Book group meeting Wednesday 23rd November at the “Old Punchbowl Inn” in Warwick.

The book we were discussing at this meeting is “The Book of Human Skin” which definitely divided the group into two clear camps. Some people found the subject matter and the main character so repulsive that they felt they could not carry on reading. Those who finished the book found it fascinating and thoroughly enjoyed it. Quite a few of the group had not quite finished the book, but the period is fascinating, characters cleverly drawn, with the main, evil character being about the most repulsive person imaginable, and there is also a touch of humour to lighten even the most grotesque passages

“The Book of Human Skin” is a large volume with many pages of villainy writ upon it. There are people who are a disease, you know. 13 May, 1784, Venice: Minguillo Fasan, heir to the decaying, gothic Palazzo Espagnol, is born. Yet Minguillo is no ordinary child: he is strange, devious and all those who come near him are fearful. Twelve years later Minguillo is faced with an unexpected threat to his inheritance: a newborn sister, Marcella. His untempered jealousy will condemn his sister to a series of fates as a cripple, a madwoman and a nun. But in his insatiable quest to destroy her, he may have underestimated his sister’s ferocious determination, and her unlikely allies who will go to extraordinary lengths to save her…”

Despite the divisions, most of the group would recommend this book to a friend…..

There will be no meeting in December, so the next meeting is on Wednesday 18^th January at 6.00pm at the Puchbowl Inn in Warwick. We will be discussing a recommendation by Maureen: “The Missing” by Tim Gautreaux isbn 9780340977958. Set in Louisiana and featuring a slow trip up the Mississippi, this is the story of a kidnapped child and the man trying to find her. ‘Gautreaux writes with sustained grace and creates memorable characters . . . What really sets ‘The Missing’ apart, though, is his remarkable ability to realise the period . . . a rare and rather uncanny achievement: a novel about the South in the early Twenties that reads as though it was actually written there and then’ (John Dugdale, Literary Review )

‘Full of vivid evocations of the sights, sounds and smells of the South. As Simoneaux pursues his morally driven detective mission the scent of the steaming mud of the cypress swamps and the sound of 1920s New Orleans jazz rise off the page’ (Claire Prentice, Scotsman )

Writing Radio Drama with Peter Leslie Wild

A series of four one-day workshops

31 March, 28 April, 26 May, 30 June (10am – 4pm)

The Friends’ Meeting House, 39 High Street, Warwick, CV34 1AX

Radio Drama is the biggest commercial market for dramatists in the world. For many years the preserve of the BBC, audio plays are now cropping up on websites, as podcasts and via other digital outlets. So what makes a good radio/audio play? How is a radio script different from a screenplay or a theatre script? How do you begin to write a radio play?

These four entertaining and informative workshops will help the participants to analyse in depth what makes a good radio play, using examples from recently broadcast dramas. We will look closely at existing scripts and examine what makes them work in terms of audio production. Above all, we will look at how to translate a good idea into a workable, engaging and marketable radio drama script.

Participants will have the chance to develop their own scripts, and will be challenged to come up with a workable radio drama.

Over the four weeks there will be opportunities for participants to hear their work read aloud, and for members to exchange feedback with fellow course members and the Course Leader.

As well as looking at BBC Radio Dramas, we will also be examining the expanding market for audio drama on the internet, and seeking strategies for marketing plays beyond the obvious and traditional routes.

This is a hands-on series of workshops, aimed at writers of all levels who are serious about developing their skills in writing drama for radio.

Peter Leslie Wild is a freelance audio and theatre director, producer and script editor. He was Senior Producer for BBC Radio Drama for 16 years, and his work includes five series of Lindsey Davis’s Falco, plays by Stephen Poliakoff, Steve Waters and David Edgar, the Classic Serial version of Robinson Crusoe (all BBC Radio 4), three sci-fi series and several episodes of The Man in Black for BBC Radio 4 Extra. He has also directed many episodes of The Archers. Peter’s work has twice won the prestigious Prix Marulic.

Peter has recently written and produced a creative audio tour of the birthplace of Thomas Andrews, the designer of the Titanic, as part of the centenary commemorations in Northern Ireland. He has also recently run workshops in Nairobi for the Commonwealth Broadcasting Association, for Birmingham University, Aberystwyth University and de Montfort University at undergraduate and post-graduate level. His podcasts for Monty Funk Productions are available online. In the theatre he recently directed The Wicked Lady for Birmingham University, and is Artistic Director of the 2013 Chester Mystery Cycle in Chester Cathedral.

To book/for further details contact jeanette-sheppard@ntlworld.com

Total price for the course is £160 and is payable at the time of booking. Please note it is not possible to book the days separately. Lunch is not included. There are only 10 places available.

 Saturday January 21st 11-12.30 at Kenilworth Books

This is a second edition of a book written for adults with dyslexic difficulties and those around them and has just been published by local author Vicki Goodwin.
It is a practical guide to the world of study and work for anyone with dyslexia – or for those around them who want to support them.

 ”I will be there to answer any questions or queries you may have about dyslexia and the book. The book offers chapters on the nature of dyslexia, reading and writing, self-esteem and motivation, numbers, memory and organisation. It concentrates on developing strategies for every-day life, work and study. I work as a dyslexia consultant mainly with adults and older students since taking early retirement from the Open University. You can contact me on  v.goodwin1@yahoo.co.uk“

Booker Short List Best Selling author Emma Donoghue gave a talk about her book ‘Room’ at Warwick Library on Tuesday 15th February at 7pm as part of our ‘Meet The Author’ series.

Emma gave a short reading from her novel and then took questions which were sprayed at her from all angles as there had been tremendous interest in the book, and lots of book group members were present. Each question gave Emma the chance to revela a little more about ‘Room’, why she had written it, what research went into it, how it was constructed, and more background than we had the right to expect. The talk was given with tremendous zest and enthusiasm by a writer who was clearly on top of her game. Everyone took to Emma and thoroughly enjoyed the evening which was rounded off by her signing copies of the book. Some signed copies are now available at the shops.

This was a wonderful start to our ‘Meet The Author’ programme and just under 150 people attended…….we can safely say that there was more prior interest in this event than any other we have held. We are very grateful to Macmillan and  of course to Emma.

Jack is five. He lives with his Ma. They live in a single, locked room. They don’t have the key.

Jack and Ma are prisoners.

‘This book will break your heart . . . It is the most vivid, radiant and beautiful expression of maternal love I have ever read’ Irish Times

‘Startlingly original and moving . . . Endearing and as utterly compelling as THE LOVELY BONES’ Scotsman

‘I’ve never read a more heart-burstingly, gut wrenchingly compassionate novel . . . As for sweet, bright, funny Jack, I wanted to scoop him up out of the novel and never let him go’ Daily Mail

‘In the hands of this audacious novelist, Jack’s tale is more than a victim-and-survivor story: it works as a study of child development, shows the power of language and storytelling, and is a kind of sustained poem in praise of motherhood and parental love….’ The Observer

‘…as a life-affirming fable of parent-child love, and an antidote to the prurience of so much crime fiction, it’s a triumph, and deserves to be a hit.’ Daily Telegraph

‘This is a truly remarkable novel. It presents an utterly unique way to talk about love, all the while giving us a fresh, expansive eye on the world in which we live’ New York Times Book Review

Born in 1969, Emma Donoghue is an Irish writer who lives in Canada. Her fiction includes includes the bestselling Slammerkin.

On November 2, 2010, it was announced that Donoghue’s ’Room’ had been awarded the Rogers Writers Trust Fiction Prize.’Room’ is also shortlisted for the2010 Governor General’s Award in Canada and was the winner of the Irish Book Award 2010.

This event was sponsored by Warwick Books and Warwick Library and the event was FULLY BOOKED. We are very grateful indeed for the support of Emma’s publisher Macmillan in arranging this event.

Little Red Riding Hood

Sunday 20 February 11 30am Bridge House Theatre Warwick

An Ideal Morning for 5 to 11 year olds……with Ensemble 360 & narrator Polly Ives

Roald Dahl understood what made children tick, so I reckon he would have approved of this stunning adaptation of his Little Red Riding Hood…Unmissable”  Daily Mail

“The small girl smiles. One eyelid flickers. She whips a pistol from her knickers”.

 Ensemble 360 and narrator Polly Ives are back, this time to perform Paul Patterson’s brilliant musical adaptation of Roald Dahl’s Little Red Riding Hood. Taken from Revolting Rhymes this is ideal for Key Stages 1 and 2 but is also a witty and inspiring treat for adults.

 After the concert, meet the musicians in the foyer for more musical mischief!

And why not come dressed as the wicked Wolfie, Grandmama or Miss Hood?

Tickets £7.50 adults, £3 children in stalls and £6 adults and £2.50 children in gallery from www.bridgehousetheatre.co.uk or call 01926 776438