FOURTH ANNUAL FESTIVAL OF BOOK CLUBS IS A TRIUMPH

14 Oct 2016

For the fourth year in a row, Lord Wandsworth College has once again hosted the popular Festival of Book Clubs, now a firm fixture in the literary calendar for local book clubs.

Over traditional afternoon tea, five leading authors talked about their literary careers and latest novels.  There was lively, interactive discussion with the audience, chaired by Tim O’Kelly of OneTree Books in Petersfield, which was made up of 120 members of book clubs from across Hampshire and Surrey plus a group of GCSE and A Level pupils from the College.

Karen Maitland writes historical novels after she became fascinated by the medieval period having visited the Beguinage in Bruges.  Her novels include The Vanishing Witch, which was a Good Housekeeping recommended book, and her most recent novel The Raven’s Head. Robin Blake has been a school teacher, documentary maker for Capital Radio and a full time author since 1986 – he has written a plethora of historical crime fiction.  London born, Carol Drinkwater, is best known for her award-winning portrayal of Helen Herriot in the television adaptation of the James Herriot books, All Creatures Great and Small.  Her first book, The Haunted School, was published and made into a TV series.  She has just finished her 21st book. Nicci Gerrard and her husband, Sean French, write as a partnership – they published their first Nicci French novel, The Memory Game, in 1997.  There are now fourteen other bestselling novels by Nicci French published by Penguin.  Finally, Sophie Hannah is an internationally bestselling writer of psychological crime fiction.  Her novel, The Carrier, won the Crime Thriller of the Year Award at the Specsavers National Book Awards.  Two of her crime novels, The Point of Rescue and The Other Half Lives, have been adapted for ITV.

Lord Wandsworth’s English teacher and Head of Academic Enrichment, Jennie Leopold, said “This was a beautifully civilised event, in aid of The Honeypot children’s charity.  It was enriching for our students as not only were they able to listen to successful authors divulge their thoughts on the writing process, but they were able to converse with them and pick their brains on all aspects of writing. The students’ curiosity and imaginations were indulged to the full and they departed full of both insight and scones in equal measure!”

Photo: Authors – from left to right: Sophie Hannah, Karen Maitland, Carol Drinkwater, Nicci Gerrard, Sean French and Robin Blake