BooksWeekPlanner
Find your way through the Book Festival’s many delights with this week planner. We haven‘t had space to include every event - see the Book Festival programme or www.edbooklest.co.uk for more information. All events are at Charlotte Square Gardens, unless otherwise stated. The box office can be reached at 0131 624 5050.
Saturday 1 3th
Carol Ann Duffy The Book Festival opens with one of Britain‘s finest poets. Andrew Motion might have beat her to the Laureate. but we‘re glad to have her here. See preview. page H .10. 15am. £7 ([5). Julian Barnes The formerjournalist‘s sharp and playful fiction has been entertaining readers for 25 years. His great new book. Arthur and George. is an account of a real life case involving Arthur Conan Doyle. See preview. page 16. [1.30pm. [7(1‘5).
Nick Brooks, Hodge Glass 8. Will Napier Three Scottish-based debutantes make a showing. Glass is the author of Jewish comic drama Na l'ireii‘ar/v'x. Napier’s Among the ( ‘ieadas (sec caption. page l8) is a gothic tale and Brooks‘ My Name is Denise l-brrevter is a childhood drama. 4pm. £7 ( £5).
Ved Mehta Mehta's epic. much-lauded multi-v'oluiiie memoir (,‘untinents of Exile reached its end last year with The Red Letters. which explored his father‘s infidelity and its effects upon his family. Now should prove a good time to find out what the author. who has been blind since the age of four. plans to do next. 4.30pm. [7 ([5).
Boris Akunin Can ten million Russians he wrong‘.’ Akunin's engaging world of secret agents. femmes fatales and bloody conflicts has brought him huge success. He talks to [an Rankin. See feature. page l2. 6.30pm. £8 ([6).
Aleksei Evdokimov & Alexander Garros Heat/crusher. these two young Latvians' energetic. computer-literate debut. won awards and sold impressively in Russia. See caption. page 16.
Jung Chang The Wild Swans author. now resident in the UK. talks about her highly critical biography of Mao ’l‘se Tung. See preview. page lo. 8pm. [8 (6). Michael Cunningham What do you do after you've written a Pultizer— winning book hung around Virginia Woolf"? liasy. You write one based around Walt Whitman. and people it with dying aliens and ghosts. See sidebar. page 18.8.30pm, £8 ([6).
Sunday 14th
Trariq All The bullish. eloquent anti-war campaigner has been hugely influential as a writer and broadcaster. His most recent book. A Sultan in Palermo. explores a city that has been heavily influenced by both Muslim and Christian traditions. See preview. page In. II.3()am. [7({5}. Anna Politkovskaya 'l‘his Russian joumalist helped mediate in the botched Moscow theatre siege and was poisoned. allegedly by govemment agents. on her way to negotiate in what became the Beslan massacre. 3pm. £7 ( £5).
Andrey Kurkov The Kiev-based former journalist and cameraman is best known
Anna Politkovskaya
$57; . 4.
for fiis dark. bi/arre fiction. which includes Death and the Penguin and tiew novel xi .l'latlet‘ allile (“11/ Heath. 5pm. [7116").
Wei Hui 8: Dai Sijie lliu‘s evplicit Shanghai Baby was banned in fiis native China. ('oiiipatriot Sijie followed the popular Ila/rue aml the little ('hittese Seemvtrevv with Mr .l'laa 'v 'I'I'ai'ellittg ('uta‘li. 7pm. [3 (UN. Imprisoned Writers Just one of tfie free daily readings in tribute to persecuted writers. (ilasgow writer Suhayl Saadi is among the authors appearing at this event. 5.30pm. tree. Mark Leonard llc coined 'cool Britannia’ but .\lark Leonard is more than just an ad man. The head of foreign policy at the ('eiitrc for liuropeaii Reform is here to discuss his controversial view that liurope will lead the world this century. Sec preview. page 14. 8pm. £8 ( UH.
Christopher Rush llts \e/ttts I’eler. later made into a film. was an evocative description of a childhood in the ()t'k‘tieys. Here he discusses his new memoir. which tells of the death of his wife. 8..i’()/mt. [8 (Hit.
Monday 1 5th
Dario Fo with Joseph Farrell 'l‘he Nobel-winning ltaliaii iconoclast takes a break front directing Rossini to come to Edinburgh. He wrote :ii't'lilenltl/ Death al'att :inarehivl and (‘aa '1 l’av.‘ Won '1 I’ay.’. you know. Sec preview. page l7. //..i‘l)am. L'7ll5l.
Jan Morris Debates about national identity in Scotland often delve into What it means to be Scottish. lit'ilish (tr iinglish. Prolific travel writer .laii Morris gives Wales a pltig. I..i’(//nii. [7 ([5).
Diego Gambetta ‘l‘he ()\fot'd academic is an expert on the increasingly significant and worrying phenomenon of suicide attacks. See preview. page l5. 3.30pm. £71151. Sylvie Germain 8. Pierre Péju two French authors. (ieriiiaiu's 'I‘he [look of Nights is a work of fantastic fiction. while l’eju‘s The (fill I’roni (liar/relive has sold 300.000 copies in his home country. 4pm. {7115).
Christopher Brookmyre Did Bond ever visit liast Kilhride'.’ With Hrookmyre around. he doesn't need to: the Paisley-born writer gives Scotland’s central belt all the espionage it needs. See preview. page l4. 6.30pm. £8 ([6). AL Kennedy The sharp and affecting Hook l-‘estival regular talks about the writers' life in the first of two appearances. Sec preview. page l8. 8pm. 13' l UH.
Japer Fforde l-‘t'orde‘s highly readable hooks come with postmodern puns and literary winks aplenty: his newest work investigates the murder of Humpty l)uiiipty. See feature. page l3. H.3(lpm. £8 (fol.
Tuesday 1 6th
Tony Benn ()ld Labour‘s elder statesman returns to the Book Festival stage with new offering. Dare to l)(' a Daniel: 'l'lie/t am! Now. a memoir of his youth. lllant. [7116).
Andrea Levy Ruth Wishart introduces the author of Small Islam]. based around early Jamaican iiiitiiigrants to the l'K. l.evy won the both the Orange and Whitbread prizes for her popular novel. //..i’()am. [7115).
Louise Dean, Tim Lott 8. David Peace Dean tsee preview. page 1(5) explores the Maze hunger strikes in her line second novel. Tim Lott hones iii on security cameras and voyeurism. and David Peace delves into a dark. evocative Yorkshire of police corruption and evil deeds. 2..i’(I/mt. [7(15).
Roy Hattersley The former MP and one-time ttib of lard will be discussing his definitive historical study. The lat/vian/lans. Sec preview. page lb’. .i/mt. [7(1'5).
Peter De La Billiere His book Supreme (‘aarage tells true stories of soldiers who won the Victoria ('ross. but many will be more interested in the man himself. w ho was (‘omiiiander of the British forces in the first (.iulf War. (Lin/Nil. [N am.
Open Mind: Multi-Cultural Britain This discussion session is headed up by Yasmin Alibhai-Brown. /.iauddiu Sardar and Alex Wheatle. fill/mi. [8 (Hi).
Mark Hollingworth Middle iiast expert Hollingworth explores the case of Sandy Mitchell. who was imprisoned by the Saudi authorities for a crime he did not commit. 7.30pm. £8 ([6).
Wednesday 1 7th
Malcom Archibald, Claire Collison 8: Catherine Czerkawska 'l‘liese previously unpublished authors vied for the Dundee l’ri/e this year. (‘Ierkaw ska goes back in time. ('ollison bases her story on a trip to Spain. and eventual
w inner Archibald sets a tale of .skulduggery in the Dundee whaling trade. Ill/5am. [7(1‘5).
John Carey ('arey former Booker Prize chair and Oxford academic arts. (iticss what'.’ Literature comes top. I/..i’()ant. (7(5).
Ziauddin Sardar Sardar's past books inclttdc Why [)0 People Hate xi/nerieaf’ Here the broadcaster and critic turns his eye to lslaiii. and ways in which it can change from within. .‘v'nmi. [7 t £5). Doris Lessing Hermione l.cc talks to the woman turned literary institution. See preview. page l4 . l..i’()/mi. [7(11‘7). Richard lngrams The former Private live editor. now top man at The ()I(/f('. discusses his new book. about biting linglish reformer William (‘obbett See preview. page [5 .n’pm. £7 ([5).
Mark Cousins l-‘ornier lidinburgh International l‘iliii l-‘estival director and one of Britain‘s most respected film writers, (‘ousins is here with his epic study. The Story afl’i/m. See page l5. 4.30pm. [7 ( £5 i.
Wallace: The Man and the Myth Magnus Magiiuson chairs this investigation into William \V’allace’s life and death. 6.30pm. (swan.
Janice Galloway Galloway 's latest work is a collaboration with sculptor .'\nn Bevan. See caption. page 15. 8pm. [8 ([6).
Online Booking Book Festival www.edbookfest.co.uk
respected author.
here discusses the role of the
Fringe www.edfnnge.co.uk International Festival www.cit.co.uk Film Festival www.edfllmlest.co.uk
t 1 t8 Aug 2001') THE LIST FESTIVAL MAGAZINE 19