Petronella Breinburg

Biography Breinburg, of mixed European and African heritage, was born in Suriname in 1927. Her father, a policeman, died when she was 12 and the family – there were six children – went to live with her grandmother, near an old Dutch plantation. This grandmother used to terrify the children with tales about the old Dutchman who had owned the plantation.

Influenced by a lineage of storytellers, Breinburg enjoyed writing from a young age, winning local competitions from the age of eight and writing her first play at 13. She was educated at St. Rosa and St. Margaret's Convent in Suriname, before training as a teacher.

After emigrating to Guyana with her husband, she gave birth to two children. Breinburg was a supply teacher in London, where her experience of racism and representation shaped her writing. She was then appointed to Goldsmiths' University of London, where she was a senior lecturer and head of the Caribbean Centre. Breinburg published books for children, teenagers, and for adults. She also wrote a number of plays and poetry.

Breinburg died on 5 November 2019, aged 92.

Publications Legends of Suriname (1971) My Brother Sean (1973) Us Boys of Westcroft (1975) Doctor Sean (1975) Sean's Red Bike (1976) A Girl, Frog and Petticoat (1977) One Day, Another Day (1977) Sally-Ann's Umbrella (1977) Sally-Ann in the Snow (1977) Sally-Ann's Skateboard (1979) Tiger, Paleface and Me (1979). Nippers series. Brinsly's Dream (1980) Stories From The Caribbean (1999) Jeremia and The Trumpet Man (2004) Instead of Roses and Rings (2005) Thoughts of a Creole Woman: A Reminiscence (2006) A Long Road to Salamanca (2007) Goodasyu: Crescendo (2011) Out of a Coloured Box: The Broken Shoes Tale (2015)