New Beacon Books

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New Beacon Books
StatusOpen Tuesday-Saturday 11am - 6pm (Thursday 11am - 8pm)
Founded1966; 58 years ago (1966)
FoundersJohn La Rose (1927–2006), Sarah Swinburne White (1941–2022)
Country of originUnited Kingdom
Headquarters location76 Stroud Green Road
London, N4 3EN
Nonfiction topicsBlack culture; Black British, Caribbean, African, African-American and Asian literature
Official websitehttps://www.newbeaconbooks.com/

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.

History[edit]

New Beacon Books in June 2023

New 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[edit]

In 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[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ Donnell 2002, p. 299.
  2. ^ a b c d Phillips 2011.
  3. ^ a b Sankar 1996.
  4. ^ a b Alleyne 2002, p. 41.
  5. ^ Johnson 2006.
  6. ^ Walmsley 1992, pp. 90–91.
  7. ^ Busby, Margaret (16 February 2022). "Sarah White obituary". The Guardian.
  8. ^ a b Alleyne 2002, p. 42.
  9. ^ Walmsley 1992, p. 90.
  10. ^ Palmer, Carl (15 August 2016), "UK's First Black Publisher And Bookshop Celebrates 50th Year", The Voice.
  11. ^ Bidisha (6 December 2016), "Beacon of hope: The tiny bookshop that gave a big voice to black writers", BBC – Arts.
  12. ^ a b "The Story of New Beacon Books". New Beacon Books. Retrieved 30 November 2019.
  13. ^ Gelder, Sam (8 August 2017). "Finsbury Park's New Beacon Books set to begin new chapter this weekend". Islington Gazette. Retrieved 30 November 2019.
  14. ^ "New Beacon Bookshop Launch". Shades of Noir. University of the Arts, London. 16 November 2017. Retrieved 29 January 2023.
  15. ^ Ambrose, Tom (29 December 2021). "Dismay as UK's first specialist black bookshop forced to close". The Guardian. Retrieved 29 December 2021.
  16. ^ Ambrose, Tom (1 January 2022). "UK's first black bookshop weighs move to new site after £50k raised to save it". The Guardian.
  17. ^ New Beacon Books website.
  18. ^ Schofield, Blanca (10 January 2022). "New Beacon Books: Finsbury Park shop escapes closure after Crowdfunding campaign". Islington Gazette. Retrieved 11 January 2022.
  19. ^ Wood, Heloise (4 January 2022). "New Beacon Books saved after crowdfunder raises £76k within days". The Bookseller.

Sources[edit]

Further reading[edit]

External links[edit]

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