Elizabeth Welsh
Reviews
Man Asia Literary Prize winner
Yesterday, the Man Asia Literary Prize winner was announced in Hong Kong – South Korean novelist, Kyung-sook Shin. Shin is the first woman to ever win the prestigious award for her novel, Please Look After Mom. It is a hauntingly beautiful novel, told from multiple shifting perspectives of each family member following their mother’s disappearance in … Continue reading
Writing in bed
The poet Robert Creeley claimed that ‘the necessary environment is that which secures the artist in the way that lets him be in the world’. I had this in mind the other day when I came across an article written by Charles Simic, poet, Pulitzer Prize winner & previous poetry editor of The Paris Review. Simic has written … Continue reading
Francis Carco exhibition
The last two months (6th of January – 26th of February) has seen Le Musee Du Montparnasse hold an exhibition of Francis Carco’s work. The show featured a comprehensive array of his letters, newspapers, journals, manuscripts, paintings, movie posters, drawings, photographs, films and records. New Caledonian-French Carco (1886-1958) was a fascinating figure in the bohemian … Continue reading
The Guardian Short Story Podcasts
As a die-hard fan of short fiction, I discovered and immediately drooled over The Guardian’s recently created new series of short story podcasts that feature authors reading their favourite short stories. Three podcasts in particular stand out for me – Margaret Drabble reading Katherine Mansfield’s ‘The Doll’s House’, Tessa Hadley reading Elizabeth Bowen’s ‘The Jungle’ and Philip … Continue reading
An evening with Sam Hunt
Page Blackie Gallery in Wellington is hosting ‘An evening with Sam Hunt’ on the 8th of February, with the lyrical, joyous Hunt reading poetry in situ against the backdrop of Dick Frizzell’s new works. The exhibition itself is called ‘Painting the Hunt‘ and runs from the 7th of February to the 4th of March – … Continue reading
Templar Poetry live readings
One of my most esteemed independent publishers – Templar Poetry – has launched a monthly live poetry session in London, featuring their published poets. The inaugural event is being held at The Compass in Islington on the 8th of February and admission is free! This month’s readings are from Jane Weir, and her new collection ‘Spine’, Matt Bryden … Continue reading
What would Dickens write today?
For all of those not currently in Berlin, from the 26th through to the 28th of January, a lecture seminar ‘What would Dickens write today?’ is being live-streamed here: http://www.bcstream.de/, courtesy of the British Council Germany. My pick is biographer Claire Tomalin’s reading and Q&A session. Check out the blog of the event, too.
Rebecca West & the role of editor
Rebecca West, formidable writer, reviewer, editor, journalist and critic that she was, wrote this scathing letter in The Freewoman on 1 August 1912. It simply must be shared: ‘Madam, I once edited a woman’s page (for a week), so I can give people advice as to how to use up odd scraps of macaroni, velveteen and … Continue reading
Bilingual Welsh Literary festival
I am so excited to see that Wales has the first bilingual Welsh literary festival pegged for this coming year. The Dinefwr Literature Festival will be taking place this summer from June 29th to July 1st at the breath-taking location of Dinefwr Park and Castle. I will be there for sure!
Celebrating Dickens
This week has seen BBC3 produce a noteworthy series of programmes – The Writer’s Dickens – focusing on the anxiety of influence (thank you kindly, Harold Bloom), in relation to that 19th century great – Charles Dickens. Every day, a contemporary novelist takes a Dickens novel as their starting point with which to discuss how … Continue reading
