It's back! Like a short, sharp stab to the veins, the Stoke Newington Literary Festival is here again to inject you with wordy goodness over just one weekend (6-8 June).
Now in its fifth year, Stokey LitFest has managed to establish itself as one of the most fun and packed literary festivals in the capital. We are, clearly, big fans. There are events happening all over the area from launch at 7pm on Friday to close late on Sunday — often several at once, so you could find yourself torn between what to see. For example, at 1pm on Sunday you can choose between hip-hop Shakespeare, food writers and a sci-fi vs fantasy debate. We can't help you with that decision. But we can highlight some of the events that are making us quite excited:
- The opening gala on Friday features Mark Kermode and Arts Emergency with Josie Long and some of the finest spoken word performers around, including Nikesh Shukla and Joe Dunthorne (£10, 7pm)
- On Saturday, learn about maths with Alex Bellos (£5, 12.30pm), the Georgians with Lucy Inglis (£5, 3pm) and alternative London with Gareth Rees and John Rodgers (£5, 3pm)
- Andy Miller talks about his book The Year of Reading Dangerously with Stewart Lee on Saturday (£6, 8pm)
- Literary parties with Literary Death Match on Saturday (£8, 9pm) and Litro Live! on Sunday (£5, 8pm)
- On Sunday, hear AL Kennedy talk about and read from her new short story collection (£6, 6pm) and rising stars Harriet Lane, Anna Whitwham and Jessie Burton (free, 2.30pm)
- There's also a strong musical strand: catch Viv Albertine and Thurston Moore (Sunday, £6, 4pm), Andy Kershaw (Saturday, £6, 3pm), Simon Mason on Britpop and drugs (Sunday, £4, 5pm), Ray Davies and Julien Temple (Sunday, £10, 8pm) and Juke Box Fury guests discussing the songs that inspired them (Sunday, £6, 6pm)
If you're feeling galvinised enough to make a weekend of it, you may well save money buying a £60 (plus booking fee) ticket which gets you access to the whole festival.
The Stoke Newington Literary Festival runs 6-8 June 2014 across various venues in Stoke Newington. For more information and to book, see the festival website.
