The Hay Festival programme is out. Details arrived by email on Saturday, which is fortunate as the next letter of the A-Z writing challenge is H.
The Hay Literature Festival is more than a book event. It is two weeks of stimulation and reflective entertainment. This year the dates are 26 May to 5 June
We are not going to make the trip to Wales, but that does not stop me looking through the programme and highlighting writers, drooling over books, and soaking up ideas.
Here are a few events, just in the history section, that caught my eye.
The 2015 Nobel Literature Laureate talks about Russia and the USSR. Her Nobel citation was for “her polyphonic writings, a monument to suffering and courage in our time.”
The director and writer of this documentary introduce a special screening of the film in which Sands, a human rights lawyer, conducts conversations with two men, Niklas Frank and Horst von Wächter, whose fathers were indicted as war criminals for their roles in the Second World War.
Philippe Sands THE ERIC HOBSBAWM LECTURE: EAST WEST STREET: ON THE ORIGINS OF GENOCIDE AND CRIMES AGAINST HUMANITY Event 117 • • Venue: Llwyfan Cymru – Wales Stage
The lawyer and writer explores how personal lives and history are interwoven. Drawing from his acclaimed new book – part historical detective story, part family history, part legal thriller – he explains the connections between his work on crimes against humanity and genocide, the events that overwhelmed his family during the Second World War, and an untold story at the heart of the Nuremberg Trial. Chaired by Helena Kennedy.
Maggie Andrews THE ‘ACCEPTABLE FACE OF FEMINISM’: 100 YEARS OF THE WOMEN’S INSTITUTE – UNIVERSITY OF WORCESTER SERIES Event 206 • • Venue: Llwyfan Cymru – Wales Stage
The WI is fondly thought of in terms of ‘jam and Jerusalem’, but its roots are intertwined with the women’s suffrage movement and the many campaigns that have sought to articulate the needs of women since the First World War. The Professor of Cultural History will explore the political and social initiatives that helped define the radical organisation.
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I won’t add any more; else I will end up with most of the history section.
We have not been to “Hay” for a few years. If we were in the UK, we would probably go, but the pull to travel is not great enough, which is our loss, I guess.
The last time we went Jim saw Alan Bennett from a distant seat in a large tent. I sat in the Festival Cafe with a couple of other people who had not paid £25 to hear and see the man in the flesh, present his funny and fabulous talk. Fortunately for them and me, the organisers broadcast an up-close presentation of what was happening in the main tent, onto a screen in the cafe. When Jim came out of the packed tent, he said, “you should have come, it was great.” I grinned and said, “I know.”
I do hope the organisers record more of the presentations, so the Hay sparkle is shared without the journey.
We are now in Rio, in Santa Teresa in the Bianca guest house which overlooks Sugar Loaf mountain. From my window I can see the cable car going from one side of the mountain to another mountain. Having seen the plumbing and the electricity cables hanging precariously all over Brazil, I wonder how that…
The upcoming writing workshop on Monday, 29 February 2:30 pm at Tavira library will consider the joint themes of outline and editing. Over the last few weeks, we have looked at scene, dialogue, description character and more. The last workshop focused on descriptive exercises within a scene. Some timed writing exercises were attempted, completed and shared….
As I write this, it is raining in Paraty. It is still beautiful, but its cold. The weather also occupied the mind of one of the writers I saw on day 5. Hanif Kureishi, (English mother, Pakistani father), grew up in Britain in the 1970’s. He said he “started writing to stop going mad”. He…
One of the liveliest sessions of Flipside, was created by the presence of Will Self. Having been asked about their books, Bernardo Carvalho and Will Self shared their thoughts on identity. Will explained that he enjoyed exploring women characters “as he is not a very manly man”. “It is like shape shifting to explore the…
Fifteen Swedish writers will visit Tavira from 12-19 November 2016 for a week of literary and networking events. Barbara Fellgiebel from Algarve Literature Friends Association (ALFA) will lead the published writers who are planning to share some creative moments with locals. This includes readings and having fun! A Swedish Literary Salon in Moncarapacho has been…
Dr. Campbell Price, the Curator of Egypt and the Sudan at The Manchester Museum is in the Algarve this week, hosted by the AAA, the Archaeological Association. He spoke to an intrigued audience, highlighting how science is revealing what is under the wraps of mummies without having to unwind the ancient linen bandages. The Manchester…
One Comment
Oh, thanks. Now you’ve made me drool and wish I could go to Wales. 🙂
Rebecca at The Ninja Librarian
Oh, thanks. Now you’ve made me drool and wish I could go to Wales. 🙂
Rebecca at The Ninja Librarian