cambridge wordfest 2013 spring 12 / 13 / 14 April 2013 Bookings: 01223 300085 Free online booking www.adcticketing.com www.cambridgewordfest.co.uk 1 We would like to thank our supporters: Welcome As we enter our second decade we couldn’t be Principal sponsor Funder Festival bookseller Festival teaM more excited about our 11th spring festival. Our Director new venue this year is located in the historic and Cathy Moore Manager magnificent surroundings of St. John’s College Susannah Gibson where you will also find the festival bar. The Programming Jo Browning Wroe programme provides a giddy blend of politics, Rachel Calder literature, history, poetry, comedy, science, Anne Clark Media partners psychotherapy, and architecture. We celebrate Anna Whitelock science guest 200 years since the publication of Pride and curator Prejudice and mark the 50th anniversary of the death of Sylvia Plath, Alok Jha present Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie on a rare UK visit and we welcome Patrons Sponsors and supporters Dame Gillian Beer back the divine Sandi Toksvig, and erudite A.C.Grayling. There is also Robert Macfarlane plenty for the young people with visits from The Wimpy Kid, Jeremy Robert McCrum Rowan Pelling Strong, David Almond and Angelina Ballerina. Ali Smith Be kind to yourself and join us for a weekend like no other to stimulate Rebecca Stott Programme the mind, feed the soul and lift the spirits. design Charlotte Sankey, Cathy Moore, Festival Director Creative Warehouse Benefactors Corporation Microsoft of trademark registered a is Microsoft Gerald and Jean Avison, Laurence and Sarah Garrett, Duncan Hannay-Robertson, Carol and Chas Sims, Paul Taylor, Anna Whitelock, Catherine Wise St Mary’s Junior School Participating publishers is proud supporter of Atlantic, Bloodaxe, Bloomsbury, Canongate, Faber & Faber, Granta, Guardian Books, Harper Press, Hodder, John Murray, Little Brown, Macmillan, Orion, Penguin, Piccadilly, Profile, Puffin, Quercus, Random House, Salt, Scholastic, Cambridge Wordfest Simon & Schuster, Smokestack, Templar, Thames & Hudson, Verso, Walker New purpose-designed pre-prep for pupils in Reception to Year 2 with an imaginative outdoor playing area opened in September 2012 Heffers ad on itsTo arrange a visit please contact our admissions team on 01223 224167 or email way... [email protected] www.stmaryscambridge.co.uk An independent day and boarding school for girls aged 4-18 2 3 St Mary's Wordfest ad v3.indd 1 08/02/2013 16:11 Friday 12 April Angelina Ballerina 1.30-2.15pm Katharine Holabird Palmerston Room £6 We’re going on a Bear Hunt Cambridge Wordfest is delighted to help 10.15-11am & Angelina Ballerina celebrate her 30th 11.45-12.30pm Justine de Mierre anniversary. Join us for a very special Palmerston Room Join professional storyteller Justine de Mierre for a celebration chance to see Angelina Ballerina’s £5 of the classic picture book, We’re Going on a Bear Hunt. This adventures brought to life is a fun, interactive event for under 5s and their grownups before your eyes by her including games, songs and activities and ending with an creator, Katharine Holabird, interactive telling of the story. Come and swish through the together with a real ballerina. Find out what grass, squelch through the mud and run away from the bears it’s like to be a ballerina, practice some pirouettes, with us! and hear about Angelina’s latest adventures. A delightful age 2+ event about everyone’s favourite dancing mouse. Don’t forget (maximum of two children per adult recommended) your tutu! age 4+ 11.00-11.45am Roald Dahl Storyteller Scramasax 1.30-2.30pm aDC theatre aDC theatre Revolting Rhymes & Dirty Beasts Kevin Crossley-Holland £6 £6 We’re delighted to welcome some swashboggling storytellers Join award-winning author Kevin Crossley-Holland for a journey back from The Roald Dahl Museum and Story Centre. There will be in time and an exploration of history. “Why bother with the Vikings?”, rendunculous renditions of Revolting Rhymes and dastardly asks Kevin. Yesterday’s men. In fact, why bother with history at all? In deeds from Dirty Beasts, so be prepared to join in and get this lively and enthralling event about his latest book Scramasax Kevin noisy! will show us why. Kevin Crossley-Holland has won the Guardian Prize age 6+ and the Carnegie Medal for Literature. age 9-14 The Wimpy Kid Show 3-4pm 12.15-1.15pm How We Make Stuff A must for all Diary of a Wimpy Kid fans and great family Palmerston Room aDC theatre Christiane Dorion £6 £6 entertainment. Host Alastair Watson brings the books to life Christiane Dorion continues her quest to help children with fun activities including The Wimpy Kid Draw-Along and understand the processes that shape the world we live in and The Wimp Wars! Quiz. The event also includes exclusive clips to inspire them to think for themselves about the impact of of author Jeff Kinney talking about both the books and his human actions on the planet. Where do our clothes come from? involvement in the recent block-buster films, in addition to What’s the link between gorillas and mobile phones? Does showing how he draws the characters. What’s not to like? chocolate grow on trees? Answering these questions and many age 8+ more, Christiane Dorion’s How We Make Stuff is an engaging exploration of the way we use Earth’s natural resources. Join her for experiments, demonstrations and hands-on fun. Christiane Dorion’s last book, How the World Works, won the Royal Society Young People’s Book Prize in 2011. age 7-12 4 5 Saturday 13 April Saturday 13 April 10-11am Downtown Dinosaurs Manga Workshop 1-2.30pm aDC theatre Jeanne Willis Sonia Leong Boys smith Room £6 £15 Jeanne Willis is one of the UK’s funniest and most Join Manga artist Sonia Leong to get to grips with this dynamic popular authors for children with lots of favourite Japanese art style. Create distinctive character artwork and books to her credit including Tadpole’s Promise practise the skills required to get those stories out of your head and and the Dr Xargle stories. She’s always loved dinosaurs though – join onto the paper in comic form. Learn the tricks of the trade from a her for this special event and hear about her brilliant new series The professional! Downtown Dinosaurs. Look out for some special dino-guests too! age 12+ Suitable for boys and girls aged 6+. Meet Jeremy Strong 2.30-3.30pm Palmerston Room 11.30-12.30pm Horrible Science Come and laugh your socks off with the hilarious and multi-award winning Jeremy Strong and hear all about your favourite characters. £7 Palmerston Room Nick Arnold £7 What will happen when Casper the Cartoon Kid encounters a This brilliant show celebrates the best bits of the multi-award winning monster zombie mob at school? Will the Hundred- Horrible Science series. Join author Nick Arnold as he conducts a Mile-An-Hour Dog win gold at the animal games? range of scientific demonstrations, readings from the books and What’s My Brother’s Famous Bottom up to now? quizzes. No show is ever the same, and audience participation is a Don’t miss this hour of silliness and stories. must in this wonderfully wacky event! age 6+ age 8-12 1-2pm Meet David Almond aDC theatre David Almond is one of the most £7 exciting and innovative authors writing What is Contemporary Art? 4-5pm for young people. As the author of numerous Suzy & Jacky Klein the Winstanley books including Skellig, The Fire Eaters, The Savage A guide through the world of contemporary art: fun and £6 and most recently The Boy Who Swam with Piranhas which is informative, this interactive event asks kids to get involved, react shortlisted for the 2013 Blue Peter prize, he has received high and respond to some of the great art of the last 60 years by critical acclaim and an array of literary prizes including the Hans major artists including Andy Warhol and Damien Hirst. They explore Christian Anderson Award. Hear David talk about his inspirations, subjects such as outer space, bizarre beasts and unusual materials, characters and the creative process behind some of today’s encouraging children to understand and question some of the most classics. exciting and dynamic art of our time. age 8+ age 8+ Sponsored by Walker Books and Hodder Children’s Books 7 6 Book at: www.adcticketing.com or call 01223 300085 Sunday 14 April 10-11am Beast Quest and Palmerston Room Sea Quest I love Cambridge. It’s a £7 Calling all valiant Beast Quest fans! Help the good wizard wonderful place, and it’s filled with these slight Aduro, in this interactive event, to solve cryptic puzzles and free “outcasts, who actually have something to say - Alexander Masters the beasts from Malvel’s evil spell and participate in a Beast Quest Tournament. Also get a sneak peek of Adam Blade’s I thought it was immensely beautiful, new series, Sea Quest! Deep in the water lurks a new breed but“ it was also immensely strange to me” of Beast… Exclusive Beast Quest and Sea Quest goodies for - Ali Smith on her first impressions of Cambridge every contestant! ” age 6-9 They were years of turmoil - there were 10 men to every woman! PLUS - Claire Tomalin on her Don’t miss our regular “ Off The Shelf and Cambridge University days Book Club pages in the 11.30-1pm ” Cambridgeshire Journal Bookmaking Workshop – Make - the county’s glossy, Boys smith Room Friends with a Panda These are just some of the things celebrated high-quality magazine £10 authors have told Cambridge’s liveliest, most is on sale now Yurong comprehensive books website recently.