list.co.uk/festival Previews | FESTIVAL BOOKS
MARGARET ATWOOD After the apocalypse, great literature continues
Margaret Atwood makes a welcome return to the Book Festival with MaddAddam, the concluding book in her disturbingly credible dystopian trilogy, begun in 2003 with the Booker-shortlisted Oryx and Crake. This is the first time one of her novels has explicitly arrived as a sequel (she referred to 2009’s Year of the Flood as a ‘simultanequel’ to Oryx and Crake), so there is bound to be a particularly special buzz at the MaddAddam event (24 Aug, 8pm), which takes place a full five days before the book’s official publication date. Having read an advance copy, The List can confirm it is a worthy conclusion, opening up more troubling questions about humanity’s possible future while depicting the fumbling first steps of a community of global plague survivors.
Atwood’s stamp is all over the Book Festival’s closing weekend: another event focuses on her
genre-defying 2001 Booker-winner The Blind Assassin (24 Aug, 11.30am); a third hits closer to home as she looks at horror and weirdness in Scottish fiction (26 Aug, 11.30am); and Atwood’s final appearance in Charlotte Square Gardens will be in conversation with fellow guest selector and adored genre author Neil Gaiman. But perhaps most fascinating will be Writing Under the Influence (26 Aug, 4.30pm), on ‘playing with literary form and engaging with technology’. Atwood embraces the internet and is an avid tweeter, she publishes web-only stories on Byliner and is a keen supporter of free fiction hub Wattpad. She has said that the internet is the best thing to happen to reading and writing in this generation, and will hopefully expand on that in this event with fellow form-fiddlers Naomi Alderman and Valerie Martin. Atwood’s myriad other projects include a just-completed opera libretto, and Atwood Blend, a ‘bird
friendly’ coffee developed as part of her environmental conservation efforts. Suffice to say, any hour in the company of the great Canadian author will be guaranteed time well spent. (Paul Gallagher) ■ Charlotte Square Gardens, 0845 373 5888, all events £10 (£8).
CERI LEVY Wild flights in bird illustrations
In 2010, Ceri Levy – filmmaker for Blur and Gorillaz, and latterly a conservationist – approached Ralph Steadman about the prospect of creating a piece for Levy’s Ghosts of Gone Birds exhibition in London. Steadman, whose Indian ink flourishes have illustrated the work of Hunter S Thompson, was asked by Levy to create a new work based on an extinct bird. Wild flights of Steadman’s imagination soon began arriving in Levy’s inbox, rich splashes of colour depicting extinct birds both real and unreal: from the Great Auk and Passenger Pigeon to the Mottled Splatwink and Splattered Shag. The resulting ‘boids’ are collected like luminous curiosities in Extinct Boids, which Levy describes as ‘a document of our working relationship; Ralph’s work has allowed us to glimpse extinction from a unique vantage point’. At the London exhibition, Steadman’s paintings filled an entire room and visitors were given binoculars to view those perched high in the rafters. In an age of extinction, the book is an inspired and inspiring collection of art and stories, illustrating what has been lost in the natural world and what – perhaps – is possible. (Rob St John) ■ Charlotte Square Gardens, 0845 373 5888, 25 Aug, 8.30pm, £7 (£5).
TOP 5 HEATWAVES
Whether the sun is shining or it’s raining so much that yellow plastic ducks pop up in the puddles, things are getting damn steamy at Charlotte Square Gardens. Put extra ice in your drink and delve into these high- temperature books. Jonathan Jones Jones’ new book The Loves of the Artists, argues that a knowledge of the sexual lives of Michelangelo, Raphael and Rembrandt is a vital part of appreciating their nude paintings. Charlotte Square Gardens, 0845 373 5888, 22 Aug, 2.30pm, £10 (£8).
Chris Dolan & Andrea Stuart Dolan’s Barbados-set Redlegs, about a Scottish actress forced to take on a new role at a plantation, explores the uncomfortable mix of tropical weather and corseted 1830s fashion. Charlotte Square Gardens, 0845 373 5888, 23 Aug, 10.15am, £10 (£8). Illicit Ink & Graphic Scotland As part of the super-hot Unbound strand of evening events, writers read while cartoonists and graphic novelists draw what they hear. Expect high-energy and the odd risqué element. Art materials are provided but feel free to bring your own. Charlotte Square Gardens, 0845 373 5888, 24 Aug, 9pm, free.
Horror and Weirdness, A Scottish Peculiarity Margaret Atwood, Valerie Martin and Ian Rankin discuss why Scottish writers persist in producing deliciously wicked characters. Why can’t we resist Dr Jekyll or the Three Weird Sisters? Charlotte Square Gardens, 0845 373 5888, 26 Aug, 11.30am, £10 (£8).
Marli Roode & Giorgio Vasta From modern-day South Africa to 1970s Sicily, these young authors’ books show how harsh the world can look when the sun burns bright. Charlotte Square Gardens, 0845 373 5888, 22 Aug, 3.30pm, £7 (£5). (Kirsty Logan)
22 Aug–19 Sep 2013 THE LIST 97