Sun, sand and a Booker winner as Jamaica revels in its literary festival

Calabash, the beachside event that gave Marlon James his big break, is an exuberant Caribbean version of Hay

In Britain, literary festivals ply their trade in tents, church halls and dusty hotel ballrooms. At Calabash in Jamaica – a festival that rivals Hay, Bath and Cheltenham – the action takes place on Treasure Beach under a tropical sun, in a profusion of Caribbean largesse.

Calabash is free, in all senses, and especially for its audience which this weekend will number between 3,000 and 4,000. Festivalgoers have been making their way here from all over Jamaica, especially Kingston and Montego Bay, by bus, taxi, car and moped. Backpackers, beach bums, drifters and seraphic Rastafarians mingle with mystified tourists, film producers and government ministers in a littoral detonation of cultural excitement.

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