I have a limited number of Handprint books for sale. If you wish to purchase any of them please contact me via books@merrisecrooks.com
Rocky Basic Readers Price: £25 plus £2 p&p |  |  |
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Each book has 24 pages of text and black and white photos, is bound in a stiff card cover with full colour phoptographs, and the size is 170mm x 205mm.
Rocky the Woodcarver
This book introduces Rocky and shows how he creates beautiful African influenced carvings.
Rocky’s Village
Introduces many of Rocky’s neighbours in the village of Lawson where he lives and works.
Rocky’s Tour
Rocky takes a trip from the capital Kingston in the east to the most westerly point of the island, Negril. Along the way we are given a brief introduction to some of Jamaica’s main towns, industry and agriculture.
Rocky’s Heroes
Jamaica has seven National Heroes and this book presents brief profiles of their history and achievements.
Rocky’s Top Ten
Brief profiles of the lives and work of ten of Jamaica’s best loved musicians and poets, including Bob Marley, Big Youth, Marcia Griffiths
- The books were designed and produced for use in Adult Education and schools. Tutors, students and general readers will appreciate:
- Clear layout and design which invites attention;
- Culturally relevant material of great interest to young black people;
- Beautiful and informative photographs;
- Comprehension exercises suitable for group work and students working on their own;
- Alphabetical word list
Handprint Jamal Heritage Readers Price: £25 plus £2 p&p |  |  |
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Series Editors: Merrise Crooks and Derek Bishton
The readers are bound in a stiff card cover with a full colour illustration by Joseph Olubu, and the size is 170mm x 205mm.
The Arawaks of Jamaica
Christopher Columbus did not ‘discover’ the Caribbean! There were people
living there for thousands of years before his arrival. This book gives a
fascinating insight into the lives, culture and history of the original
Caribbeans. (16 pages)
Written by Karl Phillpotts. Illustration by Colville Grant. Karl Phillpotts has written several books, including ‘In Jamaica Where I Live: And Other Stories’.
Nanny of the Maroons
Nanny was a military genius – a truly remarkable and brave woman who led the runaway slaves in Jamaica against the British soldiers for 50 years. Her amazing exploits led to her becoming Jamaica’s first National Heroine. (20 pages)
Written by Karl Phillpotts. Edited by Marjorie Gammon. Illustrated by Wilfred Limonious. Wilfred Luminious was a graphic artist who created many of the most memorable Jamaican reggae LP covers of the 1980s and early 1990s.
Tacky: Freedom fighter and folk hero
Tacky was a Koromantee from the Gold Coast (present day Ghana) area of West Africa who was forced into slavery and taken to Jamaica. In 1726 he led a revolt to free enslaved Africans in Jamaica. (16 pages)
Written by Mary Dixon. Edited by Inez M Grant. Illustrations by Lascelles Lee
Sam Sharpe and the Christmas Rebellion of 1831
Sam Sharpe is one of Jamaica’s National Heroes. He led more than 20,000 slaves in the greatest uprising Jamaica had ever witnessed. (16 pages)
Written by Mary Dixon. Edited by Inez M Grant. Illustrations by Patrick M Ramsaran
The Morant Bay rebellion: The story of George William Gordon and Paul Bogle
George William Gordon, a JP and Paul Bogle, a Baptist Minister could not bear to see the suffering endured in the post-emancipation period. Bogle led an uprising in 1865. Both men were hung, but their sacrifice changed the face of Jamaica politics. (20 pages)
Written by Mary Dixon. Edited by Inez M Grant. Illustration by Wilfred Limonious.
Survival magazine Price: £20 plus £2 p&p |  |
Survival Magazine and support materials
Survival Magazine is a 28-page A4 booklet designed in the format of a woman’s magazine, fully illustrated with photographs and drawings throughout, with a full colour cover. It presents topics such as fashion, child care, diet, literacy and health issues from an African Caribbean perspective. It was produced with the help of black women living and working in the Handsworth area, and was designed specifically for use in colleges, especially access courses. Handprint also produced a Notes for Tutors booklet outlining ways the material can be incorporated in to lesson plans to suit the needs of various literacy levels and teaching situations. Contributors include: Ifemu Omari, Pogus Caeser, Julia Shervington, Christine Seymour, John Reardon, Marcia Griffiths, and many others.
Beyond the Blackboard Price: £3 plus £1 p&p |  |
Beyond the Blackboard
Edited by Merrise Crooks
Beyond the Blackboard was published during the Birmingham Women’s Festival of 1991 and launched by the High Commissioner of Jamaica, the Hon Mrs. Ellen Gray Bogle. It is a 40-page A5 book with several black and white photographs. It collects together edited transcripts of the talks given at a conference at George Dixon Junior & Infant School, Birmingham the previous year around issues for parents, teachers and governors concerning black children and education, with an introduction by myself. The speakers were:
Moira Foster-Brown from Wattville Nursery and Infant School, who described her school and the way it is organised to ensure that all cultures are represented;
Oscar Stewart from the Multi-Cultural Support Services on parents’ rights and the Education Reform Act;
Gilroy Brown on the importance of creole in language development; Carlton Duncan on pastoral care, and the need for a fuller understanding of the cultural needs of black children;
Narghis Rashid on the role of governors, and training provision available.