Peepal Tree Press is a

publisher Publishing is the activity of making information, literature, music, software and other content available to the public for sale or for free. Traditionally, the term refers to the creation and distribution of printed works, such as books, newsp ...

based in Leeds, England which publishes Caribbean,

Black British Black British people are a multi-ethnic group of British citizens of either African or Afro-Caribbean descent.Gadsby, Meredith (2006), ''Sucking Salt: Caribbean Women Writers, Migration, and Survival'', University of Missouri Press, pp. 76– ...

, and

South Asian South Asia is the southern Subregion#Asia, subregion of Asia, which is defined in both geography, geographical and culture, ethno-cultural terms. The region consists of the countries of Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, ...

fiction,

non-fiction Nonfiction, or non-fiction, is any document or media content that attempts, in good faith, to provide information (and sometimes opinions) grounded only in facts and real life, rather than in imagination. Nonfiction is often associated with b ...

poetry Poetry (derived from the Greek '' poiesis'', "making"), also called verse, is a form of literature that uses aesthetic and often rhythmic qualities of language − such as phonaesthetics, sound symbolism, and metre − to evoke meanings ...

drama Drama is the specific Mode (literature), mode of fiction Mimesis, represented in performance: a Play (theatre), play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on Radio drama, radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a g ...

and

academic An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of secondary or tertiary higher learning (and generally also research or honorary membership). The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy, f ...

books. It was founded after a paper shortage in Guyana halted production of new books in the region, and was named after the sacred

peepal tree ''Ficus religiosa'' or sacred fig is a species of fig native to the Indian subcontinent and Indochina that belongs to Moraceae, the fig or mulberry family. It is also known as the bodhi tree, pippala tree, peepul tree, peepal tree, pipal tree, ...

s transplanted to the Caribbean with Indian indentured labourers, after founder Jeremy Poynting heard a story of workers gathering under the tree to tell stories. Peepal Tree is a wholly independent company, founded in 1985, and now publishes around 20 books a year. Peepal Tree Press has published more than 300 titles, and states a commitment to keeping them in print on their website. The list features new writers and established voices. In 2009 the press launched the Caribbean Modern Classics Series, which restores to print important books from the 1950s and 1960s. Peepal Tree Press is part-funded by Arts Council England and was included in their 2011, 2014 and 2018 National Portfolios (prior to this the company was a Regularly Funded Organisation from 2006). Peepal Tree Press is recognised also for Inscribe and Young Inscribe, a writer development project which supports emerging writers of African and Asian descent in the UK, which has included writers such as Adam Lowe, Degna Stone,

Khadijah Ibrahiim Khadijah Ibrahiim is a literary activist, theatre maker and writer from Leeds. She is the founder and artistic director of Leeds Young Authors, and executive producer of the documentary ‘We Are Poets’. She and her work have appeared on BBC Rad ...

Seni Seneviratne Seni was an ancient Egyptian official with the titles ''king's son of Kush'' (''Viceroy of Kush''), ''overseer of the southern countries'' and ''mayor of the southern city'' ( Thebes). He was in office under the kings Thutmosis I and Thutmosis ...

and Rommi Smith, who has been

Writer-in-Residence Artist-in-residence, or artist residencies, encompass a wide spectrum of artistic programs which involve a collaboration between artists and hosting organisations, institutions, or communities. They are programs which provide artists with space a ...

for the

Houses of Parliament The Palace of Westminster serves as the meeting place for both the House of Commons and the House of Lords, the two houses of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Informally known as the Houses of Parliament, the Palace lies on the north bank ...

, the

BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...

during the

Commonwealth Games The Commonwealth Games, often referred to as the Friendly Games or simply the Comm Games, are a quadrennial international multi-sport event among athletes from the Commonwealth of Nations. The event was first held in 1930 British Empire Game ...

BBC Music Live #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...

, the

British Council The British Council is a British organisation specialising in international cultural and educational opportunities. It works in over 100 countries: promoting a wider knowledge of the United Kingdom and the English language (and the Welsh la ...

California State University The California State University (Cal State or CSU) is a public university system in California. With 23 campuses and eight off-campus centers enrolling 485,550 students with 55,909 faculty and staff, CSU is the largest four-year public univer ...

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the wor ...

, and

Keats House Keats House is a writer's house museum in what was once the home of the Romantic poet John Keats. It is in Keats Grove, Hampstead, toward the edge of inner north London. Maps before about 1915 show the road with one of its earlier names, John ...

. Peepal Tree Press is a founding core partner in the

SI Leeds Literary Prize The SI Leeds Literary Prize is a biennial award founded in 2012 by Soroptimist International of Leeds (SI Leeds) – a branch of the worldwide women's organization Soroptimist International – for unpublished fiction written by Black and Asian wo ...

for unpublished fiction written by Black and Asian women resident in the UK. The focus of Peepal Tree Press is "on what

George Lamming George William Lamming OCC (8 June 19274 June 2022) was a Barbadian novelist, essayist, and poet. He first won critical acclaim for '' In the Castle of My Skin'', his 1953 debut novel. He also held academic posts, including as a distinguished ...

calls the Caribbean nation, wherever it is in the world", though the company is also concerned with

writing and

writers of British or Caribbean descent. The press is based in

Leeds Leeds () is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds district in West Yorkshire, England. It is built around the River Aire and is in the eastern foothills of the Pennines. It is also the thi ...

Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ; abbreviated Yorks), formally known as the County of York, is a historic county in northern England and by far the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its large area in comparison with other English counties, functions have ...

, part of the growing, independent publishing sector outside London. The head office is based at 17 King's Avenue, in Burley, "a rundown, multicultural part of Leeds". Peepal Tree Press has published, in various forms, such writers as

T. S. Eliot Prize The T. S. Eliot Prize for Poetry is a prize that was, for many years, awarded by the Poetry Book Society (UK) to "the best collection of new verse in English first published in the UK or the Republic of Ireland" in any particular year. The Pri ...

-winner Roger Robinson,

Booker Prize The Booker Prize, formerly known as the Booker Prize for Fiction (1969–2001) and the Man Booker Prize (2002–2019), is a literary prize awarded each year for the best novel written in English and published in the United Kingdom or Ireland. ...

-winner

Bernardine Evaristo Bernardine Anne Mobolaji Evaristo, (born 28 May 1959) is a British author and academic. Her novel '' Girl, Woman, Other'', jointly won the Booker Prize in 2019 alongside Margaret Atwood's '' The Testaments'', making her the first woman with Bla ...

Anthony Kellman Anthony Kellman (born 24 April 1955) is a Barbados-born poet, novelist, and musician. In 1990, the British publishing house Peepal Tree Press published his first full-length book of poetry, ''Watercourse'', which was endorsed by the late Martini ...

Emmy Award The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the calendar year, each with the ...

-winner

Kwame Dawes Kwame Senu Neville Dawes (born 28 July 1962) is a Ghanaian poet, actor, editor, critic, musician, and former Louis Frye Scudder Professor of Liberal Arts at the University of South Carolina. He is now Professor of English at the University of N ...

, his father

Neville Dawes Neville Dawes (16 June 1926 – 13 May 1984) was a novelist and poet born in Nigeria of Jamaican parentage. He was the father of poet and editor Kwame Dawes. Biography Neville Augustus Dawes was born in Warri, Nigeria, to Jamaican parents Augu ...

, Aldeburgh Poetry Prize-winner and

Forward Poetry Prize The Forward Prizes for Poetry are major British awards for poetry, presented annually at a public ceremony in London. They were founded in 1992 by William Sieghart with the aim of celebrating excellence in poetry and increasing its audience. The ...

-nominee

Christian Campbell Christian Bethune Campbell (born May 12, 1972) is a Canadian actor. He is known for his roles as Gabriel in the film '' Trick'', Greg Ivey in the television series '' Big Love'' and on stage as Jimmy Harper in the musical '' Reefer Madness''. ...

Jhalak Prize The Jhalak Prize for Book of the Year by a Writer of Colour is an annual literary prize awarded to British or British-resident BAME writers. £1,000 is awarded to the sole winner. The Jhalak Prize launched in 2016 and was created by writers Sunn ...

-winner

Jacob Ross Jacob Ross (born 1956) is a Grenada-born poet, playwright, journalist, novelist and creative writing tutor, based in the UK since 1984. Life and career Jacob Ross was born in Hope Vale on the Caribbean island of Grenada, where he attended the G ...

Christine Craig Christine Craig (born 24 June 1943) is a Jamaican writer living in Florida, United States. She has published collections of poetry and short stories, as well as children's fiction and several non-fiction works. Biography Christine Craig was bor ...

Opal Palmer Adisa Opal Palmer Adisa (born 6 November 1954) is a Jamaica-born award-winning poet, novelist, performance artist and educator. Anthologized in more than 400 publications, she has been a regular performer of her work internationally. Professor Emeritu ...

Angela Barry Angela Barry (''née'' Richards) is a Bermudian writer and educator. She spent more than 20 years living abroad – in England, France, The Gambia, Senegal and Seychelles – before returning to Bermuda, where she has primarily worked as a lec ...

Ishion Hutchinson Ishion Hutchinson is a Jamaican poet and essayist. Biography Hutchinson was born in Port Antonio, Jamaica. He received a BA from the University of the West Indies, an MFA from New York University, and completed graduate studies at the Unive ...

Dorothea Smartt Dorothea Smartt FRSL (born 1963) is an English-born poet of Barbadian descent. Biography The daughter of Caribbean immigrants from Barbados, Dorothea Smartt was born in London, England, and grew up there. She earned a BA degree in Social Sci ...

Alecia McKenzie Alecia McKenzie (born Kingston, Jamaica) is a Jamaican writer and journalist. Life She studied at Alpha Academy in Kingston, Troy University in Alabama, and Columbia University in New York, focusing on languages, art and journalism. At Troy Un ...

Una Marson Una Maud Victoria Marson (6 February 1905 – 6 May 1965) was a Jamaican feminist, activist and writer, producing poems, plays and radio programmes. She travelled to London in 1932 and became the first black woman to be employed by the BBC ...

Shivanee Ramlochan Shivanee Ramlochan (born 1986) is a Trinidadian poet, arts reporter and blogger. Her first collection of poems ''Everyone Knows I Am a Haunting'' was shortlisted for the 2018 Felix Dennis Prize for best first collection. Life Shivanee Ramloch ...

Jack Mapanje Jack Mapanje (born 25 March 1944)Patience Agbabi Patience Agbabi FRSL (born 1965) is a British poet and performer who emphasizes the spoken word.. Although her poetry hits hard in addressing contemporary themes, it often makes use of formal constraints, including traditional poetic forms. She ...

Linton Kwesi Johnson Linton Kwesi Johnson (born 24 August 1952), also known as LKJ, is a Jamaica-born, British-based dub poet and activist. In 2002 he became the second living poet, and the only black one, to be published in the Penguin Modern Classics series. His ...

Daljit Nagra Daljit Nagra (born 1966) is a British poet whose debut collection, ''Look We Have Coming to Dover!'' – a title alluding to W. H. Auden's ''Look, Stranger!'', D. H. Lawrence's ''Look! We Have Come Through!'' and by epigraph also to Matthew Arn ...

Grace Nichols Grace Nichols FRSL (born 1950) is a Guyanese poet who moved to Britain in 1977, before which she worked as a teacher and journalist in Guyana. Her first collection, ''I is a Long-Memoried Woman'' (1983), won the Commonwealth Poetry Prize. In ...

Lemn Sissay Lemn Sissay FRSL (born 21 May 1967) is a British author and broadcaster. Sissay was the official poet of the 2012 London Olympics, has been chancellor of the University of Manchester since 2015, and joined the Foundling Museum's board of trus ...

John Agard John Agard FRSL (born 21 June 1949 in British Guiana) is an Afro-Guyanese playwright, poet and children's writer, now living in Britain. In 2012, he was selected for the Queen's Gold Medal for Poetry.

Vahni Capildeo Vahni Anthony Ezekiel Capildeo (born Surya Vahni Priya Capildeo; born 1973) is a Trinidad and Tobago-born British writer, and a member of the extended Capildeo family that has produced notable Trinidadian politicians and writers (including V. ...

Raymond Antrobus Raymond Antrobus is a British poet, educator and writer, who has been performing poetry since 2007. In March 2019 he won the Ted Hughes Award for new work in poetry.Keith Jarrett,

Rishi Dastidar ''Rishi'' () is a term for an accomplished and enlightened person. They find mentions in various Vedic texts. Rishis are believed to have composed hymns of the Vedas. The Post-Vedic tradition of Hinduism regards the rishis as "great yogis" or ...

Gemma Weekes Gemma or GEMMA may refer to: People and fictional characters * Gemma (given name), includes a list of people and fictional characters with the name * Gemma (surname), includes a list of people with the name Science and technology Biology * G ...

Pete Kalu Pete or Petes or ''variation'', may refer to: People * Pete (given name) * Pete (nickname) * Pete (surname) Fictional characters * Pete (Disney), a cartoon character in the ''Mickey Mouse'' universe * Pete the Pup (a.k.a. 'Petey'), a charact ...

Maggie Harris Maggie is a common short form of the name Magdalena, Magnolia, Margaret. Maggie may refer to: People Women * Maggie Adamson, Scottish musician * Maggie Aderin-Pocock (born 1968), British scientist * Maggie Alderson (born 1959), Aust ...

Courttia Newland Courttia Newland (born 25 August 1973) is a British writer of Jamaican and Barbadian heritage. Background Born in 1973 in west London, to parents of Caribbean heritage, Newland grew up in Shepherd's Bush, where he became a rapper and music ...

Jackie Kay Jacqueline Margaret Kay, (born 9 November 1961), is a Scottish poet, playwright, and novelist, known for her works ''Other Lovers'' (1993), ''Trumpet'' (1998) and ''Red Dust Road'' (2011). Kay has won many awards, including the Guardian Fictio ...

Jan Shinebourne Jan Lowe Shinebourne (born 1947), also published as Janice Shinebourne, is a Guyanese novelist who now lives in England. In a unique position to be able to provide an insight into multicultural Caribbean culture, Shinebourne's is a rare and dist ...

, and

Kamau Brathwaite The Honourable Edward Kamau Brathwaite, Order of Barbados, CHB (; 11 May 1930 – 4 February 2020), was a Barbados, Barbadian poet and academic, widely considered one of the major voices in the Caribbean literary canon.Staff (2011)"Kamau Brathwai ...

. In November 2017, Peepal Tree Press was awarded the

Clarissa Luard Award The David Cohen Prize for Literature (est. 1993) is a British literary award given to a writer, novelist, short-story writer, poet, essayist or dramatist in recognition of an entire body of work, written in the English language. The prize is funde ...

for Independent Publishers, with plans announced to use the £10,000 prize money for a podcast project, ''New Caribbean Voices'' (inspired by the

BBC World Service The BBC World Service is an international broadcasting, international broadcaster owned and operated by the BBC, with funding from the Government of the United Kingdom, British Government through the Foreign Secretary, Foreign Secretary's o ...

's ''

Caribbean Voices ''Caribbean Voices'' was a radio programme broadcast by the BBC World Service from Bush House in London, England, between 1943 and 1958. It is considered "the programme in which West Indian literary talents first found their voice, in the early ...

'' radio show).

References

External links

Official website.

"AWP Conference: Peepal Tree Press Writer's Panel 5"
Dorothea Smartt reads, 4 February 2011, YouTube. {{Authority control Publishing companies of the United Kingdom Publishing companies established in 1985 Book publishing companies of the United Kingdom Companies based in Leeds 1985 establishments in England