It’s six months since the CRB relaunched online with a new website and a renewed sense of purpose — that purpose being the sustained and serious, insightful and intelligent, but also accessible and entertaining coverage of contemporary Caribbean books and writing alongside art, film, and music.

The CRB is the only magazine in the anglophone Caribbean devoted to this kind of broad literary and cultural criticism for a general audience. Since our relaunch, we’ve published three bimonthly issues — dated May, July, and September 2010 — filled with dozens of book reviews, as well as profiles and essays, original poems and fiction, interviews, artists’ portfolios, and film and music reviews. The full contents of each issue are freely available — there is no subscription fee — and we’re gradually transferring our six-year archive to the new website.

And what keeps the CRB engine running? The hard work of our small staff and our contributing writers. The generosity of the Prince Claus Fund for Culture and Development, who currently support the maintenance and growth of our website and archive. And you, dear readers.

The enthusiasm of our audience is the CRB’s chief motivation, but we also depend on you more tangibly. Our semi-anniversary is a good moment to ask you to show your support for the magazine with a donation.

The CRB’s operating costs are small, but real. Our budget maintains our website, covers basic administrative costs (like posting books to reviewers), and — most important — pays our contributors (modestly). The CRB is a registered non-profit, so we’re not in this for the money, but the magazine’s longevity does depend in part on our readers’ willingness to support us by dipping into their pockets.

If you’ve never donated to the CRB before, now is a good time to start. If you have donated in the past, I hope you’ll make it a regular habit. Our “support the CRB” page explains how you can chip in, with your credit card or otherwise.

Please take a couple of minutes to contribute to our donation drive — then take a couple more to spread the word to your friends and colleagues.