Book festival springs into life
The Park’s first-ever book festival is shaping up to be a super Spring Saturday on the 13th April.
Organised by local community group, Arts in the Park CIC, the dynamo team of volunteers are continuing to add to the programme all the time so don’t miss anything by following them on social media - see links at the end of this article, and read on for an update from the organisers…
A glimpse of the programme
We are thrilled to have debut authors Emilia Hart and Jill Johnson exploring intertwining themes of magic and nature as they dive between the covers of their highly acclaimed new novels Weyward and Devil’s Breath.
For lovers of memoir, don’t miss Guardian columnist, organic food grower and writer, Claire Ratinon, as she shares her inspiring growing journey from rooftop garden to providing food to Ottolenghi restaurant Rovi in her new book Unearthed.
University lecturer by day and clandestine ecologist by night, debut author Ben Jacob will share his fascinating story in The Orchid Outlaw: One Man’s Mission to Save Britain’s Rarest Flowers. At once a history and inspiring memoir, he re-introduces us to Britain’s most endangered and exquisite flowers.
If the climate crisis is getting you down, do not fear, Isabel Losada is here! She is The Joyful Environmentalist, and she wants you to be one, too. Author, comedienne and environmentalist, Isabel has what George Monbiot calls “the joy we need in our lives”.
For those of you itching to try your hand at poetry or fiction writing, there are two 90-minute workshops to guide you on your way.
Our fabulous children’s authors Alex-Falase Koya, Natasha Farrant and Alexandra Sheppard are preparing to thrill their audiences with tales of heroic adventures and daring-do plus interactive fun and crafting.
Families
Families can explore all the park has to offer between events, by picking up a free worksheet and following Lewisham Library’s fantastic scavenger hunt to win prizes. Or become an EcoSpy for the day and embark on an intrepid adventure to save the Park’s wood wide web with a specially discounted adventure pack.
Book Swap
Don’t forget to bring your old books too! Local charity ACB Book Club will be running a busy children’s book swap throughout the festival where you can leave your pre-loved books and find new ones to enjoy.
Arts & Crafts
You can delve into the world of textiles with free drop-in sessions at the Sewing School in the Mansion, and fashion your own literary keepsake. Anthony Jones will also be there to show you how to make a bookmark using the nineteenth-century cyanotype photography process. Artwork from resident Mansion artists will be on display too.
How to book
Spaces are filling up across all events, so book your tickets soon to avoid disappointment, at www.booksinthepark.org. And don’t forget, when you get here on the 13th, the Mansion Café and Homestead Café are generously offering all book festival ticket holders 10% off food and drink.
Updates on social media
X: @booksinthepark
Instagram: booksintheparkfestival
FB booksintheparkfestival
BOOKS IN THE PARK is proudly sponsored by
Beckenham Bookshop, Beckenham Place Park Community Gardeners, Galliard Homes, The Homestead Café, Phoenix Community Housing, PPM Flat Maintenance, London Fire Defence, The Purelake Group, The Bromley Court Hotel, Three Hounds Bar and Brewery, The Arts Society Beckenham.