Book Grocer: 16-22 May

Rachel Holdsworth
By Rachel Holdsworth Last edited 142 months ago
Book Grocer: 16-22 May

Book, poetry and spoken word events in London this week

Wednesday: Not So Popular and Map Poetry present readings for just a pound at The Book Club (7pm, £1).

It's European Literature Night at the British Library. Catch nine groundbreaking writers from across the continent speaking about and reading from their work (6.30pm, £7.50).

Four debut authors – Will Wiles, Patrick Flanery, Rachel Joyce and Anna Raverat – are talking about going from dream to reality at Waterstones Piccadilly (6.30pm, £5 / £3).

The Asia House Festival of Asian Literature is under way. Tonight Kwasi Kwarteng considers the British Empire (7.30pm, £10 / £8).

Thursday: Mark Haddon chats about his new book The Red House at Waterstones Piccadilly (7pm, £5 / £3).

VG Lee reads from her latest novel Always You, Edina and Will Davis reads from his latest, The Trapeze Artist, at Gay's the Word (7pm, free).

Leo Benedictus and Gaby Hinsliff join Scott Pack and Marie Phillips for cake and chat about books and random things at the Firestation Book Swap (7.45pm, £5 or free with homemade cake).

Alistair Noon, Nia Davies, Edward Mackay and Andrew Frolish take part in a poetry rodeo at Big Green Bookshop (7pm, free).

Mark Grist, Mixy and Paula Varjack are the guests at Bang Said the Gun's stand-up poetry night in SE1 (8pm, £5).

Romesh Gunesekera, Roshi Fernando and Shehan Karunatilaka talk to George Alagiah about Sri Lankan writing at the Festival of Asian Literature (7pm, £10 / £8).

Friday: We're in the middle of inhaling Bring Up The Bodies, the sequel to Hilary Mantel's award winning Wolf Hall. Hear her talk about it at the Southbank Centre (7.30pm, £15 / £12).

The Ways with Words festival starts today, all events take place in Holland Park. Highlights include AS Byatt (6pm, £12), Maureen Lipman (2.30pm, £12) and John McCarthy and Sandi Toksvig (11am, £12).

Jasmine Ann Cooray, Peter Ebsworth, Frances White and Patric Cunnane are the Dodo Modern Poets at the Poetry Cafe (8pm, £6 / £5).

Saturday: The Swan and Edgar pub is the venue for a novel diner, with food themed around Donna Tartt's book The Secret History. The menu includes morels on sourdough, Julian’s lamb, leeks and fennel and marmalade cheesecake (£40).

Catch Jeremy Paxman, Bettany Hughes, Gavin Pretor-Pinney, Alain de Botton and Jung Chang at the Ways with Words festival in Holland Park (see website for times and prices).

There's free storytelling for children at the Festival of Asian Literature, from Xanthe Gresham and Shahrukh Husain Shackle (11am / 1pm).

Leigh Russell and Howard Linskey head to Chipping Barnet library for a criminal talk during Murderous May (2.30pm, free).

Caroline Carver launches her latest collection, Tikki Tikki Man, at the Poetry Cafe (7.30pm).

Sunday: Are You Sitting Comfortably? Then White Rabbit will begin a storytelling evening about secrets at the Wandsworth Arts Festival (8pm, £8).

Back in Holland Park for the final day of Ways with Words, you can see AA Gill, Evan Davis, PD James and Penelope Lively, Tony Benn and Andrew Marr (see website for times and prices).

Monday: Kate Summerscale talks about her new book, Mrs Robinson's Disgrace (based on a real Victorian woman's diary), at the Southbank Centre (7.45pm, £10).

Philip Hensher and Tahmima Anam discuss the Bangladeshi novel at the Royal Society of Literature, Somerset House (limited non-member tickets available on the door from 6pm, £8).

Nick Laird and Maura Dooley read the translated work of Persian poets Reza Mohammadi and Azita Ghahreman at the Festival of Asian Literature (6.45pm, £8 / £7).

Coffee House Poetry celebrates the life of Peter Redgrove with Penelope Shuttle, Katrina Naomi, Pascale Petit and Alan Brownjohn (8pm, £7 / £6).

Tuesday: Join Londonist's M@ and authors Christopher Fowler, Craig Taylor and Tom Jones for an evening of London book chat at Deptford Lounge (7pm, free).

Literary agent Lorella Belli is the speaker at this month's London Writers' Club (7pm, £15 / £20).

Andrea Stuart, Lawrence Norfolk and Esther Freud are at the Bloomsbury Institute to help Granta launch its Britain issue (6.30pm, £10 / £5 / £7 Granta subscribers).

Peter Popham, Rani Singh, Mukulika Banerjee and Jane Macartney discuss women, power and politics at the Festival of Asian Literature (6.45pm, £10 / £8).

Try out your own stuff at the Poetry Cafe's open mic night, hosted by Niall O'Sullivan (7.30pm, £5 / £4).

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

Last Updated 16 May 2012