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Drake The Bookshop will create its own La Belle Sauvage in tribute to the boat in Philip Pullman's recent bestselling novel, while former Faber m.d. Toby Faber will share from the publisher's archive in celebration of Independent Bookshop Week.
The nationwide initiative takes place from 16th to 23rd June with 400 indie stores confirmed to take part.
More details have now been added to the events announced in May. Pullman will do readings and book signings at Rogan’s Books, Bedford (18th June), Drake The Bookshop, Stockton on Tees (19th June), and Sevenoaks Bookshop (21st June). Rogan’s Books in Bedford boasts “extravagant plans” to recreate the His Dark Materials at Panacea Museum, with themed activities including giving family-members a chance to "discover their dæmon", while Drake The Bookshop attendees will board their very own La Belle Sauvage. Sevenoaks Bookshop, meanwhile, will give every guest a unique bookplate, designed by illustrator Katharine McEwen, to commemorate the evening.
Independent stores were given the chance to pitch for events with Pullman earlier this year, after bookshop owners revealed their frustration over the deep discounting of the title by other retailers.
Carol Ann Duffy will again lead Pan Macmillan’s Shore 2 Shore tour, which will see a host of poets, such as Gillian Clarke, Imtiaz Dharker and Jackie Kay travel the the country and performing in a number of venues. They will appear at Griffin Books, Penarth on 16th June as well as Topping & Co. Booksellers in Bath, the following day and then Newham Books in London (18th June) and The Aldeburgh Bookshop, Aldeburgh (19th June). Further stops include The Bookshop, Kibworth (20th June), The Bookcase, Lowdham (20th June), White Rose Books, Thirsk (21st June), Atkinson-Pryce Books, Biggar (22nd June) and Bookpoint, Dunoon (23rd June).
The Mainstreet Trading Company in St Boswells will celebrate its 10th birthday, holding various events during the week, while Sevenoaks Bookshop will commemorate its 70th birthday jointly with Faber, which will celebrate its 90th birthday as well 70 years as an independent publisher. On 19th June, Toby Faber will be sharing stories and anecdotes from the Faber archive and the store will have a summer party on 22nd June.
Author events will take place at shops including Far From the Madding Crowd in Linlithgow - featuring A J Pearce and former Bishop of Edinburgh Richard Holloway – as well as The Book Case in Lowdham, which will host an afternoon tea with Victoria Hislop on 19th June.
Also forming part of the week-long event are the publication events of former indie bookseller Nicki Thornton’s debut children’s novel. The co-founder of independent bookshop Mostly Books won the Times/ Chicken House Children’s Fiction competition in 2016. Last Chance Hotel (Chicken House) will be released on Thursday (7th June) and there will be exclusive signed editions only be available in independent bookshops, while Thornon will do events events at Rogan’s Bookshop, Bedford (18th June) and Mostly Books, Abingdon (22nd June).
The winner of the Times/ Chicken House competition, which will see an unsigned children’s author win a £10,000 contract, will be announced by Thornton and the Chicken House team on 20th June.
Throughout the week, IBW will be highlighting bookshops’ contribution to the high street through “Bookshop Heroes” including branded superhero capes from Quarto and IBW aprons from Nielsen, with the public encouraged to post pictures to social networks using #BookshopHeroes.
The IBW Book Award winners will be announced on 15th June, as chosen by a panel of judges. Maggie O’Farrell, Adam Kay and Judith Kerr are some of the shortlisted authors revealed last month.
For more information, visit indiebookshopweek.co.uk.