Caribbean News
OCM Literary Prize Winner, Ayanna Lloyd Banwo of Trinidad & Tobago
By Rashaed Esson
Staff Writer
#Trinidad&Tobago, May 5, 2023 – Ayanna Lloyd Banwo, Trinidadian writer, won the OCM Boca’s Prize for Caribbean Literature with her debut novel “When We Were Birds.”
The award came with a cash prize of US$10,000, sponsored by One Caribbean Media.
The judges described Banwo’s book as “astounding, an ambitious tale that is part elegy, part ode.”
This is the second time, consecutively, a Trinidadian writer is winning the prize as Celeste Mohammed, with “Pleasantview,” also a debut book, won last year.
The announcement was made by Bernardine Evaristo, chief judge, at the award ceremony on Saturday April 29th during this year’s NGC Bocas Lit Fest.
“When We Were Birds” has been on a journey of success given its previous naming as one of the best debut novels of 2022 by the UK Observer.
Other accomplished writers were recognized at the ceremony.
Anthony Joseph, poetry winner was honoured for his, Sonnets for Albert and Ira Mathur, non-fiction winner, for her memoir Love the Dark Days.