued how the passion for psychic compensation and restoration by Williams has led to an intensely institutionalized culture of victimhood. A victimhood now challenged by Obama, a challenge which not only shifts the paradigm but holds better promise for spiritual growth and the shaping of a common humanity." (Professor Emeritus Ramesh Deosaran) Gerard A. Besson is a publisher, writer and historian who specialises in the history of Trinidad and Tobago and has worked in all media in a career that has spanned four decades. In 2007, he was awarded the Hummingbird Medal (Gold) for Heritage Preservation and Promotion.

The Cult of the Will (B&w Edition)

Have you ever looked up at the sky and seen a huge object coming towards you which you could not identify? Have you ever wondered what would happen if your country could import or export nothing at all? Have you experienced what it is like to have a loved one leave home and never come back? Have you ever waited months on end for a boat arrive that never does? For 60 years to pass and so many questions still left unanswered? Located in the Caribbean, one would think that Grenada was geographically distant from the chaos that was World War II. But the war not only significantly altered the daily lives of hundreds of Grenadians, but also influenced the culture of the Spice Isle as we know it today. With Grenada being a British colony at the time, many Grenadians went off to fight in the war, with relatives never knowing if they would ever see them again. The greatest tragedies during the war, however, happened close to home. On what turned out to be a baneful day - August 5th, 1944 - two boats left on an excursion from Grenada to St. Vincent. Only one, the Providence Mark arrived at its destination. The Island Queen disappeared with 67 passengers and crew and over 60 years later, there are still no answers to comfort those who lost relatives on that unlucky boat. The tragedy is still remembered although with the passage of time it is almost a completely new generation who recall this event, and who are morn. In 'Grenada in Wartime', each page is a learning experience, and as a reader you will get the chance to witness the reality of the island during the war, as well as how its people dealt, and continue to deal, with the ominous disappearance of the Island Queen. Steele's readers are given the opportunity to take a step through Grenada in the mid-1940s. Look into the minds of a child terrified by the sounds of war planes overhead, mothers and fathers doing their best to protect their families from the privations and horrors of the war, or the fathers and mothers who lost each other or vibrant youngsters with the mysterious disappearance of the Island Queen. Beverley A. Steele's Grenada in Wartime tells the collective story of what happened to the people of Grenada during World War II- their tragedies and remarkably resilient nature - in one steady breath. Steele acts as the voice of Grenada's population as she records the experiences of Grenada during World War II - the sacrifices, the hardships, the strength, the compassion, the innovations, and the Grenadian strength of will to keep on going. Grenada in Wartime also documents an admirable response to national tragedy. No one can ignore the disasters and hard times in their history, but they can keep them close to their hearts while they continue to do what they have to do to keep the society moving forward.

Grenada in Wartime

Steele, Beverley A.

What things are true? This is what Jackie Hinkson has been asking himself since his early introduction into art and, more so, since completing his studies at the University of Alberta whose motto is "Quaecumque Vera" (Whatsoever Things Are True). In 2012, the year of his 70th birthday, he is still searching for the answer in his work. In this memoir, Hinkson tells of the experiences that helped to shape his vision as an artist; his early family and community life in "Cobo Town" in the heart of Port-of-Spain; his  introduction to painting while a student at QRC and his crucial friendship with Peter Minshall there; the influence of the Central Library and the Art Society on his early formation; his doubts and his single-mindedness while furthering his studies in Paris and Canada; his marriage and the birth of his first child; his return to Trinidad in 1970 where he immediately faced challenges as an artist in a rapidly changing society, and his critical decision to live the rest of his life as an artist working in and inspired by his native land.

What Things Are True

Jackie Hinkson

From the Gates of Aksum weaves Freemasonry and European religious and political intrigue into the tapestry of Caribbean and South American political history. The book begins in late 18th century Port-d’Espagne, Trinidad, and is told by several narrators. The story spans centuries, from a time when a company of adventurers recovers a mysterious object of an antediluvian science from the secluded kingdom of Aksum in the Ethiopian highlands, on to the first anguished years of the 19th century. In the riotous wake of the American, French and Haitian Revolutions, the collapse of the Spanish empire in the New World and the rise of the British empire, François de Gurvand, a French colonist, must transport the object from his ancestral home in France to a specific geographical position ― the island of Trinidad. A Vatican secret society, the Holy Hermandad, the Emperor Napoleon, various factions of Freemasonry, and another ancient secret society all vie for possession of the object. From the Gates of Aksum speaks of the role that the early Trinidadians played in that epoch-changing period when the dawning of the Age of Enlightenment altered the course of the history of the world. While the plot and most of the characters are fictitious, the reader familiar with West Indian, South American and European history will find old acquaintances who come to life in this book ― such as Francisco de Miranda, Simón Bolívar, and a heroic band of Trinidadians remembered as the Immortal 45.

From the Gates of Aksum (Softcover)

Genre Fiction

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