How We Kept The Conversation Going in 2020

Eliza Anyangwe & Emmanuel Iduma: Outriders Africa – Deconstructing the Travelogue As part of the Book Festival's Outriders programme exploring the shifting landscapes of contemporary Africa, writers born in two neighbouring countries interrogate what means to be the 'other' in pan-African society. Originally from Cameroon and raised in… Interview - Amit Chaudhuri (2015) Before he took to the stage to talk about his latest novel, Odysseus Abroad, Amit Chaudhuri joined us for a quick chat in Charlotte Square Gardens. You can also hear from some audience members to see what they thought about the event. Amit's hour-long… Val McDermid: The Winter of Our Discontent The fan club for Val McDermid’s books just keeps growing – lapping up each new novel featuring either DCI Karen Pirie or Tony Hill and Carol Jordan. But whether you’re an old hand or new to McDermid’s work, there’s something special this August. 1979… Karl Ove Knausgård: Written in the Stars Long-lost siblings reunite in Karl Ove Knausgård’s latest novel. Moving from 1980s Norway to present-day Russia, The Wolves of Eternity builds like a Victorian novel, moving between characters whose lives intersect beneath a bright new star in the sky… Michel Faber (2010 event) The acclaimed author of The Crimson Petal and the White describes how ‘elsewhere’ can be hilariously ordinary… Joshua Wong: Hong Kong’s Champion for Democracy ‘Hong Kongers will never surrender, because we have nowhere else to turn.’ At age 14, Joshua Wong co-founded the student activist group Scholarism, protesting the enforcement of Chinese National Education in Hong Kong. He went on to become a very public… Jed Mercurio & Prasanna Puwanarajah: The Bionic Policeman If you were one of the millions of people captivated by hit TV police thriller Line of Duty, the name of its creator and screenwriter Jed Mercurio will be very familiar. Now Mercurio has teamed up with actor, writer and director Prasanna Puwanarajah and… Amit Chaudhuri (2015 event) In Amit Chaudhuri’s entertaining latest novel, Odysseus Abroad, an aspiring poet named Ananda has arrived in London from India and is trying to make sense of what he sees. Chaudhuri crafts a sharply-observed world, inspired as much by James… Lisa Croft, Willy Maley, Jennie Renton & Tam Watters: ¡No Pasaran! Our Fathers Fought Franco is the remarkable collective biography of four men - three from Scotland, and one from England - who enlisted in the XV International Brigade and fought in the Spanish Civil War. In 1937, they were in the battle of Jarama, ending… Rory MacLean (2015 Event) When the USSR dissolved in 1991, a narrow sliver of land next to the Ukraine declared independence. Transnistria now has its own Leninist government, but is still not recognised by any other country in the world. Photojournalist Nick Danziger and author…