Independent Bookshop Week
Independent Bookshop Week takes place from Saturday 24th June to Saturday 1st July. We'll be celebrating with some great author events for both adults and children (see below) plus special offers, exclusives and activities throughout the week. Hope to see you! |  HOUSMAN COUNTRY - PETER PARKER WEDNESDAY 21ST JUNE - 7.30PM (DOORS 7.00PM)
at Booka Join us for a journey into the heart of England as Peter Parker talks his critically acclaimed book Housman Country – a thoughtful and fascinating portrait of England, told through the story of A.E. Housman and his much-loved poetry collection, A Shropshire Lad. Why is it that for many people 'England' has always meant an unspoilt rural landscape rather than the ever-changing urban world in which most English people live? What was the 'England' for which people fought in two world wars? What is about the English that makes them constantly hanker for a vanished past, so that nostalgia has become a national characteristic? In March 1896 a small volume of sixty-three poems was published by the small British firm of Kegan Paul, Trench, Trubner & Co. Ltd in an edition of 500 copies, priced at half-a-crown each. The author was not a professional poet, but a thirty-seven-year-old professor of Latin at University College, London called Alfred Edward Housman who had been obliged to pay £30 towards the cost of publication. Although slow to sell at first, A Shropshire Lad went on to become one of the most popular books of poetry ever published and has never been out of print. As well as being a publishing phenomenon, the book has had an influence on English culture and notions of what 'England' means, both in England itself and abroad, out of all proportion to its apparent scope. Housman Country will not only look at how A Shropshire Lad came to be written and became a publishing and cultural phenomenon, but will use the poems as a prism through which to examine England and Englishness.
Tickets: £5 (redeemable against a signed paperback copy of Housman Country) Tickets available from the bookshop, or purchase online (with booking fee) HERE |  MEGAN HUNTER & CYNAN JONES - THE POWER OF THE NOVELLA TUESDAY 27TH JUNE 7.30PM (DOORS 7.00PM)
at The Townhouse Sometimes a slender novel can be more powerful and profoundly moving than a novel six times as long! Join us for an evening in the company of Megan Hunter and Cynan Jones as they talk 'in conversation' about their writing, the power of the novella and read from their spellbinding books The End We Start From and Cove. Megan Hunter's remarkable debut novel The End We Start From is a story of new motherhood in a terrifying setting: a familiar world made dangerous and unstable as London is submerged below flood waters, its people forced to become refugees. Startlingly beautiful, this gripping novel paints an imagined future as realistic as it is frightening. And yet, though the country is falling apart around them, this family's world – of new life and new hope – sings with love. Cove by Cynan Jones is an intensely observed tale of survival of sea. A lone man in a kayak is struck by lightning. He wakes in unknown waters, having drifted far from the cove of the title. Badly injured, equipped with little more than a litre of water, a fishing line and a frying pan, he faces an endurance test of the most essential, stripped-back sort. Here is a man and the sea – or rather a man and his own fear, thirst, self-control and motivating love for a pregnant partner back on land. Tickets: £7 (£5 redeemable against a signed copy of The End We Start From or Cove) Tickets available from the bookshop, or purchase online (with booking fee) HERE |  JOHN HIGGS - WATLING STREET THURSDAY 27TH JULY 7.30PM (DOORS 7.00PM)
BOOKA Join us as we journey along one of Britain's oldest roads, from Dover to Anglesey, via Oswestry, as John Higgs stops off to talk about his fascinating new book, 'Watling Street: Travels Through Britain And It's Ever-Present Past'. Long ago a path was created by the passage of feet tramping through endless forests. Gradually that path became a track, and the track became a road. It connected the White Cliffs of Dover to the Druid groves of the Welsh island of Anglesey, across a land that was first called Albion then Britain, Mercia and eventually England and Wales. Armies from Rome arrived and straightened this 444 kilometres of meandering track, which in the Dark Ages gained the name Watling Street. Today, this ancient road goes by many different names: the A2, the A5 and the M6 Toll. It is a palimpsest that is always being rewritten. Watling Street is a road of witches and ghosts, of queens and highwaymen, of history and myth, of Chaucer, Dickens and James Bond. Along this route Boudicca met her end, the Battle of Bosworth changed royal history, Bletchley Park code breakers cracked Nazi transmissions and Capability Brown remodelled the English landscape. The myriad people who use this road every day might think it unremarkable, but, as John Higgs shows, it hides its secrets in plain sight. Watling Street is not just the story of a route across our island, but an acutely observed, unexpected exploration of Britain and who we are today, told with wit and flair, and an unerring eye for the curious and surprising. So, discover the hidden history of one of Britain's most iconic highways and celebrate the stories that come from the locations along the route with one of our best cultural history writers. Tickets: £5 (redeemable against a signed copy of Watling Street). Includes a glass of wine/soft drink on arrival. Tickets available from the bookshop or purchase online (with booking fee) HERE | |  CRESSIDA COWELL - DRAGON TRAINING & WIZARDS OF ONCE MONDAY 26TH JUNE - 5.00PM (DOORS 4.30PM)
THE MEMORIAL HALL, OSWESTRY, SY11 2EG Calling all How to Train Your Dragon fans! Join author-illustrator Cressida Cowell at this special after school fan event as she talks about her multi-million bestselling series How to Train Your Dragon books (also a film and TV series) and gives us a sneak peek of her first new project in 18 years. Fantasy, magical adventure The Wizards of Once publishes in September and has already been signed up by animation studio DreamWorks. Cressida will read an exclusive extract and show illustrations. THE WIZARDS OF ONCE is one of the most eagerly awaited children's books of 2017. The book began several years ago with a map Cressida drew inspired by memories of the ancient landscapes, which she used to explore as a child. Through storytelling and illustrations, Cressida hopes to fuel the imaginations of her readers with the wonder of the natural world. This fast-paced, wildly entertaining and funny adventure features Cressida's trademark wit and energy and is packed with her celebrated, scratchy and emotive illustrations. Cressida's belief in the transformative power of books is genuine, passionate and utterly convincing. We are thrilled that this inspirational children's author will be visiting us during Independent Bookshop Week to preview The Wizards of Once. Fans old and new will be able pick up copies of the newly re-jacketed How to Train Your Dragon books and pre-order a signed first edition hardback copy of The Wizards of Once at a special offer prices. Tickets: £3 per child (with accompanying adult) Tickets available from the bookshop or purchase online (with booking fee) HERE |  AN EVENING WITH TONY ROBINSON THURSDAY 29TH JUNE 7.30PM (DOORS 7.00PM)
THE MARCHES SCHOOL, OSWESTRY, SY11 2AR
SORRY – THIS EVENT IS NOW SOLD OUT! Much-loved actor, presenter and author with a stellar career lasting over fifty years – Sir Tony Robinson is coming to Oswestry!
We're hosting this event to celebrate the paperback publication of Tony's autobiography, No Cunning Plan. Signed copies will be available in the shop after the event. |  JULIA DONALDSON & LYDIA MONKS
WHAT THE LADYBIRD HEARD ON HOLIDAY SATURDAY 1ST JULY 10.00AM (DOORS OPEN 9.30AM)
THE MARCHES SCHOOL, OSWESTRY, SY11 2AR
SORRY – THIS EVENT IS NOW SOLD OUT! Join us for a very special What the Ladybird Heard story time as Julia Donaldson and Lydia Monks come to Oswestry to celebrate the publication of What the Ladybird Heard on Holiday, the latest adventure from this stellar picture book partnership.
While the event is sold out, you can still pre-order a signed hardback copy of What the Ladybird Heard on Holiday by contacting the shop. Additional Julia Donaldson / Lydia Monks titles can also be ordered. |  SARAH WINMAN - TIN MAN WEDNESDAY 2ND AUGUST 7.30PM (DOORS 7.00PM)
BOOKA Join us for an evening in the company of bestselling author, Sarah Winman, as she talks 'in conversation' about her unforgettable new novel, Tin Man. It begins with a painting won in a raffle: fifteen sunflowers, hung on the wall by a woman who believes that men and boys are capable of beautiful things. And then there are two boys, Ellis and Michael, who are inseparable. And the boys become men, and then Annie walks into their lives, and it changes nothing and everything. Following the acclaimed success of When God Was A Rabbit and A Year Of Marvellous Ways, Sarah Winman returns with Tin Man, a love letter to human kindness and friendship, loss and living. Tin Man is a book we really want to share with you and we look forward to welcoming Sarah to Booka for what should be a great event. Sarah will be 'in conversation' with Simon Savidge. Tickets: £5 (redeemable against a signed copy of The Tin Man). Includes a glass of wine/soft drink on arrival. Tickets available from the bookshop, or purchase online HERE | | | Booka News We've Got Plans!
If you've been in the shop recently you will have seen how our plans to expand Booka are progressing. In short, we're taking over the upper two floors of the building to provide an additional floor of retail space on the first floor and much needed back office and storage space on the second floor. Planning permission has just been granted to change the use of the first floor to retail. The works are being undertaken in phases to try and minimise disruption and to enable us to remain open for the duration. Phase One (just completed) has seen the front of the shop opened out to provide access to a lift. Phase Two (underway) has seen the temporary relocation of the sales counter to allow a new customer staircase to be constructed and installed to the first floor. Phase Three will see a new sales counter installed in the centre of the shop and Phase Four will see the first floor retail space being fitted out. While we're at it, we're also taking the opportunity to paint the front of the shop, hence the scaffolding currently in place. The works to the ground floor should be completed over the next four weeks. We hope to have the first floor in use by the end of August.
Best Small Business Award
We were delighted to win the Best Small Business at the recent Oswestry Advertizer/Oswestry Town Council Business & Community Awards. Thanks to everyone who nominated and voted for us - we really appreciate your support!
Apprentice Bookseller visits Booka
Apprentice Bookseller, Lisa Perry from Frankfurt in Germany, is currently part way through a four week period of work experience with us. It's a pleasure to be able to host a talented young bookseller from another country and exchange thoughts, ideas and bookselling practice. Say hello to Lisa when you're next in the shop!
Book Clubs
Booka Book Club - Currently reading: The Power by Naomi Alderman. Next meeting date to be confirmed
Book & a Beer Book Club - Currently reading: Anna of the Five Towns by Arnold Bennett. Next meeting (Thursday 29th June) to be rearranged.
Both groups meet at the Shop and are free to attend. New members are always welcome. So, step outside your comfort zone and come along to explore new authors and genres – we'd love to see you.
Children's Book Club (Yr 3/4)
Children's Book Club (Yr 5/6)
Teen Book Club (Yr 7/8)
YA Book Club (Yr 9+)
Our Children's Book Clubs meet for the last time this June before taking a break over the Summer holidays. They will resume in September. Please contact us if you know someone who may be interested in joining one of the groups so that we can register their interest and help plan for their resumption.
| | |
