London Book And Poetry Events: 5-11 June 2014

Laura Reynolds
By Laura Reynolds Last edited 117 months ago
London Book And Poetry Events: 5-11 June 2014

Author appearances, poetry and spoken word events in London this week

Penguins are the subject of a literary event at London Zoo on Wednesday

Plan Ahead

SHORT STORY FESTIVAL: The first ever London Short Story Festival takes place in June, with panel events, workshops and masterclasses, author Q&As, readings and inspiring writing activities. 20-22 June

Thursday 5 June

BOOK QUIZ: Green Inc, an Irish TV company, is looking for people who enjoy reading to take part in a new quiz on books and literature. It will take place in a Central London location from 9.30am, but will NOT be filmed. If you are interested in taking part, email marie@greeninc.tv. 9.30am

INDIAN ELEPHANTS: Waterstone's Piccadilly hosts an evening with wildlife photographer Annette Bonnier, whose book, India's Elephants, features more than 200 full-colour images from her travels through India. The evening consists of a talk illustrated by some of the photos. £5, prebook, 6pm

FAR EAST LITERATURE: Waterstone's Richmond hosts an evening with authors Dinah Jeffries and Isabel Wolff, both of whom have written novels about the Far East. They discuss the themes of these novels, with readings and audience questions. £3, prebook, 6.30pm

FIRST NOVEL: New author Emma Healey is at Waterstone's Piccadilly discussing her first novel, Elizabeth Is Missing. Free, prebook, 6.30pm

MOUNT LONDON: Meet Katy Evans-Bush, Gareth Rees and Tom Chivers, three of the contributors to Mount London, an anthology of writing looking at London’s high points. Takes place at Big Green Book Shop. Free, prebook, 7pm

STAND UP POETRY: Bang Said The Gun, billed as ‘stand up poetry for people who don’t necessarily like poetry’ takes place at The Roebuck on Great Dover Street. Tonight’s performers are Nathan Penlington and Captain Of The Rant. £7/£5, just turn up, 8pm

Friday 6 June

LIT FEST: Stoke Newington Literary Festival begins today, and we're quite stoked (sorry) for this one. Hip-hop Shakespeare, food writers and a sci-fi vs fantasy debate are just some of the highlights of the weekend-long event. Various prices, prebook, until 8 June

LAURIE LEE: The British Library hosts an evening celebrating the life and legacy of Laurie Lee. The writer, poet and artist is probably best known for Cider With Rosie and Red Sky at Sunrise. At this event, well-known literary figures such as Louis de Bernières, Tim Dee, Adam Horovitz, PJ Kavanagh and Brian Patten read from his work and reflect on his life. £8/£6/£5, prebook, 6.30pm

POETRY EVENING: Burn After Reading is a poetry evening run by emerging young poets. This month features Roger Robinson and Will Tyas. Takes place at the Gallery Cafe in Bethnal Green. £3, just turn up, 7pm

ADULT STORYTELLING: The Tea Box in Richmond has an evening of adult storytelling. £6, prebook, 7.3opm

LIPPED INK: With open mic slots, a featured poet and a spoken word session, Lipped Ink at the Poetry Cafe has something for everyone. £5, just turn up, 7.30pm

Saturday 7 June

KEATS FESTIVAL: Ten days of poetry, spoken word, music, dance, film and family activities celebrating the 200th anniversary of Keats writing his first poem begin today. Find out more here and prebook here. Until 15 June

BIG NAME DEATH MATCH: Literary Death Match brings one of its events to Stoke Newington Literature Festival (above), and we have to say, we're pretty impressed with the line-up. Writers including Joanne Harris (author of Chocolat) go head to head reading their work, to be judged by Viv Groskop and Michael Hogan. £8, prebook, 7pm

Sunday 8 June

SPOKEN WORD: Jazz Verse Jukebox is a variety evening of live music, poetry and spoken word performances at Ronnie Scott's Jazz Club. There is also an open mic spot for musicians and singers. £8, just turn up, 7.30pm

TORRIANO POETS: At this week’s Torriano Poets meeting, Alan Brownjohn and Leah Fritz read their poetry. £5/£4, just turn up, 7.30pm

SUFI POETRY: There is a Sufi Music and Poetry Night at Poetry Cafe. £10/£5, prebook, 8pm

Monday 9 June

JOHN KELLY: Waterstone's Gower Street host an evening with Irish author John Kelly to celebrate his new book, From Out Of The City. Free, prebook, 6.30pm

JASPER FFORDE: Bestselling author Jasper Fforde is at Wood Green Book Shop to talk about his career in writing and his most recent book, The Woman Who Died A Lot. £3, prebook, 7pm

VARIETY EVENING: Head to Rich Mix for Allsortz, an evening of performances including comedy and spoken word. There are main spots and open mice spots available to performers, more info here. Free, tweet @Allsortz1 to gain entry, 7pm

POETRY SLAM: Hammer & Tongue Poetry Slam returns to the Green Note in Camden. Tonight's guests are Salena Godden and Paul Cree, plus there's an open poetry slam. £6/£3, just turn up, 7.30pm

FATHER'S STORIES: Ahead of Father's Day, Spark Storytelling at Hackney Attic has an evening themed around dads. Go along and listen yo other people's stories, or get up and tell your own. £4, prebook, 7.30pm

COFFEE HOUSE POETRY: Spend an evening in the company of Pulitzer prize-winning poet and Editor of New Yorker, Paul Muldoon. He's at Coffee House Poetry at the Troubadour on Old Brompton Road. There will also be live music from Christine Tobin. £8/£7, just turn up, 8pm

Tuesday 10 June

LITERARY SALON: Hidden Prologues, the new monthly literary salon at Radisson Blu Edwardian, takes on the work of author Nick Harkaway, including his latest book, Tigerman. £10, prebook, 6.45pm

LIARS' LEAGUE: The theme of this month's Liars' League storytelling event is the Weird & Wonderful. Takes place at The Phoenix on Cavendish Square. £5, just turn up, 7pm

IMPERIAL PAST: MP Tristram Hunt is at Daunt Books in Marylebone to talk about his new book, Ten Cities that Made an Empire, which looks at Britain's Imperial past. £8, prebook, 7pm

SPEAKEASY: Drink Shop Do in King's Cross has a Speakeasy evening, with readings from authors such as MR Carey, Viv Groskop and Tyler Keevil. Free, prebook, from 7pm

EINSTEIN'S THEORY: Pedro Ferreira's new book, The Perfect Theory, takes a look at Einstein's Theory of Relativity, and Ferreira is at London Review Bookshop to discuss his book. £10, prebook, 7pm

Wednesday 11 June

FOYLES FESTIVAL: The Foyles Grand Reopening Festival kicks off today, with Michael Palin opening the travel section of the store. Throughout the festival, name such as Hilary Mantel and Jarvis Cocker will be getting involved in the big reopening. More information here. Various prices, prebook, until 5 July

PENGUIN WRITING: Sara Wheeler, a travel writer who has written much about the polar regions, is the latest writer to talk about her work at London Zoo, with specific emphasis on penguins. £12, prebook, 6.30pm

MEMOIRS: Bonnie Greer talks about her career as a playwright, essayist and novelist, and discusses the first volume of her memoirs A Parallel Life. £5, prebook, 6.30pm

SUFFRAGETTES HISTORY: Jill Liddington and Katherine Connelly are at Housman's bookstore in King's Cross to discuss their books about the Suffragette movement. Connelly’s book looks in detail at the life of Sylvia Pankhurst, while Liddington’s tells the story of the Suffragettes' controversial campaign to boycott the census. £3, prebook, 7pm

SYRIA SPEAKS: Join Syrian artists and writers for a unique evening of readings and discussion of cultural resistance in the country. Takes place at Rich Mix. £4, prebook, 7.30pm

WOMEN ONLY: Loose Muse at Poetry Cafe is an event for women writers of all genres, hosted by Agnes Meadow. Open mic slots are available.  £5/3£5/£3, just turn up, 8pm

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

Last Updated 04 June 2014