Literary Festival
FOYLES FLAGSHIP: The Grand Reopening Festival comes to an end on Saturday. Remaining events include The Great Bookshop Debate and verbal face-off Literary Death Match (see below).
Thursday 3 July
DAYTIME POETRY: The Poetry Cafe hosts Poetry at 3, a day-time open mic session where poets have the chance to read up to four minutes of their poetry. Free, just turn up, 3pm
TRAVEL JOURNALS: Westminster Reference Library hosts the launch of Tea and Pineapple Cake, a book which is split into two travel journals. Tom's journal is set in Limehouse, and Sue‘s is set in Bournemouth. Free, just turn up, 6pm
VICTORIAN SEX: Head to Guildhall Library for an evening about sexual desire and deviancy in the Victorian era with cultural historian Fern Riddell, followed by a signing of her new book, The Victorian Guide to Sex. £5.95, prebook, 6pm
AFRICA: Waterstone's Croydon hosts the launch of Everyday Life in an Early West African Empire. Authors Robin Walker, Siaf Millar and Saran Keita will will be discussing why African history matters in a global environment. 6pm
POETRY STUDENTS: Students who have been mentored by authors such as Daljit Nagra give the first public reading of their work at Keats House tonight. Free, prebook, 6.30pm
EAST LONDON ART: Head to Waterstone's Piccadilly for an evening with David Buckman, author of From Bow to Biennale: Artists of the East London Group. The book is about The East London Group of artists who were at their prime during the inter-war years. Free, prebook, 7pm
SPOKEN WORD: University of London Union has a free night of music and spoken word, with performances from Chill Pill and Come Rhyme With Me’s celebrated poet Deanna Rodger. Free, just turn up, 7pm
SYRIA DEBATE: John McHugo launches his new book, Syria: From The Great War To Civil War, at the Mosaic Rooms near Earl's Court. He is in conversation with Jonathan Fryer about why the international community have been powerless to stop the atrocities taking place in Syria. Free, prebook, 7pm
GAMESHOW BATTLE: Literary Death Match holds a special event at the new Foyles store on Charing Cross Road. Four authors (Carys Bray, John Boyne, Nick Harkaway and Anthony Anaxagorou) each read their own work for seven minutes, to be judged by a panel then whittled down for the next round. £7, prebook, 7.30pm
FEMALE AUTHORS: Evie Wyld, author of After the Fire, A Still Small Voice, is at Dulwich Books to talk to Laura Beatty, author of Pollard. The discussion is chaired by Eithne Farry, a writer and 2013 Costa judge for best novel award. Followed by a Q&A. £4, prebook, 7.30pm
BOHUMIL HRABAL: Cabaret Hrabal is an evening of literary events, celebrating Bohumil Hrabal, one of the greatest Czech writers of the 20th century. Takes place at The Horse Hospital in Bloomsbury. £7/£6, prebook, 8pm
Friday 4 July
PETE DOHERTY: Musician Pete Doherty will be signing copies of his new book, From Albion to Shangri-La, at Waterstone's in Oxford Street Plaza. Free, but get there early, 5pm
STORYTELLING: Storytelling club-night Spark London has teamed up with New York storytelling podcast Risk for a night of yarn-spinning at Hackney Picturehouse. £15, prebook, 7.30pm
LGBT POETRY: Rosie Wilby presents Queer'Say, an LGBT spoken word event in which poets Jasmine Ann Cooray, Nick Field and Cat Brogan perform. Takes place at Canada Water Culture Space. £10/£8, prebook, 7.30pm
ADULT STORYTELLING: The Tea Box in Richmond hosts a storytelling evening for adults, led by professional storytellers. £6, prebook, 8pm
Saturday 5 July
DOGS IN POETRY: This week's Afternoon Poems at Keats House focuses on dogs in poetry. Free with admission to Keats House, just turn up (arrive early to avoid disappointment), 3pm
GAY HISTORY: Housmans Bookshop in Kings Cross hosts the launch of Julie Bindel's new book, Straight Expectations: What Does It Mean To Be Gay Today? Bindel tracks the changes in the gay community in the last forty years to see whether progress really has been made regarding equal rights and respect. £3, prebook, 6.30pm
Sunday 6 July
MONKEY POETRY: Today is the first in a course of six poetry writing workshops at London Zoo. The lessons will not teach nature poetry, but instead explore six essential components of poetry (metaphor, form, allusion, rhythm, cadence and sensation) in reference to the flora and fauna of London Zoo. £240, prebook, 1pm
TORRIANO POETS: At this week’s Torriano Poets meeting, Angela Kirby, June English and Patricia Griffin all read. Poets from the floor are welcome. £5/£4, just turn up, 7.30pm
Monday 7 July
WRITER'S FESTIVAL: Today's National Theatre Platform features the writers of this year’s Connections plays, chaired by Sebastian Born as they discuss their experience of the festival. £4/£3, prebook, 6pm
CLOCK WATCHING: Troubadour Poetry closes its summer season with an evening dedicated to time. Guest poets celebrate clock-watching, punctuality, procrastination and sundials. Takes place at The Troubadour on Old Brompton Road. £8/£7, just turn up, 8pm
Tuesday 8 July
BONNIE GREER: The writer is the subject of today's Platform at the National Theatre. Chaired by Helen Grant MP she talks about her early influences and struggles for equality in her touching, funny and thought-provoking memoir, A Parallel Life. After the Platform she will be signing copies of the book. £4/£3, prebook, 6pm
SPEAKEASY: Drink Shop Do in King's Cross hosts a literary night of "books and booze". Nicci Cloke and Ian Ellard present author readings, stories created and told against the clock, vintage music and cocktails. Free, prebook, 7pm
LIAR'S LEAGUE: The theme of tonight's Liar's League is Sons and Daughters. Actors and authors take to the stage at The Phoenix in Cavendish Square near Oxford Circus to tell stories along this theme. £5, just turn up, 7.30pm
Wednesday 9 July
AMERICAN ROAD TRIP: Waterstone's Piccadilly hosts an evening with Meg Rosoff, best-selling author of Picture Me Gone and How I live Now, in conversation with Marcus Sedgwick, author of Midwinterblood and She is Not Invisible. They will be discussing their careers and American road trips. £5/£3, prebook, 6.30pm
POEMS ON THE UNDERGROUND: Keats House celebrates the summer set of Poems on the Underground, posted in July 2014, marking the centenary of the great Welsh poet Dylan Thomas. £5, prebook, 7pm
AIRCRAFT CARRIER: Geoff Dyer launches his new book, Another Great Day at Sea, at London Review Bookshop in Holborn. The book recounts daily life aboard an American aircraft carrier the USS George H. W. Bush, on which Dyer spent time as a kind of writer in residence. £10, prebook, 7pm
Follow @LondonistLit for our pick of that day’s literary events.
