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London Book And Poetry Events: 29 May-4 June 2014

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Author appearances, poetry and spoken word events in London this week

Brixton Book Jam takes place on 2 June

Brixton Book Jam takes place on 2 June. Image: JimBob @ Lambeth country Show by Stuart Taylor.

Plan Ahead

STOKE NEWINGTON: Stoke Newington Literary Festival takes place in June, with literary salons, writer workshops, author talks and more. Full programme here. Tickets on sale now, prebook here6-8 June

KEATS FESTIVAL: Booking is now open for events at the Keats Festival 2014, celebrating 200 years since Keats wrote his first poem. See full programme and book tickets here7-15 June

FOYLES REOPENING: When Foyles on Charing Cross Road relocates to, er, further down Charing Cross Road, there will be a Grand Reopening Festival, with the likes of Hilary Mantel, Michael Palin and Jarvis Cocker. More information here. 11 June-5 July

SHORT STORY FESTIVAL: The first ever London Short Story Festival takes place in June, with panel events, workshops and masterclasses, author Q&As, readings and inspiring writing activities. 20-22 June

Thursday 29 May

PHOTOGRAPHY BOOK: Meet photographer Rhiannon Adam who will sign copies at the launch of her new book Dreamlands / Wastelands at The Photographer’s Gallery near Oxford Circus. Free, just turn up, 6.30pm

MEET THE AUTHOR: Head to Waterstone’s Chiswick to meet Sadie Jones, who will talk about her new book, Fallout. Her previous book won the Costa First Novel Award. 6pm

NORTH KOREA: Paul French, author of North Korea: State of Paranoia, is in conversation with Harriet Evans, professor of Chinese Cultural Studies, at Daunt Books on Fulham Road about North Korea’s history, politics and relationship with the rest of the world. £5, prebook, 7pm

MOUNT LONDON: A new anthology of writing looking at London’s high points launches tonight in Rough Trade East. Free, prebook, 7pm

FRENCH NOIR: To celebrate the revival of the noir genre, Daunt Books has teamed up with the Institut Francais to launch a new series of literary talks, ‘Noir Is the Colour’. The talks feature French authors of crime fiction and noir writing. Tonight’s launch event features Pierre Lemaitre and John Harvey, chaired by Barry Forshaw. £10/£8/£5, prebook, 7pm

WAR STORY: Waterstone’s Hampstead hosts an Evening with Thomas Harding, author of Hanns and Rudolf, an account of the capture of Rudolf Höss, one of the senior Nazi officials responsible for some of the greatest atrocities of World War Two. £6, prebook, 7pm

SALINGER MEMOIR: Joanna Rakoff is at Lutyens Rubinstein to talk about her book, My Salinger Year. The book, a memoir of her time working for the New York agent for author JD Salinger in the 1990s, and her task of replying to Salinger’s fan mail. £8, prebook, 7pm

JOHN HEGARTY: Waterstone’s Piccadilly hosts an evening with John Hegarty. The founding Creative Partner of Bartle, Bogle Hegarty (BBH), will be discussing his new book Hegarty on Creativity. Free, prebook, 7pm

ARTIST FURY: Siri Hustvedt is at London Review Bookshop to read from her latest novel, The Blazing World, which is the story of an artist furious at the lack of recognition she receives. There will also be a discussion about the themes of the book. £10, prebook, 7pm

ANTHOLOGY LAUNCH: The Emma Press launches The Emma Press Anthology of Fatherhood and John Clegg’s pamphlet Captain Love and the Five Joaquins, at the Tea House Theatre in Vauxhall. Free, just turn up, 7pm

READ FITTER: Andy Miller, author of Year of Reading Dangerously, is at The Bookseller Crow in Crystal Palace to encourage people to read themselves fitter. £3, prebook, 7.30pm

STAND UP POETRY: Bang Said The Gun, billed as ‘stand up poetry for people who don’t necessarily like poetry’ takes place at The Roebuck on Great Dover Street. Tonight’s perfumers are Elvis McGonagall and Tolonda Henderson. £7/£5, just turn up, 8pm

HOWL 2.0: Poejazzi at Camden Roundhouse is a reimagining of Allen Ginsberg’s well known poem, Howl. Spoken word artists perform the poem to a backdrop of visual art and music. £12.50, prebook, 8pm. Repeated tomorrow.

Friday 30 May

SOUTHWARK CATHEDRAL: Reverend Mpho Tutu, daughter of Archbishop Desmond Tutu is at Southwark Cathedral in discussion with BBC Broadcaster Diane Louise Jordan about The Book of Forgiving, which she wrote jointly with her father. £10, prebook, 6.45pm

PHILIPP MEYER: Waterstone’s Trafalgar Square hosts an evening with Philipp Meyer, author of The Son, to discuss the novel. £5/£3, prebook, 7pm

POETRY MAGAZINE: The launch of South Bank Poetry Magazine takes place at Poetry Cafe today with poets including Paul Stephenson, Sarah Gibbons, Robert Peake, Ellen Cranitch and Ian McEwen all doing readings. £6.50/£5.50, just turn up, 7.3opm

SHORT STORIES: Lorrie Moore is at Southbank Centre to read from Bark, her first collection of short stories in 15 years. £10, prebook, 7.45pm

Saturday 31 May

SONNETS WEEKEND: Southbank Centre holds a drop-in workshop for people of all ages to have a go at creating their own poetry in several media, including sewing, based on the work of Shakespeare. Free, just turn up, 11am-5pm

A STREET CAT NAMED BOB: Waterstone’s Covent Garden is giving customers a chance to meet James Bowen, author of A Street Cat Named Bob, and the eponymous cat too. They will sign copies of their new picture book My Name is Bob. Free, just turn up (get there early to avoid disappointment), 11am

FOOTBALL BOOK: Housmans book shop hosts the launch of The Football Crónicas, a collection of short stories from Latin America in the lead-up to the World Cup. Proceeds from the book go to charity. Free, just turn up, 6.30pm

BOOK LAUNCH: Norman Finkelstein holds the UK launch of his new book, Old Wine, Broken Bottle: Ari Shavit’s Promised Land, at Conway Hall. The book is a take-down book of Ari Shavit’s My Promised Land. £3, just turn up, 7pm

Sunday 1 June

SHAKESPEARE’S SONNETS: Southbank Centre hosts a reading of every one of Shakespeare’s 154 sonnets, to celebrate the 450th anniversary of Shakespeare’s birth. £10-£25, prebook, 5pm. Alternatively, there is a free performance by Hip Hop Shakespeare of the Bard’s sonnets reimagined for a 21st century audience. Free, just turn up, 12pm. Other Shakespeare themed events going on at Southbank Centre today include Iron Tongue of Midnight and The People’s Sonnets.

TORRIANO POETS: At this week’s Torriano Poets meeting, Hilda Sheehan and Janet Sutherland read their poetry, introduced by Linda Black. £5/£4, just turn up, 7.30pm

Monday 2 June

WRITER ADVICE: Receive advice on getting your novel published from a panel of experts, chaired by bestselling novelist Kate Mosse. Takes place at Southbank Centre. £10, prebook, 6.30pm

CHILDREN’S CLASSICS: Save The Story at London Review Bookshop is a series of events which commissions well-known writers to rewrite classics for children. Jonathan Coe and Alessandro Baricco will be at the shop to present their new versions, respectively, of Gulliver’s Travels and Don Juan. £10, prebook, 7pm

BOOK JAM: Brixton Book Jam returns to Hootananny Brixton, with readings, talks and other literary happenings with contributions from Elizabeth Aaron, Doug E Graves, Joshua Idehen, Will Wiles and more. Free, just turn up, 7.30pm

D-DAYLondon Jewish Cultural Centre hosts Antony Beevor, author of D-Day: The Battle for Normandy, which shows the darker side of the D-Day victories. £12/£15, prebook, 8pm

Tuesday 3 June

IRISH WRITING: London Metropolitan University’s Irish Writing Course begins today, with set Irish texts under discussion and the authors in attendance. Ongoing

SHORLISTED WORK: The shortlisted authors for the Bailey’s Women’s Prize for Fiction read their work at Southbank Centre. £10, prebook, 6.30pm

ANNE FRANK: Eva Schloss, Holocaust survivor and stepsister of Anne Frank is at Waterstone’s Hampstead to talk about her new autobiographical book, After Auschwitz. £5, prebook, 7pm

HOLLOWAY ARTS FESTIVAL: As part of Holloway Arts Festival, an evening of author readings by Chris Chalmers, Martina Evans, Melissa Harrison, Robert Minhinnick and Helen Smith takes place at Sacred Cafe on Hornsey Street. Free, prebook, 7pm

TRUE IDENTITY: Joshua Ferris is at Daunt Books in Marylebone to talk about his new comic novel, To Rise Again at a Decent Hour, about a New York dentist who faces a dilemma about his online identity and real identity. £8, prebook, 7pm

Wednesday 4 June

PHARMAPOETICA: Head to Poetry Cafe for a Pharmapoetica Workshop & Tea Tasting with poet Chris McCabe and herbalist Maria Vlotides, whose work has been shortlisted for the Ted Hughes Award for New Work in Poetry. £5/£4, prebook, 4pm

PUBLISHING CELEBRATION: Smokestack Books celebrates a decade of publishing with a showcase of Smokestack authors at Southbank Centre. Taking part are Judith Kazantzis, Richard Skinner and Martin Rowson. Free, prebook, 8pm

Follow @LondonistLit for our pick of that day’s literary events.


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