Launch Party of Joseph D'Lacey's amazing Black Feathers

Friday April 5th 6.30pm-9.00pm

We are delighted that Joseph D'Lacey is joining us to celebrate the publication of Black Feathers, his extraordinary new novel.

It is the Black Dawn, a time of environmental apocalypse, the earth wracked and dying.

It is the Bright Day, a time long generations hence, when a peace has descended across the world.

In each era, a child shall be chosen. Their task is to find a dark messiah known only as the Crowman. But is he our saviour – or the final incarnation of evil?

 

I was very lucky to be sent a review copy of this by the publishers, Angry Robot.

It's a beautiful combination of folklore, fairytale and dark apocalyptic fiction. Set over two very different time periods, one modern day, the other generations into the future, it follows the journeys of Gordon and Megan. Although there are hundred of years separating them, both are searching for the elusive Crowman. Some say he will bring destruction to the world, others say he is the planet's saviour, but all Gordon and Megan know is that they must find him.

The book's a real treat, and it's definitely the most accomplished of Joseph's novels to date (and I've read them all). If you haven't read his stuff before, this would be a wonderful introduction. Joseph's a great storyteller and this shines through in Black Feathers. 

 

So come along and join Joseph on April 5th and meet one of my favourite authors of all time.

It's FREE and there will be refreshments aplenty.

If you're unable to make it and would like a signed copy, it's available to pre-order here.

Big Green Bookswap - Matt Haig & Andrew J Lambie

Wednesday May 29th - 7.30-9.30pm

The last Wednesday of the month is the official new date for our Bookswaps, so you can block out your diary for the rest of the year.

Hosted by the Great Northern Railway Tavern on Hornsey Road, this is a more informal type of literary event than you may be used to. They've proved extremely popular, and that's hardly surprising as we proudly prestent to you some of the best contemporary writers out there.

So, this is what you need to do.

1. Bring along with you a book which you like enough to recommend but are prepared to swap for another.

2. Enjoy a delicious buffet provided by the Tavern.

3. Have a drink, sit back and enjoy a great evening of fun.

Our two very special guests this month are;

 

MATT HAIG

 Matt's a brillaint author and journalist who's written a number of bestselling books. His first novel The Last Family in England, tells the story of Henry IV part 1, with dogs. It was a huge bestseller. 

He's gone on to write children's novels Shadow Forest (which won the Nestle Childrens Book Prize) and its sequel The Runaway Troll. The Radleys, which was published in 2010, is a brilliant take on modern day vampire novel and highly recommended.

 

Life with the Radleys: Radio 4, dinner parties with the Bishopthorpe neighbours and self-denial. Loads of self-denial. But all hell is about to break loose.
When teenage daughter Clara gets attacked on the way home from a party, she and her brother Rowan finally discover why they can't sleep, can't eat a Thai salad without fear of asphyxiation and can't go outside unless they're smothered in Factor 50. With a visit from their lethally louche uncle Will and an increasingly suspicious police force, life in Bishopthorpe is about to change. Drastically.

 

His new book, The Humans, wil be published just before the Bookswap.

 

ANDREW J LAMBIE

Andrew is the author of an extraordinary new book, which I have had the fortune to read, called A Carnival of the Flesh. Published by Guerilla Books, a new exciting small press, it tells the story of a travelling freak show in the early 20th century, who are marooned on a desolate island. At first the exhuberance of freedom is intoxicating for this motley cast of misfits, but once the wine runs out things start to go downhill fast.

The story is narrated by Dirty Boy, who's lived in a glass jar since he was six years old, and who has to be carried or rolled everywhere. Oh and the cast list is something else. There is (among others) the vile leader, the Brigadier, Cedric the dwarf, Two Smiles Madison, Ruby the Hermaphrodite and Chutney Daniels, so named after his tangle with factory machinery left him resembling the messy foodstuff. 

Andrew's imagination is something else and it's hard to compare this book with anything I've ever read. It's funny, horrific and magical and I was very keen that Andrew came along to the Bookswap so that you could hear more about it.

It's a truly beautiful looking book too.

 

As ever with the bookswaps, tickets are just £5 and this includes a delicous buffet served up the the Great Northern Railway Tavern.

This promises to be a really fun night. and tickets are available here. We hope you can make it. 

Ben Fountain, author of Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk, in Conversation with Sam Jordison.

Thursday May 23rd 7.00-8.30pm

The Big Green Bookshop is delighted to welcome US multi award winning novelist Ben Fountain to the shop for a very very special evening. Ben's latest novel, Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk, is an incredible modern take on the war (or anti-war) novel.

Nineteen year old Billy Lynn return's home a hero, after he and his troop are filmed defeating Iraqi soldiers in a vicious gun battle. The video goes viral and the Bush government see Billy as a marketing dream. He and his fellow soldiers are sent on a nationwide victory parade, where Billy mixes with the rich and the famous, and has to cope with the sudden celebrity status that has been thrust upon him.

It's a magnificent portrait of a reluctant hero and an incredibly important novel about the modern world that we live in.
The book, understandably won The National Book Critics Circle Award and was finalist in the national Book Awards and the Los Angeles Times Book Prize.
Ben is over in the UK for a very short time to coincide with the paperback launch of the book on May 16th, and we are over the moon that he's coming to the Big Green Bookshop whilst he's here.
We are also very fortunate to have Guardian book critic Sam Jordison here too, who's kindly agreed to interview Ben on the evening.There will be a chance for the audience to ask questions too and Ben will be happy to sign copies of his book for you.
Tickets for this very special evening are just £3, available here, and refreshments will be provided.
Please book early as tickets are likely to sell out very quickly.
If you're unable to make it, but would like a signed copy, the book is available to pre-order here. WE offer FREE P+P.

Matt Baylis reads from Death at the Palace

Tuesday April 2nd 7.00-8.30pm

Matt Baylis reads from & discusses his brilliant Wood Green Crime Novel

Death at the Palace by Matt Baylis is the first of a new crime series featuring Rex Tracey, a (very) local newspaper reporter. 

Rex is still coming to terms with the end of his relationship with his Lithuanian girlfriend Milda when a series of  assaults on young women take place in Alexandra Palace. He's got other concerns, not least an anti-immigration group run by Keith Powell spreading hate across his beloved Haringey.  And when Rex becomes a suspect of the assaults, he's forced to search for answers himself.

Amongst the tea-houses and squats, the yam shops and tower blocks of this little-glimpsed, forever-changing part of London, Rex unearths a trail of secrets and falsehoods, from corrupt police to illegal factories.

This is a fabulous page turner, that'll keep you guessing until the last page. It centres around Wood Green and Matt has really captured the spirit and atmosphere of the area.

This is a book we're really going to get behind and we hope that you support it too.

This is Matt's third novel (he's also written Stranger than Fulham and The Last Ealing Comedy) and we're really delighted that he'll be here to read from and talk about the book and answer any questions you may have.

The book is available in store at just £6.99.

This is a FREE event and refreshments will be available. Please let us know if you're going to attend so we can put you on the list.

BUT DO COME.

Big Green Bookswap April 24th

Wednesday April 24th 7.30pm-9.30pm

Big Green Bookswap - Local Author Special

Haringey is blessed with literary talent and so we though that we should celebrate this by holding a special Big Green Bookswap. Hosted by the Great Northern Railway Tavern on Hornsey Road, this is a different kind of book event, so expect the unexpected.

Here are the rules.

1. Bring along with you a book which you’re prepared to swap for another.

2. Enjoy a delicious buffet.

3. Prepare to be entertained.

Those are the rules.

Guests so far confirmed are;

 

Louise Millar

Louise is the author of the haunting psychological thriller The Playdate,  published by Pan Macmillan;

"Single mother Callie has come to rely heavily on her best friend Suzy. But Callie suspects Suzy's life isn't as simple as it seems. It's time she pulled away - going back to work is just the first step towards rediscovering her old confidence. So why does she keep putting off telling Suzy about her new job? Suzy and Callie live close to each other on a typical cramped, anonymous London street. Neighbours seem to move in, and move on, before you have even learned their names. Callie's increased sense of alienation leads her to try to befriend a new resident on her street, Debs. But Debs is anxious, odd. You wouldn't trust her with your child - especially not if you knew anything about her past. A brilliant and chilling evocation of modern life, The Playdate is a real talking-point book for mothers everywhere."

Her new book, Accidents Happen, is due out in April.

Kate Parker has had so much bad luck in her life, she's convinced she's cursed. But when she tries to do her best to keep herself and her son safe, people tell her she's being anxious and obsessive. Just when her life starts to spin completely out of control, an Oxford professor she meets offers to help. But his methods are not conventional. If she wants to live her life again, he will expect her to take risks. When a mysterious neighbour starts to take more than a passing interest in her, Kate tries to stay rational and ignore it. Maybe this, however, is the one time Kate should be worried.

 

Andrew Blackman

Andrew is the author of the award winning On The Holloway Road.

Unmotivated and dormant, Jack is drawn into the rampant whirlwind of Neil Blake, who he meets one windy night on the Holloway Road. Inspired by Jack Kerouac's famous road novel, the two young men climb aboard Jack's Figaro and embark on a similar search for freedom and meaning in modern-day Britain. Pulled along in Neil's careering path, taking them from the pubs of London's Holloway Road to the fringes of the Outer Hebrides, Jack begins to ask questions of himself, his friend and what there is in life to grasp. Spiting speed cameras and CCTV, motorway riots and island detours, will their path lead to new meaning or ultimate destruction?

His new book on social networking, A Virtual Love is out in April

For Jeff Brennan, juggling multiple identities is a way of life. Online he has dozens of different personalities and switches easily between them. Offline, he shows different faces to different people: the caring grandson, the angry eco-protester, the bored IT consultant.

So when the beautiful Marie mistakes him for a famous blogger, he thinks nothing of adding this new identity to his repertoire. But as they fall in love and start building a life together, Jeff is gradually forced into more and more desperate measures to maintain his new identity, and the boundaries between his carefully segregated personas begin to fray.

In a world where truth is a matter of perspective and identities are interchangeable, Jeff finds himself trapped in his own web of lies. How far will he go to maintain his secrets? And even if he wanted to turn back, would he be able to?

 

Callum Jacobs

Callum is the author of House of Dreams, a novel about the horrific possibilities of reality TV.

Tyler Thoreau’s lifestyle has been spiraling out of control and when he pushes a make-up girl off the balcony during a recording of his breakfast show Live and Direct, he needs to make a speedy exit. Serena, his producer, packs him off to her family’s cottage in a sleepy Sussex village for some chill out time under the watchful eye of her strange but wise younger brother, Yves. Tyler settles into the slow rhythms of country life and even learns how to turn off his phone.
In spite of the rampant industry gossip about his increasingly psychotic behaviour, an extraordinary offer to host a new reality show, House of Dreams comes out of the blue and it is an offer that Tyler finds irresistible, despite the advice of his friends and Panopticon Productions’ veil of secrecy about the exact format of the show.
With the backing of a covert, new government department, ‘houses’ set up all over the country and contestants far more numerous than other rival shows, House of Dreams promises to take the Big Brother mould to its ultimate conclusion.

 

Tickets are just £5 available here which includes the buffet. These bookswaps are a lot of fun and this is a fantastic opportunity to meet some of our best local authors. Hope to see you there.

This Week's Newsletter

Hello there,
after last week's World Book Day celebrations, we're taking it easy this week...

No, of course we're not.

As well as the Music Jam tonight and Book group tomorrow, we're doing some school visits with authors, we have some classes coming to the bookshop, we're going to announce the official title of the Wood Green Literary Festival and we may even get the keys to our new shop!

As ever, songs and stories for the little ones is on every Monday, Wednesday and Friday too (10am)

And LAUREN OLIVER is coming to the shop next week too!

Monday March 11th 7.00pm- 9.00pm

Music Jam

A reminder that tonight is the second of our music jam nights. Come along, bring an instrument, relax and have fun.

Open to all.

Tuesday March 12^th 7.00pm- 9.00pm

Book Group

This month the group discusses A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess. Come along, it’s free and there’s always a lively discussion.

Tuesday March 19^th 12.30pm-1.00pm

LAUREN OLIVER VISITS THE BOOKSHOP

A rare opportunity for UK fans to get their hands on signed copies of Lauren's books

We are incredibly fortunate that the amazing Lauren Oliver, one of America’s biggest Young Adult authors, is visiting the bookshop on March 19th 2013 as part of her short visit to the UK and will be appearing at one of the local schools.

After her visit to the school, Lauren will then return to the Big Green Bookshop at 12.30pm to sign copies of her books for her fans.

If you can't make it to the shop, Lauren has kindly agreed to sign & dedicate any of her books for you.

We can send them to you POST FREE anywhere in the UK.

Books will be posted out immediately following Lauren's visit on March 19th

Copies of the following books are available.

BEFORE I FALL

DELIRIUM (Delirium Trilogy 1)

PANDEMONIUM (Delirium trilogy 2)

REQUIEM (Delirium Trilogy 3)

These can be ordered online or over the phone.

http://www.biggreenbookshop.com/index.php

or 020 8881 6767

Thursday March 21st 7.00pm-8.30pm

Choc-Lit present an evening of Romance at the Big Green Bookshop

Our hosts tonight are Choc-Lit who publish a delicious selection of romantic fiction for women. Quality stories with a romance at their heart.

You will have a chance to listen to two of Choc-Lit's authors at the shop, whilst enjoying a delicous selection of chocloates provided by the publisher (and wine provided by the bookshop).

The authors are

Henriette Gyland

Henriette Gyland's debut novel Up Close, transposes the wintery palette of popular Scandinavian crime dramas to the North Norfolk coast. Chosen as December 2012 Debut Book of the Month by Lovereading and compared favourably to Nora Roberts by The Bookseller, Up Close is a sinister thriller and dark romance that promises to keep you turning pages well into the night.

Christina Courtenay

Christina Courtenay is an award-winning author of historical romantic fiction. Growing up and traveling extensively in the far east has had a strong influence on Christina's brand of adventurous tales about women who crossed cultures, continents and oceans in search of family, home and love. Her latest book, The Gilded Fan, is about Midori, the daughter of an English woman and a samurai warlord, who is forced to leave Japan and sail for Plymouth to seek out distant family she thinks of as barbarians.

You will have an opportunity to hear short readings from both authors and join a Q & A about writing and getting different types of romantic fiction published.

Tickets are £3 available here ( http://www.biggreenbookshop.com/stuff-you-might-like-/ticket-for-a-romantic-evening-at-the-big-green-bookshop/prod_617.html ) and redeemable against the purchase of any books by either author.

There's news of next month's Big Green Bookswap on our website too, which is a Local Author Special.

Hope you have a great week and see you soon,

Simon, Tim, Katie and Tara

This Week's Newsletter.

Hello

 The first of our open meetings to discuss the Wood Green Literary Festival, which we are organising this year, was a big success. We had a great group of people turn up who put forward some great suggestions & ideas for us to think about.

The second of these meetings is on Tuesday February 19^th at the Bookshop. Everyone is welcome.

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The evening with Tracey Thorn on March 6^th has sold out already. We are considering looking for a bigger venue, but we very much want it to stay LOCAL. If you have any suggestions of where might be a suitable venue, please get in touch.

 This being the case, we have started a reserve list, for people who would like tickets if more become available.

PLEASE GET IN TOUCH IF YOU’D LIKE TO BE PUT ON THE RESERVE LIST. Email enquiries@biggreenbookshop.com or phone us on 020 8881 6767

 

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We have just found out that Lauren Oliver, one of America’s biggest Young Adult authors, is coming to the UK in March for a couple of days. Naturally we got in touch with her publishers, and she is now going to be visiting one of the local schools with us. This is huge, by the way!

Lauren will be with us on the morning of March 19^th and she’s happy to sign and dedicate copies of her books for any of her UK fans. We can send these out anywhere in the UK with FREE P+P.

Not only that, but she’ll be at the bookshop on the day, from 12.30-1pm to sign copies of her books too.

More information can be found on our website, here.

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Here is the line up for our latest Comedy Night, on Friday February 22^nd

As ever, it's just a fiver to get in and you can bring your own refreshments.

Your compere this month is, as ever, the wonderful Mr Chris Brosnahan, who will be introducing you to the following acts;

TIM RENKOW

Jarred Christmas : “ No worries, It was  funny when you head butted me.”:

MAUREEN YOUNGER

”One of the most naturally talented comedians I have worked with, brilliant timing, warm and funny”. (Sally Holloway)

JARRED KEANE

  “The most cynical young comedian I’ve ever met.” – Eddie Ifft

GREGORY AKERMAN

"Akerman is stunningly original, genuinely fresh, and packs his show with more interesting asides and fascinating throwaway than you’ll find in a dozen less ambitious stand up performances." Mathilda Gregory, Fringe Guru

There may be a surprise guest this month too....

Tickets are available to buy here.

 

There’ll be another newsletter later this week, so keep your eyes peeled for more exciting news…

Have a great week,

Simon, Tim, Tara and Katie

E-Books for Independent Bookshops

Here's an update for all the Independent shops that have been in touch since the thing I wrote about getting a better deal on E-Books and E-Readers.

Essentially this was the point of the blogpost.
We are a small bookshop in Wood Green. The e-book market is very competitive. We want to have some of the market, but being a small bookshop in Wood Green, we don't get much of a say in the matter.
But what if a big group of us like-minded Independent Bookshops got together and decided what was best for us. We could then approach E-Book suppliers, as a group of shops and see if we could negotiate something better.

So far we've had 16 (maybe even 17) bookshops show an interest, which I think is a pretty good start.

One of those bookshops suggested that it would be good to get a Private Facebook Group set up, so that we can chat and share our thoughts. So I have done.

It's called "E-Books for Independents".

Because it's private and because I set it up, this means that initially, I can only invite my Facebook Friends. (once you join, you can invite your own friends). So, this is a message to all the Bookshops who are interested in joining.

Please be my friend.

I am Simon Key on Facebook and I look like this.

Gorgeous

I'm sure there's an easier way of doing this, but until I know it, this is the best we have.
When you send the request, please mention E-Books, so I can add you to the group straight away.

I hope this is going to work.

Literary Festival Open Meetings

Hello there,
  do you remember at the beginning of December, I wrote a blogpost letting you know that Haringey Council had accepted our proposal to put on a Literary Festival in Wood Green and awarded us £10,000 of their High Street Innovation Fund.
Exciting stuff, eh?

The council have now sent us out remit and given us targets to achieve.
They're something like this

The Big Green Bookshop will develop partnerships to deliver a “Wood Green Literary Festival” that that will encourage footfall and promote the economic and cultural vitality of Wood Green Town Centre.

The festival will run for three days and will be delivered at a range of venues around Wood Green that will showcase the local cultural and retail offer.

· Management and delivery of a three day festival

· 180 Wood Green Businesses supported through initiatives

· 5 arts/cultural centres delivering events

· 5 retailers/bars/restaurants delivering events

· 4 schools involved in delivering events

· 15% increase in footfall during events

· 6 articles/features in London Media

· 2 articles/features in National Media

· 1 social media marketing campaign delivered

· 20,000 Haringey residents targeted through promotional activity

· 10,000 residents from other boroughs targeted through promotional activity

So there we have it.

Now we have the remit, we can now set up a couple of open meetings in which we are inviting anyone and everyone who wants to get involved with the Literary Festival to come along and offer help, opinions and ideas.

The first of these meetings is going to be this Thursday February 7th, in the bookshop at 7.00pm.
Don't get there too early as we have a film crew in the shop until about 6.45pm.
We'll provide refreshments and i'll try and get someone from the Council along.
The second meeting will be on Tuesday Febraury 19th at 7.00pm

If you can't make the meetings but want to be involved, NOW is the time to email the shop. (enquiries at biggreenbookshop dot com). At this stage we are just getting all the information together. Once we've gone through all your ideas etc, we'll then be able to add a little bit of structure to the festival.
This is going to involve lots of hard work and if we're going to do this right we're going to need all the help and support we can get.
The Festival has the potential to be one of the most exciting things to happen in Wood Green for years, and we hope as many peolpe and businesses in the area will help our dream become a reality.

Boardgames Review of 2012

This is a guest post from Duncan Mackay, who helped massively to get the board games club started and has been a regular attendee.

 

2 years ago the Board Games Club at BGB was started on the last Sunday of each month as an opportunity for a group of adults to sit around and relive their frustrated youth playing classic games like Monopoly, Cluedo and Risk. We soon discovered that there is now a whole new world of modern board games that don't drag on for years and end up with your younger sister throwing the board against the wall declaring that everyone's a cheat and life's not fair!

 

Tim and Simon have been generous enough to provide the space for us each month, and it's free

to play (but we actively encourage players to buy a book in the shop and any mention of

Am*z*n will result in expulsion!)

 

This year we've had a variety of sizes of meetings from 4 people up to one week

when the shop was overrun with 20 of us.

Some new games have entered into our list of favourites this year including Al Hambra, Stone Age and Cargo Noir. On the other hand there were a few games that will never be mentioned in our presence again (yes, 'Munchkin', I'm talking about you!).

 

We've got little patience for sitting around listening to an hour of rules and instructions, so most

of the games that we enjoy only take about a maximum of 5 minutes to explain.

If you've ever enjoyed playing board games, our Top Ten list is worth checking out and we hope to see you soon.

 

Top Ten Big Green Bookshop Board Games of 2012

 

1. Ticket to Ride Europe (a modern classic for all ages - building train routes across Europe)

 

2. Carcassonne (build castles and roads to win points - deceptively ruthless!)

3. Stone Age (build your caveman community, but don't forget to feed them)

4. Settlers of Catan (Our favourite game of 2011, we still love it, but not so popular this year)

5. Dominion (Looks like a geekfest Dungeons and Dragons nightmare - but is actually good fun - not technically a board game!)

6. Al Hambra (a new favourite - create your town with a variety of buildings)

7. Cargo Noir (another new favourite - a trading game using ship ports)

8. Ticket to Ride America (the original version of the train track classic)

9. Revolution! (Blackmail, corruption, fight! - outbid your opponents)

10. Metro (A spaghetti Paris metro track building game)

 

Our next meeting is on Sunday 24th February 2013 at 1.00pm.

Come along (bring some chocolate biscuits and be prepared to buy a book!)

 

Duncan

 

I'd just like to add that it's open to everyone, no matter what your age. The group is always looking to be introduced to new games, so please bring one along with you, if you think we might like it.