Free for RSL Members who should log in to book, £5 for non-Members who can book here. 

Roger Robinson’s collection A Portable Paradise (Peepal Tree Press) won the 2020 RSL Ondaatje Prize, awarded to a distinguished work of fiction, non-fiction or poetry which best evokes the spirit of a place.  

Pascale Petit commented on the collection: ‘The spirit of place in this outstanding collection is the portable paradise of Trinidad in London. Roger Robinson’s profoundly moving book manages to balance anger and love, rage and craft. Every poem surprises with its imagery, emotional intensity and lyric power, whether dealing with Grenfell, Windrush, or a son’s difficult birth, which is also a tribute to a Jamaican nurse. This is a healing book, enabling us to conjure our own portable paradises.’  

Pascale and RSL Director Molly Rosenberg will lead an interactive book club on Zoom. Participants are invited, but not required, to keep their video on and contribute to the discussion, and there will also be a moderator relaying comments from the Chat function.  

Buy a copy of the book for £9.99 directly from Peepal Tree Press here. 

Pascale Petit is a poet, and won the RSL Ondaatje Prize in 2019 for her collection Mama Amazonica (Bloodaxe). Her latest collection Tiger Girl (Bloodaxe) is shortlisted for the 2020 Forward Prize for Best Collection.