by Gudrun Bowers | 27, Nov 2019
We are delighted to welcome novelist Jess Kidd to Steyning, on Thursday 23rd January 2020, for a literary evening at the Gluck Studio.
Jess will be discussing her latest novel Things in Jars, alongside her previous novels, The Hoarder and Himself.
Jess Kidd has been praised for her unique fictional voice. She was brought up in London as part of a large family from County Mayo, and her work has been described as ‘Gabriel García Márquez meets The Pogues.’ Her debut, Himself, was shortlisted for the Irish Book Awards in 2016. She won the Costa Short Story Award the same year. Her second novel, The Hoarder (published as Mr. Flood’s Last Resort in the U.S.), was shortlisted for the Kerry Group Irish Novel of the Year 2019. Both books were BBC Radio 2 Book Club Picks. She is published by Canongate.
Jess is currently working on her fourth novel and first children’s book. She is also developing her own original TV projects with leading U.K. and international TV producers.
This is an event in conjunction with our bookshop bookgroups, which is also open to the public. ALL WELCOME
Public tickets are £10 this includes a paperback copy of Things in Jars (or another of Jess’s books) plus wine and nibbles.
by Gudrun Bowers | 7, Mar 2018
On Thursday April 19th at 7.30pm, join us for an intimate evening at the bookshop with novelist Catherine Chanter, who will be discussing her second novel The Half Sister.
Catherine visited us in Steyning to talk about her first novel The Well, which received widespread critical acclaim and was much enjoyed by all at the bookshop, and by our book groups. The Well was Winner of the Lucy Cavendish Prize in 2013, was a Richard and Judy Book Club Pick for Autumn 2015, and was long listed for the CWA John Creasy (New Blood) Dagger 2015.
So we are very pleased to welcome Catherine back to hear about The Half Sister, a compelling story of loss, grief, revenge and redemption. The novel follows estranged half sisters Diana and Valerie, who are reunited for their mother’s funeral but quarrel in bitter recrimination over past rivalries, setting off a tragic chain of events. It is a dark and finely nuanced study of moral uncertainties, and we are all looking forward to discussing it with her! Both novels are published by Canongate.
Catherine is a novelist and poet. She won a scholarship to read English Literature at Oxford and went on to work as a lobbyist, both in the UK and the USA. Somewhat disillusioned with the political process, she returned to England where she re-trained as a teacher and has since led education provision for vulnerable and excluded young people in a wide range of settings. She currently works for a charity which seeks to re-engage children with mental health problems with education.
Catherine has written for Radio 4 and had short stories and poetry published in many anthologies and publications. Her novella and short story collection Rooms of the Mind was published by Cinnamon Press in 2011. She has a Masters, with Distinction , in Creative Writing from Oxford Brookes University.
The event price is £8, which will include wine, nibbles, and a voucher towards purchasing the novel (£14.99 hardback)