The Battle Book Club: what a way to kick it off!
Our literature discussions at the Battle of Ideas festival will continue online as we discuss John Boyne's Water on Wednesday 12 November.
Amongst the intense political debates and chaos of the Church House stairwell last weekend, the Battle of Ideas festival hosted a series of literature-based discussions, some of which were in collaboration with our Battle Book Club. We enjoyed interesting conversations with authors, respondents and the audience — delving deep into several books and their ideas.
In addition, we had several sessions discussing literature, such as The Great Gatsby, 100 years on: Understanding modern America and Jane Austen, 250 years on: spinster, feminist, or just a good writer? Throughout the festival, we also had an amazing book stall led by Oldspeak Bookshop, giving speakers and the public the chance to meet authors and continue to engage with these debates after the festival ended.
To continue to give a space to these literary discussions, the Battle Book Club is hosting a satellite event on Wednesday 12 November, where we will be discussing Water by John Boyne. John Boyne recently completed his quartet, Elements, which brought together four novellas: Water, Earth, Fire and Air.
But the publication was overshadowed as controversy over his gender-critical views led to outrage and the eventual ‘pause’ of the Polari Literary Prize after an open letter from 800 angry activists and the withdrawal of many judges and nominees. But does Boyne’s work not deserve to be read at literature, rather than taken as a political token? As he reflected in the Telegraph, rather than focusing on political positions, shouldn’t writers be remembered for the ‘beauty of their writing, the brilliance of their storytelling, and the power of their ideas?’
This is what we want to discuss at our Book Club – opening a space to engage with Boyne’s writing in dealing with the struggles of crime and trauma. Come along and discuss the novel’s intensely emotional themes, the power of his imaginative and thrilling prose and the depth of his characters. Join us on 12 November at 7.00pm via Zoom to discuss. We’ll have opening remarks and an introduction from Ella Whelan and we aim to unpick the questions of identity, responsibility and morality that float through Boyne’s novel. The discussion is free, but please register via Eventbrite. If you wish to join us but have not yet got the novel, please consider purchasing it through Oldspeak Bookshop - with 20% off for AoI subscribers if you use discount code BATTLEBOOKCLUB
Reaction to our book discussions at the festival
For more of an idea of the vibrancy of our Battle Book Club, some quotes from some of our sessions across the festival...
1945 – THE RECKONING: WAR, EMPIRE AND THE STRUGGLE FOR A NEW WORLD
The session was really interesting. It was a part of history I didn’t know about which was the impact on the colonies of the Second World War and the various players in regions such as Vietnam, India and Burma… Phil Craig’s book sounded like it was very balanced - seeing both the problems with the major imperial powers, but also their power to do good. Jane Sandeman
SOMEONE ELSE’S MUSIC: OPERA AND THE BRITISH
The discussion was ‘great fun’, and Alexandra Wilson’s book clearly moved the audience and the panel - ‘Ivan’s anecdote about his coalminer grandfather loving operatic records’ was a highlight for the author. It was an ‘opinionated’ discussion, which made encouraging to see how open expression still exists in public spaces. Alexandra Wilson and Yoel Gamzou
TERF ISLAND - HOW THE UK RESISTED TRANS IDEOLOGY
This breakfast banter Book Club was alive with energy and support for Fiona McAnena’s new book. Complete with a beautiful poem by Sonya Douglas it showed the emotion and passion that surrounds the stories of those who have stood up for women’s rights in the UK over the last 10 years. Ceri Dingle
NO MORE NORMAL - MENTAL HEALTH IN AN AGE OF OVERDIAGNOSIS
The discussion was ‘excellent, warm, thoughtful and engaging’ with great contributions from the audience. The room was packed to the brim, as many were trying to grapple with the causes and consequences of increasingly medicalised issues that would previously be seen as part of the human experience. Kevin Rooney
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