Jamaican children’s author, Diane Browne, recently won The Story for Children special prize in the 2011 Commonwealth Short Story Competition, for her entry The Happiness Dress.
A children’s author and literary blogger, Brown has worked with Heinemann Caribbean, the Ministry of Education in Jamaica and on International educational projects. Her work has been published in Jamaica, the UK and the USA. She has won awards in Jamaican literary competitions and been recognized with a Musgrave Medal from the Institute of Jamaica. Her stories celebrate children’s potential to be the heroes and heroines of their own lives.
Commenting on her win on her blog, Brown said, “My reaction has caught me unawares. I admit that I am delighted and overwhelmed at getting this award, and overwhelmed at the number of persons who have congratulated me and their congratulations have been truly sincere and lovely. I’m pleased that people are happy for me. And I am giving thanks.”
She said she was honoured to receive the prize, adding that she hopes it will be a catalyst for increased interest and support for the genre, and provide children with greater access to local and Caribbean children’s books.
June 9th, 2012 at 3:37 pm
Hi Diane,
I saw my name on your site and thought I should pass on some books from my family. The first books in my Jamaican family were written by my grandfather Herbert Theodore Thomas 1856 to 1930-”Untrodden Jamaica”1890, “Something about Obeah”1891, “The story of a West Indian Policeman”1927 & my autobiography “A Struggle to Walk with Dignity-The True Story of a Jamaican-born Canadian”2008. These books are not in Jamaica, as Jamaican’s do not want to know about their past. However the UK have all these books that are hard to find in some cases. For all the info on my grandfather: Google-User Pages;Jamaican Police Inspector Herbert T. Thomas. All the best for the Future. Gerald.