Mel Cooke, Freelance Writer

Seretse small (left) and Wayne Armond perform 'Love has found its way' at Writing Home, the launch of five of Kwame Dawes' books at Redbones the Blues Café, Braemar Avenue on Thursday.

Before writer Kwame Dawes did the final reading at his quintuple book launch 'Writing Home' on Thursday evening, he noted that it would probably be an entertaining tale.

Passport Control, an excerpt from A Far Cry from Plymouth Rock: A Personal Narrative, proved to be a downright hilarious, laughter from the full house at Redbones the Blues Café, New Kingston, coming at shorter and shorter intervals as the Ghanian-born Dawes related his efforts to acquire a Jamaican passport when he was 21.

He could not breach the defences of a woman at the Passport Office, despite knowing "I was not just Jamaican; I was doing Jamaica proud."

At the end of the story Dawes said "despite it all I am still Jamaican." And as he said thanks all around to those who had a hand in his first book launch in Jamaica, he said "this means a lot to me. I cannot overstate that ... despite the passport office incident this is what tells me this is my place."

It was a place that he came to with a literally full hand of new books, all of which were presented to the public on Thursday. In addition to A Far Cry From Plymouth Rock: A Personal Narrative (Peepal Press'), there are three poetry collections, Wisteria: Twilight Poems from the Swamp Country (Red Hen Press), Impossible Flying (Peepal Tree Press) and 'Gomer's Song' (Black Goat/Akashic Books). Akashic Books had also published Dawes' first novel, She's Gone.

Acoustic rendition

It was fitting, then, that Wayne Armond did an acoustic rendition of Bob Marley's She's Gone, the second love song of the evening after he and Seretse Small had combined to open with Love Has Found Its Way.

With fellow Jamaica College past student and cricket team member Wayne Robinson a hilarious host, guest speaker Professor Carolyn Cooper noted that the last time she had been to the launch of five books simultaneously was 15 years ago at Devon House. Those books were by five different authors, though, and Cooper said "tonight is even more historic. We are in fact making quintiple history with the launching of five books by a single author."

Cooper commented on Dawes' "extraordinary vision and drive," noting that in his 23 published books to date he has crossed several genres, including poetry, drama, fiction and the memoir, in addition to his strictly academic writing.

"These are books that should be judged by their covers. The covers are exceptionally beautiful," Cooper said, concluding "Kwame, welcome home."

Many books

Kwame Dawes discusses one of his books with Fae Ellington during Writing Home, the launch of five of Dawes' books at Redbones the Blues Café, Braemar Avenue on Thursday. - photos by Winston Sill/Freelance Photographer

"Twenty-three books. That is many more books than most of us have read in a lifetime," Robinson quipped, to laughter.

Dawes read 'Legend', written for his brother, 'When Marxists Pray', written about is father, 'Fat Men' ("I am now a circle of errors. The fat has taken over") and 'Your Hands' (written for his mother from Impossible Flying. Fae Ellington read from Gomer's Song, delivering 'Rituals', 'The Courtyard' and 'Father', while Sabrena McDonald and Karl Williams did a reading of an exchange between Keisha and Kofi from She's Gone. At the end of the excerpt he demanded "talk! talk!" and she paused before saying "sometimes ..." and left it there, walking off the stage at Redbones.