STEYNING FESTIVAL: Book your place

After months of liaising with publishers, the literature organisers have found themselves in the position of hosting a total of 15 authors at various events around the town during the festival.

At 11am on Saturday, Nick Sharratt will lead a fun-filled workshop for younger children, while Sunday will see cricket and literature meet.

Sara Bowers, of the Steyning Bookshop, said: "There is a really quirky event, when the motley group of actors and eccentrics who form the cricket team so hilariously depicted by author and actor Michael Simkins in his best-selling book, Fatty Batter, come to play a match against a Steyning team, which will be followed at around 7pm by a talk by the author."

Sara added Steyning was lucky to welcome the author of Captain Corelli's Mandolin, Louis de Bernires, back to the town on Wednesday (June 4). "He will be at the Steyning Centre talking about his work, including his latest book, The Partisan's Daughter.

"Louis, whose sister lives just outside Steyning, was an early visitor to the Steyning Bookshop and to Steyning Grammar School, near the beginning of his great success as a writer and it is with enormous pleasure and great excitement that we are able to host an evening with him."

On Monday (June 2), the creator of the Astrosaurs books, Steve Cole, will keep young readers amused when he visits St Andrew's Primary School, Steyning, with illustrator and author M. P. Robertson.

The pair will be working with pupils at the school before meeting members of the public at the Steyning Bookshop after school.

Sara said: "This pattern will follow all week, with visits from Nicholas Allan, of The Queen's Knickers fame, on the Tuesday, and popular Pete Johnson with Polly Dunbar, the Kate Greenaway award-winning illustrator and author on the Wednesday, finishing with brilliant author Julia Golding and Joshua Doder, creator of the prize-winning Grk the Dog books, on the Thursday.

"After spending the day in Steyning schools, they will be back at the bookshop from 4pm to 5pm to meet more of their fans."

Other Steyning Festival events coming up include improvisational group Playback Theatre, at Strivens Barn, Middlemead, Steyning, at 8pm on Saturday.

For more information on events during the Steyning Festival, or to book tickets, call Sara at the book shop, on 01903 812062.

Further details and a full programme of events are available online at www.steyningfestival.co.uk

-------------------------------------

Click here to go back to leisure.

Where are you? Add your pin to the Herald's international readers' map by clicking here.

Email the Herald: [email protected]