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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20260505T180000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20260505T190000
DTSTAMP:20260520T093209
CREATED:20260206T150012Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260206T150315Z
UID:36981-1778004000-1778007600@www.heronbooks.co.uk
SUMMARY:Eloise Kane: Wilderlands – The Human History of Wild Britain
DESCRIPTION:We are very excited to host Eloise Kane to celebrate her new book Wilderlands: The Human History of Wild Britain. \nPlease join us for a discussion of the book\, followed by a Q&A and book signing. \nThe event is free but please RSVP to read@heronbooks.co.uk. Space is limited and in demand! \nAbout the book\nWhen was Britain last truly wild? And what\, if anything\, remains?\nThis is the unexpectedly human history of wild Britain. Eloise Kane unearths 12\,000 years of our changing relationship with and influence on the landscape. Through prehistory\, Roman occupation\, the Middle Ages and beyond\, we see the unfamiliar beasts of our old wild make way for species such as brown hare and fallow deer\, now romanticised as eternal symbols of the British countryside\, but introduced much later than we might think.\nPlaces free from our influence haven’t existed for a very long time. But Eloise Kane invites us to rethink our definition of the wild – not as separate from us. Seen anew as the result of millions of human lives lived\, Wilderlands demonstrates how we are integral to the ecology and biodiversity of our land\, with the power to shape its future. \nAbout the author\nEloise Kane is an archaeologist. She is a Visiting Fellow at the Royal Agricultural University\, an Associate Fellow of the Royal Historical Society\, and previously served as Honorary Treasurer of the Society for Post-Medieval Archaeology. Her research interests are in landscape\, environmental\, and animal history/archaeology – historic parks\, hunting landscapes\, country houses\, woodlands\, animal sports\, and the relationship between humans and the wild. She lives on the edge of Salisbury Plain with a small menagerie of children and beasts.
URL:https://www.heronbooks.co.uk/event/eloise-kane-wilderlands-the-human-history-of-wild-britain/
LOCATION:Heron Books\, 7a Regent Street\, Bristol\, BS8 4HW\, United Kingdom
CATEGORIES:Author Talk
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.heronbooks.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/Eloise-Kane.jpg
ORGANIZER;CN="Heron Books":MAILTO:read@heronbooks.co.uk
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20260426T170000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20260426T190000
DTSTAMP:20260520T093209
CREATED:20260326T143032Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260326T143032Z
UID:38537-1777222800-1777230000@www.heronbooks.co.uk
SUMMARY:Marianne Power and Jan Day at the Alma Tavern Theatre
DESCRIPTION:We are delighted to support this conversation event between writers\, Marianne Power and Jan Day at the Alma Tavern Theatre \nFull details and booking through the Alma Tavern’s website: https://www.tickettailor.com/events/almatheatrecompany/2044804 \n  \n 
URL:https://www.heronbooks.co.uk/event/marianne-power-and-jan-day-at-the-alma-tavern-theatre/
LOCATION:Alma Tavern Theatre\, 18-20 Alma Vale Rd\, Bristol\, BS8 2HY
CATEGORIES:Author Talk
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.heronbooks.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/Screenshot-2026-03-26-142852.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20260416T190000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20260416T203000
DTSTAMP:20260520T093209
CREATED:20260312T112051Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260312T113845Z
UID:38189-1776366000-1776371400@www.heronbooks.co.uk
SUMMARY:Tracy Maton: The Artful Anna Harris
DESCRIPTION:We are very much looking forward to supporting this event organised by the Friends of the Clifton Library celebrating The Artful Anna Harris by Tracy Maton. \n‘You are quite the chameleon\, aren’t you? You could wear anything\, do anything\, and yet you choose plain\, plain\, plain. Is it all a front for a secret life?’ \nWhen the vivacious Sofia Carstairs arrives in her sleepy country village\, Anna knows her life will never be the same again. Her new best friend is carefree\, elegant and intoxicating. Her life doesn’t revolve around church flower arrangements or Sunday lunches with the in-laws. Sofia reminds Anna of the person she used to be\, before she worked so hard to fit in that she practically disappeared. But is it enough to just be Sofia’s friend? Anna wonders what it would be like to be Sofia\, if only for a little while. \nBut once Anna starts pretending\, she finds it easy to pretend the rules don’t apply to her. How far will Anna go to get what she wants? And what will she do to those who stand in her way? \nTracy will discuss her love of the morally ambiguous character and why she decided to write her own. An award-winning children’s writer\, The Artful Anna Harris is her first thriller for adults. \nBook your tickets through the Clifton Library: https://public.foccal.com/event/515
URL:https://www.heronbooks.co.uk/event/tracy-maton-the-artful-anna-harris/
LOCATION:Clifton Library\, 13 Princess Victoria St\, Bristol\, BS8 4BX\, United Kingdom
CATEGORIES:Author Talk
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.heronbooks.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/Screenshot-2026-03-12-111703.jpg
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20260217T183000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20260217T203000
DTSTAMP:20260520T093209
CREATED:20260102T105705Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260102T105705Z
UID:36150-1771353000-1771360200@www.heronbooks.co.uk
SUMMARY:Thomas Halliday: Otherlands with Bristol Humanists
DESCRIPTION:Otherlands is an epic\, exhilarating journey into deep time\, showing us the Earth as it used to exist\, and the worlds that were here before ours. Travelling back in time to the dawn of complex life\, and across all seven continents\, award-winning palaeobiologist Thomas Halliday gives us a mesmerising up-close encounter with eras that are normally unimaginably distant. \nYou will be immersed in a series of ancient landscapes\, from the mammoth steppe in Ice Age Alaska to the lush rainforests of Eocene Antarctica\, with its colonies of giant penguins\, to Ediacaran Australia\, where the moon is far brighter than it is today. We visit the birthplace of humanity; we hear the crashing of the highest waterfall the Earth has ever known; and we watch as life emerges again after the asteroid hits; and the age of the\nmammal then dawns. These lost worlds seem fantastical and yet every description is grounded in the fossil record. \nOtherlands is a remarkable imaginative feat: an emotional narrative that underscores the tenacity of life – yet also the fragility of seemingly permanent ecosystems\, including our own. You will see the last 500 million years not as an endless expanse of unfathomable time\, but as a series of worlds\, simultaneously fabulous and familiar. \nDr Thomas Halliday is a paleobiologist\, specialising in mammal evolution and phylogenetics (the science of working out how organisms are related). He has been a researcher and a graduate student at the University of Bristol and at University College London\, and as a postdoctoral researcher at University College London and the University of Birmingham. He was an Honorary Fellow at the University of Birmingham and is an Associate with the Natural History Museum. He is also an international croquet player. \nDarwin Day has been celebrated since the 1930’s\, marking the birthday (Feb 12th) of arguably the world’s greatest ever scientist\, Charles Darwin\, the father of evolution by natural selection. Bristol Humanists has held a Darwin Day annual lecture by a noted scientist for the last 10 years. Significant previous Darwin Day lecturers have included Adam Rutherford\, Angel Saini\, Nichola Raihani & Anil Seth \nTickets can be booked at: https://wegottickets.com/event/685110/
URL:https://www.heronbooks.co.uk/event/thomas-halliday-otherlands-with-bristol-humanists/
LOCATION:Bristol Folk House\, 40a Park St\, Bristol\, BS1 5JG
CATEGORIES:Author Talk
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.heronbooks.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/9780141991146.jpg
ORGANIZER;CN="Bristol Humanists":MAILTO:bristolhumanists@gmail.com
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20260129T190000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20260129T213000
DTSTAMP:20260520T093209
CREATED:20260114T114146Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260114T115642Z
UID:36343-1769713200-1769722200@www.heronbooks.co.uk
SUMMARY:Meera Sodha: Dinner
DESCRIPTION:Bristol Lido are running a supper club with the great Meera Sodha. Details of what is set to be a glorious feast are on their website and we are delighted to support the event by bringing copies of Meera Sodha’s Dinner.  \nDinner With Meera Sodha 29/1/2026 \n \n 
URL:https://www.heronbooks.co.uk/event/meera-sodha-dinner/
LOCATION:Bristol Lido\, Oakfield Place\, Bristol\, BS8 2BJ
CATEGORIES:Author Talk
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.heronbooks.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/9780241488003.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20260105T193000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20260105T210000
DTSTAMP:20260520T093209
CREATED:20251010T114011Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20251021T054230Z
UID:34135-1767641400-1767646800@www.heronbooks.co.uk
SUMMARY:Julian Baggini: How the World Eats with Bristol Humanists
DESCRIPTION:Heron Books is delighted to provide a bookstall at this event organised by Bristol Humanists\nWe welcome back Bristol’s philosopher\, Julian Baggini to explore the timely issue of How the World Eats. \nHow we live is shaped by how we eat. You can see this in the vastly different approaches to growing\, preparing and eating food around the world: the hunter-gatherer Hadza in Tanzania whose sustainable lifestyle is under threat in our crowded planet is in stark contrast to “developed” societies whose food is produced in vast intensive enterprises. Most of us now rely on a complex global food web of production\, distribution\, consumption and disposal\, which is now facing unprecedented challenges. \nThe need for a better understanding of how we feed ourselves has never been more urgent. Julian’s exploration takes him from cutting-edge technologies\, such as new farming methods\, cultured meat\, GM and astronaut food\, to the ethics and health of ultra processed food and aquaculture\, as he takes a forensic look at the effectiveness of our food governance\, the problem of food wastage and the effects of commodification.\nHe will advocate for a pluralistic\, humane\, resourceful and equitable global food philosophy\, so we can build a food system fit for the twenty-first century and beyond. \nBiography\nJulian Baggini has written on various philosophical subjects including rationality\, identity\, food and atheism. He has written numerous books\, and regularly writes for magazines and newspapers including\, Prospect\, the Guardian\, the FT and the Wall Street Journal. A Bristol-resident\, at St Georges Bristol he hosts a regular public philosophy session\, ‘Philosophical Times’. He is also a patron of Humanists UK. Julian has a longstanding interest in food and food systems. His food related books include The Pig that Wants to be Eaten\, The Virtues of the Table\, Babette’s Feast\, as well as most recently How the World Eats\, which was chosen as a BBC Radio 4 Food Programme ‘Book of the Year’. \n‘Julian Baggini engages with food in a way that nobody else does. He’s the most important thinker we’ve got on food in the UK.’ Tim Hayward\, author of Steak.\n‘A philosopher’s eye brought a refreshing alternative and nuanced view to the relationships that connect us—not always favourably—to our foods. Baggini describes a growing disconnect between eating food and understanding the associated harms that may be caused along the way to your plate. The food world\, he argues\, must be considered as a whole system. This is a wonderful perspective to advocate for.’ Stefania Pizzirani\, Science \nThis event is at YHA Bristol in the Conference Room. The venue is fully accessible – please check at reception for use of the lift. \nEveryone is welcome. The event is FREE to members of Bristol Humanists. Others are asked for a contribution of £5/£2 (concessions)
URL:https://www.heronbooks.co.uk/event/julian-baggini-how-the-world-eats-with-bristol-humanists/
LOCATION:Bristol Grain Store\, Bristol YHA\, 14 Narrow Quay\, Bristol\, BS1 4QA
CATEGORIES:Author Talk
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://www.heronbooks.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/Julian-Baggini-How-the-world-eats-1.png
ORGANIZER;CN="Bristol Humanists":MAILTO:bristolhumanists@gmail.com
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20251212T160000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20251212T173000
DTSTAMP:20260520T093209
CREATED:20251203T063322Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20251203T063322Z
UID:35264-1765555200-1765560600@www.heronbooks.co.uk
SUMMARY:Rosa Vasquez Espinoza: The Spirit of the Rainforest
DESCRIPTION:We will be providing a book stall at Rosa’s event with the University of Bristol. Anyone who came to her talk in the shop earlier this year will know what a fascinating book The Spirit of the Rainforest is and what brilliant research and work Rosa carries out. We can’t wait to hear more. \nBefore you step into the jungle\, there are a few things you need to know… Join scientist Dr Rosa Vasquez Espinoza as she uncovers one of the most unexplored regions on the planet. \nDr Rosa is no stranger to the Amazon. Growing up with the rainforest as her back garden\, she learnt the lessons of the rainforest from her grandmother\, a native healer in natural medicine. She went on to pursue a classical education in science\, gaining a PhD in the US\, but has always been pulled back to the heart of the Amazon. As a leading biologist in her field\, Rosa continues to explore the region through a unique blend of scientific inquiry and ancient insight. \nDr. Rosa Vásquez Espinoza is a Peruvian Amazonian-Andean scientist\, conservationist\, National Geographic Explorer\, and award-winning artist. She blends science with indigenous knowledge to protect biodiversity and culture. \n4pm in the Life Sciences building\, BS8 1TQ. More details and link to follow.
URL:https://www.heronbooks.co.uk/event/rosa-vasquez-espinoza-the-spirit-of-the-rainforest-2/
LOCATION:Life Sciences Building\, Life Sciences\, University of Bristol\, Tyndall Avenue\, Bristol\, BS8 1TQ\, United Kingdom
CATEGORIES:Author Talk
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.heronbooks.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/Screenshot-2025-03-03-100631.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20251201T193000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20251201T210000
DTSTAMP:20260520T093209
CREATED:20251017T102751Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20251021T054054Z
UID:34326-1764617400-1764622800@www.heronbooks.co.uk
SUMMARY:Celsius – a life and death by degrees with Ian Hembrow with Bristol Humanists
DESCRIPTION:Best-known for the 100-point ‘centi-grade’ temperature scale that bears his name\, Anders Celsius was a scientist of astonishing breadth. From the Northern Lights to air pressure and sea levels\, he unravelled the mysteries of many of nature’s greatest phenomena during his short life. His mind\, methods and manners contain powerful lessons for how humans live in the 21st century and beyond – if we’re inclined and willing to listen. \nIan Hembrow’s book Celsius: a life and death by degrees is the first full-length English language biography of this world-changing Swedish scientist. Longlisted for the 2025 Wolfson History Prize\, it tracks not just Celsius’ life and times\, but also the author’s journey to uncover his story. Ian travelled to the Arctic Circle\, down mines and up cathedral towers to follow in his subject’s footsteps. This is a thought-provoking opportunity to learn more about the modest\, little-known man with the well-known name\, his links with Humanism and how his science continues to shape all of our lives almost three centuries after his death. Anders Celsius (1701-1744) was an enlightenment genius and a mercurial thinker who ran out of time\, but his discoveries\, philosophy and personality still point a hopeful way forward. \nIan Hembrow is a Bristol-based author and Humanist celebrant\, who has written widely including for The Guardian\, New Statesman and the Oldie. His previous books\, Making Medicines Safe & Rare Events are on global medicines safety. \nReviews of Celsius\n‘This is a beautifully written masterwork of science biography\, covering the life and times of the great Swedish astronomer Anders Celsius. Ian Hembrow provides a gripping narrative that details his search for a man who was very much embedded in his city and landscape…’ Sarah Covington\, Professor of History\, Biography and Memoir\, City University of New York\n‘……a carefully researched and entertaining life of an Enlightenment astronomer\, scientist and explorer who gave his name to the Celsius temperature scale…. a fascinating pen-portrait of the times and of this remarkable man.’ – Dr Julian Mayes\, Former Vice-President\, Royal Meteorological Society \nEveryone is welcome. The event is free to members of Bristol Humanists. Non-members are asked to pay £5/£2 (concessions)
URL:https://www.heronbooks.co.uk/event/celsius-a-life-and-death-by-degrees-with-ian-hembrow-with-bristol-humanists/
LOCATION:Bristol Grain Store\, Bristol YHA\, 14 Narrow Quay\, Bristol\, BS1 4QA
CATEGORIES:Author Talk
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.heronbooks.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/9781803994611.jpg
ORGANIZER;CN="Bristol Humanists":MAILTO:bristolhumanists@gmail.com
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20251119T150000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20251119T170000
DTSTAMP:20260520T093209
CREATED:20251023T160928Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20251029T085943Z
UID:34452-1763564400-1763571600@www.heronbooks.co.uk
SUMMARY:Searching for My Slave Roots: From Guyana's Sugar Plantations to Cambridge
DESCRIPTION:Dr Malik Al Nasir will talk about his new book ‘Searching for My Slave Roots: From Guyana’s Sugar Plantations to Cambridge‘ \nWe are delighted to provide a book stall at this event\, organised by the University of Bristol. \nAuthor and award-winning researcher\, Malik Al Nasir will be discussing\, Searching for my Slave Roots: From Guyana’s Sugar Plantations to Cambridge\, a powerful exploration of ancestry\, enslavement\, and legacy. \nSet across Liverpool\, Glasgow\, Demerara and Berbice\, the book traces Malik’s family history\, revealing ancestors who were both enslaved and slaveholders\, and uncovering the complex interconnections between trauma\, privilege\, and the institutions shaped by slavery. \nThe author will be in conversation with Dr Richard Stone. \n3-3.30pm Welcome and Tea & Coffee\n3.30-4.30pm In conversation with Malik Al-Nasir and Dr Richard Stone with time for Q&A .\n4.30-5pm Book signing\, and informal meeting with the author. \nAbout Malik Al Nasir\nMalik Al Nasir is an author\, film maker\, performance poet\, and an award winning academic from Liverpool.\nMalik started tracing his roots back through Caribbean slavery over 20 years ago and his pioneering research has been recognised by Sir Hilary Beckles (Chair: CARICOM Commission for slavery reparations)\, historian David Olusoga\, and The University of Cambridge\, where Malik has just completed a PhD in history with a full scholarship. In recognition of the significance of his research\, Malik received several awards whilst at Cambridge\, as well as an honorary Doctorate from Liverpool Hope University.\nMalik is co-founder of the policy making initiative\, ‘Black Academia – Lifting the Barriers.’ He has produced and appeared in several documentaries with Gil Scott-Heron\, The Last Poets\, Benjamin Zephaniah\, Public Enemy\, Ice T and many other luminaries.\nhttps://linktr.ee/malikalnasir \nAbout Richard Stone\nDr. Richard Stone is a Senior Lecturer in the History Department at the University of Bristol. He specialises in Social and Economic history\, especially the history and legacies of enslavement. He has worked with numerous institutions on researching their links to historic slavery\, including the University of Bristol\, Bristol Quakers\, Bristol Cathedral\, and the Society of Merchant Venturers. His first monograph Bristol and the Birth of the Atlantic Economy\, 1500-1700 was published in 2024. \nTickets are free. Please book using this link. \nArts Complex\, Lecture Theatre 2\n11 Woodland Road Bristol BS8 1TB
URL:https://www.heronbooks.co.uk/event/searching-for-my-slave-roots-from-guyanas-sugar-plantations-to-cambridge/
LOCATION:Arts Complex\, University of Bristol\, Arts Complex Woodland Road\, Bristol\, BS8 1UJ\, United Kingdom
CATEGORIES:Author Talk
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.heronbooks.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/9780008464486.jpg
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20251104T180000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20251104T193000
DTSTAMP:20260520T093209
CREATED:20250819T073214Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20251104T142650Z
UID:32573-1762279200-1762284600@www.heronbooks.co.uk
SUMMARY:Jay Griffiths and Gareth Howell-Jones: How Animals (Including Hedgehogs) Heal Us
DESCRIPTION:Please note a change to this event: Jay Griffiths is unwell and unable to attend. The event will go ahead with Gareth Howell-Jones and we are so looking forward to hearing about his writing as well as to hear his kind reading of Jay’s talk on her behalf.  \nJay Griffiths explores how animals can have a role in every level of healing\, from the individual to the collective\, guiding us in how we might create societies that are healthier\, fairer and kinder. How Animals Heal Us puts animals at the heart of a restorative vision of health. \nIn Your Lowly Hedgehog Knows\, Gareth Howell-Jones looks at the simple\, everyday things around us – trees\, woodlice\, cats\, people and\, of course\, hedgehogs – to develop a radical and heartening world-view based on nature rather than cultural traditions. \nTogether\, they reimagine our place in nature with wonder\, hope and a lot of humour. \nJay Griffiths is the author of many books including Wild: An Elemental Journey and Why Rebel. She has won the ‘Discover’ award and the Orion book prize and has written for Radiohead and the Royal Shakespeare Company.\n‘If bravery itself could write\, it would write like she does.’ (John Berger) \nGareth Howell-Jones is a writer\, bookseller and garden designer. His previous book was Do Not Call the Tortoise.\n‘Stunning – full of revelatory beauty.’ (Katherine May) \nThe event is free but please RSVP to read@heronbooks.co.uk to ensure you have a seat and a glass of something.\nWe look forward to seeing you there.
URL:https://www.heronbooks.co.uk/event/jay-griffiths-and-gareth-howell-jones-how-animals-including-hedgehogs-heal-us/
LOCATION:Heron Books\, 7a Regent Street\, Bristol\, BS8 4HW\, United Kingdom
CATEGORIES:Author Talk,Book Launch
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.heronbooks.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/Jay-and-Gareth-2.jpg
ORGANIZER;CN="Heron Books":MAILTO:read@heronbooks.co.uk
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20251009T160000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20251009T180000
DTSTAMP:20260520T093209
CREATED:20250912T055334Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250912T055508Z
UID:33388-1760025600-1760032800@www.heronbooks.co.uk
SUMMARY:Rachel Joyce: The Homemade God
DESCRIPTION:We are delighted to support this event organised by Penguin Random House and GAIL’s Bakeries \nFull details and tickets available from Eventbrite \nStep into the cosy charm of GAIL’s Bakery for an inspiring afternoon with bestselling author Rachel Joyce\, as part of our Great Reads Collection in association with Heron Books . Rachel will share the story behind her latest novel\, The Homemade God\, offering candid insights into her creative process\, the joys and challenges of writing\, and the imaginative world she brings to life. \nEvery guest will receive: \n\nA hardback copy of The Homemade God\, personally signed by Rachel\nAn exclusive tote bag\nA hot drink of your choice\nA freshly baked bun to enjoy during the event\n\nAbout the book\, The Homemade God \nThere is a heatwave across Europe. \nGoose and his three sisters gather at the family’s house by Lake Orta in Piedmont\, Italy. Their father\, a famous artist\, has recently remarried a much younger woman and decamped to Italy to finish his masterpiece. Now he is dead and there is no sign of a painting. \nAlthough the siblings have always been close\, as they search for answers over that summer\, the things they learn – about themselves\, their father and their new stepmother – will drive them apart before they can come to any kind of understanding of what their father’s legacy truly is. Extraordinarily compelling\, at heart this is a novel about sibling relationships and those hairline cracks that can appear within a family: what what happens when they splinter\, and what it would take to mend them.
URL:https://www.heronbooks.co.uk/event/rachel-joyce-the-homemade-god/
LOCATION:Gail’s\, Whiteladies Road\, 52 Whiteladies Road\, Bristol\, BS8 2NH
CATEGORIES:Author Talk
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.heronbooks.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/9780857528193.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20251006T193000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20251006T213000
DTSTAMP:20260520T093209
CREATED:20250921T114535Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250921T114819Z
UID:33611-1759779000-1759786200@www.heronbooks.co.uk
SUMMARY:Michael Taylor: Impossible Monsters
DESCRIPTION:Dinosaurs\, Darwin and the war between science and religion\nWe are delighted to support the Bristol Humanists’ Emma Martin Lecture 2025\nBook here: https://wegottickets.com/event/671906/ \nIn 1811\, a twelve-year-old girl uncovered some strange-looking bones in Britain’s southern shoreline and so sparked a crisis that would engulf science and religion for the next six decades. That little girl Mary Anning\, an amateur geologist\, shook the establishment. By the end of the 19th century\, the literal reading of the bible had been overturned\, science had been liberated from religion and the secular age had begun. Impossible Monsters takes us into the lives and minds of the extraordinary men and women whose discovery of the dinosaurs revolutionised our understanding of the world\, as well as those who resisted them\, and those like Charles Darwin\, who took great risks to construct a new account of the earth’s and mankind’s origins. It is the riveting story of a group of people who dared to think impossible things and then showed them to be true. \nDr Michael Taylor is the author of Impossible Monsters\, as well as The Interest: How the British Establishment Resisted the Abolition of Slavery\, which was shortlisted for the Orwell Prize 2021\, chosen as a Daily Telegraph Book of the Year and described as ‘riveting’ (The Times) and ‘compulsively readable’ (Guardian). He was born in 1988 and graduated with a double first in history from the University of Cambridge\, where he earned his PhD. He has since been Lecturer in Modern British History at Balliol College\, Oxford\, and a Visiting Fellow at the British Library’s Eccles Centre for American Studies. He is now a Senior Manager with PwC. \nEmma Martin was Bristol’s most important freethinker\, humanist\, feminist and human rights campaigner. In her short life (1812-1851)\, she went from committed Christian to outspoken atheist/freethinker\, working for the Owenites\, speaking to thousands and publishing pamphlets on the role of the church and on women’s rights. Later on she trained as a midwife and campaigned on reproductive rights. She has a blue plaque dedicated to her in Bridewell Street\, and annually we celebrate her life with this special talk.
URL:https://www.heronbooks.co.uk/event/michael-taylor-impossible-monsters/
LOCATION:Bristol Grain Store\, Bristol YHA\, 14 Narrow Quay\, Bristol\, BS1 4QA
CATEGORIES:Author Talk
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.heronbooks.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/9781529931341.jpg
ORGANIZER;CN="Bristol Humanists":MAILTO:bristolhumanists@gmail.com
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20250929T193000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20250929T210000
DTSTAMP:20260520T093209
CREATED:20250725T102020Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250725T102020Z
UID:32143-1759174200-1759179600@www.heronbooks.co.uk
SUMMARY:David Olusoga: History's Missing Chapters
DESCRIPTION:We are delighted to be supporting this event at St George’s: \nProfessor David Olusoga OBE\, BAFTA winning film-maker and author returns to St Georges due to popular demand. \nIn a brand-new talk for 2025 David examines some of history’s missing chapters to uncover how and why some events and some people are remembered and others forgotten. Taking examples from the world wars\, the Industrial revolution and other pivotal moments in global history David uncovers history’s missing persons. \n\nDavid is the author or co-author of eight books including Black & British: A Forgotten History (awarded both the Longman-History Today Trustees Award and the PEN Hessell-Tiltman Prize)\, The World’s War\, Black & British: A Short Essential History\, The Kaiser’s Holocaust: Germany’s Forgotten Genocide and the Colonial Roots of Nazism. \nDavid’s recent television programs include Union with David Olusoga and upcoming in 2025 Empire with David Olusoga. He also writes and presents the long-running BBC history series A House Through Time. Professor of Public History at the University of Manchester\, and a columnist for The Observer\, David also writes for The Guardian\, The New Statesman\, The Voice and BBC History Magazine. \nA recipient of both the British Academy’s President’s Medal and the Norton Medlicott Medal For Services to History David is a Fellow of the British Academy\, The Royal Society of Literature\, The Royal Society of Arts and the Royal Historical Society. \n 
URL:https://www.heronbooks.co.uk/event/david-olusoga-historys-missing-chapters-2/
LOCATION:St George’s\, Bristol\, St George’s Bristol\, Great George Street\, Bristol\, BS1 5RR\, United Kingdom
CATEGORIES:Author Talk
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.heronbooks.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Olusoga.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20250923T180000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20250923T190000
DTSTAMP:20260520T093209
CREATED:20250725T093954Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250725T101235Z
UID:32139-1758650400-1758654000@www.heronbooks.co.uk
SUMMARY:Cécile Tlili: Just a Little Dinner
DESCRIPTION:Heron Books is delighted to welcome Cécile Tlili to celebrate the publication of Just a Little Dinner.\n \nDo join us to meet Cécile\, enjoy a discussion with her publisher\, Richard Village of Foundry Books\, and get your copies signed. \nThe event is free. Please RSVP to read@heronbooks.co.uk so that we know how many to expect. \nOrder the book here. \nAbout the book:\nIn tired\, hot Paris at the end of August\, a group of friends\, who’d rather still be at the sea\, meet for a dinner in one couple’s apartment. Taking us behind the shutters of the Sixth Arrondissement\, with a cast of characters that both delight and repel\, fractured relationships\, manipulation\, bad behaviour and desperation are all laid bare in this very contemporary take on a Parisian huis clos story. What starts as just a little dinner ends up having monumental consequences for everyone. \nCécile Tlili co-founded an alternative school for neuroatypical children. Just a Little Dinner is her first novel. The book was shortlisted for the 2024 Prix Goncourt du Premier Roman and won the 2023 Prix Littéraire Gisèle Halimi for women’s writing. \nTranslated from French by Katherine Gregor. Katherine is a literary translator from Italian and French. She translates fiction\, non-fiction and plays and recent work includes Ashes in the Snow by de Oriana Ramunno\, Bridges of the World by Giancarlo Ascari and Pia Valentinis\, The Memory of the Air by Caroline Lamarche (winner of an English PEN Translates Award)\, Vanda by Marion Brunet and The Whisperer’s Game by Donato Carrisi. \nThis event is made possible with the support of the Institut Français in the United Kingdom.
URL:https://www.heronbooks.co.uk/event/cecile-tlili-just-a-little-dinner/
LOCATION:Heron Books\, 7a Regent Street\, Bristol\, BS8 4HW\, United Kingdom
CATEGORIES:Author Talk
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.heronbooks.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Event-Cecile-Tlili.jpg
ORGANIZER;CN="Heron Books":MAILTO:read@heronbooks.co.uk
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20250913T180000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20250913T193000
DTSTAMP:20260520T093209
CREATED:20250501T133727Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250501T133727Z
UID:30041-1757786400-1757791800@www.heronbooks.co.uk
SUMMARY:Franny Moyle: Mrs Kauffman and Madame Le Brun
DESCRIPTION:Join us to celebrate the publication of Mrs Kauffman and Madame Le Brun: The Extraordinary Entwined Lives of Two Eighteenth-Century Painters by Franny Moyle \nWe are delighted to welcome Franny Moyle for a talk on her fascinating new book on Angelica Kauffman and Elisabeth Vigée Le Brun. \nIn the spring of 1790 two of the most gifted artists in Europe met in Rome and became fast friends\, sharing their views on art\, visiting the city’s ancient sites and making trips to the opera together over several happy weeks. The Swiss history painter Angelica Kauffman and the French portraitist Elisabeth Vigée Le Brun are no longer household names in the early twenty-first century but were much-fêted celebrities in the late eighteenth. The two had much in common: both had been child prodigies; both were members of the prestigious Academies of their respective countries; both had been celebrated court painters; both had made disastrous marriages that had drained them financially and made them the subject of scandal. \nFranny Moyle uses their meeting in the eternal city as the point of departure for a lavishly illustrated ‘life and times’ biography of two brilliant but neglected women artists whose lives and creative careers straddled the political upheavals of the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries. \nMrs Kauffman and Madame Le Brun allows Moyle to explore an age of political\, aesthetic and social revolution via a web of connections that embraces many of the most intriguing and powerful personalities of the time – to view a whole era of changing ideas and political ferment through the prism of the intertwined tales of two remarkable\, rediscovered female lives. \nThe event is free and unticketed but seats are limited so please do RSVP in advance so that we can ensure you are sitting comfortably and your glass will be full. \n 
URL:https://www.heronbooks.co.uk/event/franny-moyle-mrs-kauffman-and-madame-le-brun/
LOCATION:Heron Books\, 7a Regent Street\, Bristol\, BS8 4HW\, United Kingdom
CATEGORIES:Author Talk
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.heronbooks.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/9781801107440.jpg
ORGANIZER;CN="Heron Books":MAILTO:read@heronbooks.co.uk
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20250901T180000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20250901T190000
DTSTAMP:20260520T093209
CREATED:20250725T104956Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250725T104956Z
UID:32149-1756749600-1756753200@www.heronbooks.co.uk
SUMMARY:Adam Sisman: The Indefatigable Asa Briggs
DESCRIPTION:Please join us to celebrate the publication of The Indefatigable Asa Briggs by Adam Sisman. \nPlease RSVP to read@heronbooks.co.uk. \nOrder the book here.
URL:https://www.heronbooks.co.uk/event/adam-sisman-the-indefatigable-asa-briggs/
LOCATION:Heron Books\, 7a Regent Street\, Bristol\, BS8 4HW\, United Kingdom
CATEGORIES:Author Talk,Book Launch
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.heronbooks.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Asa-Briggs-Invitation_Heron-Books-002.jpg
ORGANIZER;CN="Heron Books":MAILTO:read@heronbooks.co.uk
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20250722T193000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20250722T204500
DTSTAMP:20260520T093209
CREATED:20250421T120538Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250421T120655Z
UID:29697-1753212600-1753217100@www.heronbooks.co.uk
SUMMARY:Bristol Talks: Bruce Hood – The Science of Happiness
DESCRIPTION:We will be providing a book stall at this fascinating event organised by Bristol Talks: \nJoin us for what promises to be an enlightening and enriching conversation between Bruce Hood (Professor of Developmental Psychology in Society at the University of Bristol) and Andrew Kelly (former Director of Bristol Ideas and visiting professor at the University of the West of England) about happiness. \nIn The Science of Happiness\, Bruce drew on decades of neuroscience and developmental psychology research to show that the key to happiness is not self-care but connection. Bruce and Andrew will be discussing these insights along with many others as they explore the roots of wellbeing in today’s world. It is a conversation that promises lessons for Bristolians of all ages plus practical actions that we can all take to promote collective wellbeing in our local community. \n 
URL:https://www.heronbooks.co.uk/event/bristol-talks-bruce-hood-the-science-of-happiness/
LOCATION:Bristol Folk House\, 40a Park St\, Bristol\, BS1 5JG
CATEGORIES:Author Talk
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.heronbooks.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/97813985264192-1.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20250618T180000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20250618T193000
DTSTAMP:20260520T093209
CREATED:20250418T133706Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250606T132822Z
UID:29670-1750269600-1750275000@www.heronbooks.co.uk
SUMMARY:Chiara Valerio: The Little I Knew
DESCRIPTION:Heron Books is delighted to welcome Chiara Valerio to celebrate the publication of The Little I Knew.\n \nDo join us to meet Chiara\, hear a discussion about the book and get your copies signed on 18 June\, part of our Independent Bookshop Week partnership with publisher Foundry Editions. \nChiara Valerio was born in Scauri in 1978 and lives in Rome. She has published essays\, novels and short stories\, including: La gioia piccola d’esser quasi salvi (2009)\, Spiaggia libera tutti (2010)\, Il cuore non si vede (2019)\, La matematica è politica (2020)\, Nessuna scuola mi consola (2021)\, Così per sempre (2022)\, La tecnologia è religione (2023) \nThe event is free but please do RSVP to read@heronbooks.co.uk so that we have an idea of numbers. \nAbout the book:\nIn Scauri\, an end of the line seaside town forty miles or so from Rome\, Vittoria dies unexpectedly in her bath. Whilst the townsfolk meet the event with sad but respectful southern Italian silence\, Lea\, the town lawyer\, wants to investigate. Who was Vittoria\, what were her secrets\, why had she mysteriously arrived in Scauri thirty years earlier? And was her relationship with Lea all that it seemed? \nIn this unforgettable portrait of a small town and the women who live there\, reverberations from the past catch up with present. Through the silences\, Vittoria’s story is revealed and everything – passions\, emotions\, and relationships – changes forever. \nNovelist\, editor\, critic\, cultural commentator and mathematician Chiara Valerio is a sensation in Italy and The Little I Knew is a huge bestseller. It was shortlisted for the 2024 Premio Strega. \nTranslated from Italian by Ailsa Wood:\nAilsa is a translator from Italian and French. Her work on Stafano Benni’s monologues from Le Beatrice was the winner of the prestigious John Dryden Translation Prize in 2022.  Besides her work as a literary translator\, she works across various related sectors including wine and tourism. Ailsa has and M.A. in Literary Translation (with Distinction) from the University of East Anglia and lives in Italy. \nThis event has been made possible with the support of the Italian Cultural Institute in London.
URL:https://www.heronbooks.co.uk/event/chiara-valerio-the-little-i-knew/
LOCATION:Heron Books\, 7a Regent Street\, Bristol\, BS8 4HW\, United Kingdom
CATEGORIES:Author Talk,Independent Bookshop Week
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.heronbooks.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/Chiara-and-Book-cover.jpg
ORGANIZER;CN="Heron Books":MAILTO:read@heronbooks.co.uk
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20250607T093000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20250607T161500
DTSTAMP:20260520T093209
CREATED:20250402T153659Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250402T153659Z
UID:29069-1749288600-1749312900@www.heronbooks.co.uk
SUMMARY:Writers' Day at the University of Bristol
DESCRIPTION:The University of Bristol is hosting a day of talks\, discussion and workshops for new and established writers. \nWe are thrilled to support the event with a book stall throughout the day. \nFull details and link to register: https://bristol.ac.uk/english/study/part-time/short-courses/writers-day/
URL:https://www.heronbooks.co.uk/event/writers-day-at-the-university-of-bristol/
LOCATION:7 Woodland Road\, 7 Woodland Road\, Bristol\, BS8 1TB
CATEGORIES:Author Talk
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://www.heronbooks.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/Screenshot-2025-04-02-163620.png
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20250602T170000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20250602T183000
DTSTAMP:20260520T093209
CREATED:20250303T100842Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250523T123732Z
UID:28236-1748883600-1748889000@www.heronbooks.co.uk
SUMMARY:Rosa Vásquez Espinoza: The Spirit of the Rainforest
DESCRIPTION:Join us to celebrate the publication of The Spirit of the Rainforest by Dr Rosa Vásquez Espinoza with an author talk and signing. \nBefore you step into the jungle\, there are a few things you need to know… Join scientist Dr Rosa Vasquez Espinoza as she uncovers one of the most unexplored regions on the planet. Dr Rosa is no stranger to the Amazon. \nGrowing up with the rainforest as her back garden\, she learnt the lessons of the rainforest from her grandmother\, a native healer in natural medicine. She went on to pursue a classical education in science\, gaining a PhD in the US\, but has always been pulled back to the heart of the Amazon. As a leading biologist in her field\, Rosa continues to explore the region through a unique blend of scientific inquiry and ancient insight. \nDr. Rosa Vásquez Espinoza is a Peruvian Amazonian-Andean scientist\, conservationist\, National Geographic Explorer\, and award-winning artist. She blends science with indigenous knowledge to protect biodiversity and culture. \nAs founder of Amazon Research Internacional\, she works with indigenous communities to safeguard the Amazon\, from discovering new microbes in the Boiling River to leading Peru’s first chemical analysis of stingless bee honey. Named the Ashaninka International Ambassador\, her work has earned global recognition\, including BBC’s 100 Women and The Explorers Club’s 50 People Changing the World. \nPre-order the book here. \nThe event is free but please do RSVP to read@heronbooks.co.uk.
URL:https://www.heronbooks.co.uk/event/rosa-vasquez-espinoza-the-spirit-of-the-rainforest/
LOCATION:Heron Books\, 7a Regent Street\, Bristol\, BS8 4HW\, United Kingdom
CATEGORIES:Author Talk,Book Launch
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.heronbooks.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Screenshot-2025-03-03-100631.jpg
ORGANIZER;CN="Heron Books":MAILTO:read@heronbooks.co.uk
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20250519T193000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20250519T213000
DTSTAMP:20260520T093209
CREATED:20250303T094816Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250303T094816Z
UID:28232-1747683000-1747690200@www.heronbooks.co.uk
SUMMARY:David Olusoga: History's Missing Chapters
DESCRIPTION:We are delighted to support this event taking place at St George’s Bristol. \nIn a brand-new talk for 2025 David examines some of history’s missing chapters to uncover how and why some events and some people are remembered and others forgotten. Taking examples from the world wars\, the Industrial revolution and other pivotal moments in global history David uncovers history’s missing persons. \nDavid is the author or co-author of eight books including Black & British: A Forgotten History (awarded both the Longman-History Today Trustees Award and the PEN Hessell-Tiltman Prize)\, The World’s War\, Black & British: A Short Essential History\, The Kaiser’s Holocaust: Germany’s Forgotten Genocide and the Colonial Roots of Nazism. \nDavid’s recent television programs include Union with David Olusoga and upcoming in 2025 Empire with David Olusoga. He also writes and presents the long-running BBC history series A House Through Time. Professor of Public History at the University of Manchester\, and a columnist for The Observer\, David also writes for The Guardian\, The New Statesman\, The Voice and BBC History Magazine. \nA recipient of both the British Academy’s President’s Medal and the Norton Medlicott Medal For Services to History David is a Fellow of the British Academy\, The Royal Society of Literature\, The Royal Society of Arts and the Royal Historical Society. \nHis books will be available on the evening and he will be signing after his talk.
URL:https://www.heronbooks.co.uk/event/david-olusoga-historys-missing-chapters/
LOCATION:St George’s\, Bristol\, St George’s Bristol\, Great George Street\, Bristol\, BS1 5RR\, United Kingdom
CATEGORIES:Author Talk
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.heronbooks.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Screenshot-2025-03-03-094731.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20250411T190000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20250411T203000
DTSTAMP:20260520T093209
CREATED:20250303T090957Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250404T133422Z
UID:28220-1744398000-1744403400@www.heronbooks.co.uk
SUMMARY:Andrew Harding: A Small\, Stubborn Town in Ukraine
DESCRIPTION:Andrew Harding will speak about his book\, A Small\, Stubborn Town In Ukraine. \nEvent link: https://foccal.com/event/316 \nAbout the book: \nThe Russians are invading. But the locals have a plan. \nIt’s March 2022 and Russian tanks are roaring across the vast\, snow-dusted fields of Ukraine. Their destination: Voznesensk\, a town with a small bridge that could change the course of the war. The heavily-armed Russians are expecting an easy fight – or no fight at all. \nAfter all\, Voznesensk is a quiet farming town\, full of pensioners. But the locals appear to have other ideas. Svetlana\, a grandmother with arthritis\, reacts in fury when Russian troops turn her cottage into their blood-soaked headquarters. \nValentin\, a quick-talking lawyer\, joins the town’s ‘Dads Army’ defenders\, crouching in a trench with an AK47. Meanwhile\, 21-year-old Sergei grabs a Molotov cocktail and lies in wait for Russian tanks as they push towards Dead Water Bridge. The odds are terrible. \nBut a plan is emerging\, and there’s a chance it could save not just Voznesensk\, but the rest of southern Ukraine. Meanwhile\, inside the tanks\, an inner battle rages. As Russian officer Igor Rudenko prepares to invade\, he has a secret. \nHe is Ukrainian himself. A gripping work of reportage that tells the story of a pivotal moment in Ukraine’s war\, this is a real-life thriller about ordinary people facing extraordinary circumstances with resilience\, humour and ingenuity. \nAbout the author: \nAndrew Harding is a British journalist and author. He has been living and working abroad as a foreign correspondent for the past 3 decades. Since 1994 he has been working for BBC News. \nHe began his career in the former Soviet Union\, initially as a freelancer. After a decade living in Moscow and Tbilisi\, he moved to Nairobi\, then Singapore\, Bangkok and now Johannesburg. He is married with three sons. \nAndrew has reported on the breakup of the Soviet Union\, Russia’s parliamentary rebellion\, the Asian tsunami and west Africa’s Ebola outbreak. He has covered many conflicts\, most recently in Ukraine\, but also in Chechnya\, Azerbaijan\, Abkhazia\, Kosovo\, Afghanistan\, Iraq\, Burma\, Darfur\, DR Congo\, Liberia\, Sierra Leone\, Mali\, South Sudan\, Cote D’Ivoire\, CAR\, Burundi\, Uganda\, Libya and elsewhere.
URL:https://www.heronbooks.co.uk/event/andrew-harding-a-small-stubborn-town-in-ukraine/
LOCATION:Clifton Library\, 13 Princess Victoria St\, Bristol\, BS8 4BX\, United Kingdom
CATEGORIES:Author Talk
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.heronbooks.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Screenshot-2025-03-03-090636.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20250311T130000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20250311T140000
DTSTAMP:20260520T093209
CREATED:20250303T081647Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250303T081647Z
UID:28210-1741698000-1741701600@www.heronbooks.co.uk
SUMMARY:Simon Scarrow: A Death in Berlin
DESCRIPTION:A free lunchtime talk with Sunday Times No. 1 bestselling author Simon Scarrow in the Reading Room at Bristol Central Library. Simon will be in conversation discussing his new book A Death in Berlin\, the latest in his CI Schenke series. \nAbout the Book \nSPRING 1940. GERMANY IS AT WAR. HITLER PREPARES TO UNLEASH THE BLITZKRIEG\, AND FEAR RULES THE STREETS OF BERLIN. Where the darkness of evil thrives\, no one is safe—not even the criminals. \nBERLIN. MAY 1940. AS HITLER PREPARES TO INVADE WESTERN EUROPE\, THERE IS BLOODSHED CLOSER TO HOME \nCI Horst Schenke is an exceptional investigator with the Kripo unit. Powerless against the consequences of the wider war\, he fights to keep criminals off his patch of Berlin. But with influential men questioning his loyalty to the Nazi regime\, he is walking a tightrope. If his secret relationship with a Jewish woman is exposed\, that would spell the end. \nBerlin’s gangsters run their crime rings with impunity. Decadent senior Nazis are happy to protect them. Schenke is different. He refuses to turn a blind eye when innocent victims are caught in the crossfire between warring gangs. But dangerous enemies know everything about him. They will do whatever it takes to bend him to their will . . . \nFrom the seedy wartime nightlife scene to aristocratic homes frequented by the Führer himself\, against a backdrop of a war spiralling into a greater\, and closer\, conflagration\, A Death in Berlin conveys both the horror and banality of evil. And the terrible danger for those who dare stand against it. \nAbout the Author \nSimon Scarrow is a Sunday Times No. 1 bestselling author with several million copies of his books sold worldwide. After a childhood spent travelling the world\, he pursued his great love of history as a teacher\, before becoming a full-time writer. His books – which have sold 6 million copies – include two earlier Berlin thrillers featuring CI Schenke\, BLACKOUT and DEAD OF NIGHT which was a No.2 ebook bestseller. \nSimon Scarrow is also the author of a quartet of novels about the lives of the Duke of Wellington and Napoleon Bonaparte\, YOUNG BLOODS\, THE GENERALS\, FIRE AND SWORD and THE FIELDS OF DEATH; a novel about the 1565 Siege of Malta\, SWORD & SCIMITAR; HEARTS OF STONE\, set in Greece during the Second World War; and PLAYING WITH DEATH\, a contemporary thriller written with Lee Francis. He also wrote the novels ARENA and INVADER with T. J. Andrews. His first Berlin thriller\, BLACKOUT\, set in WW2 Berlin and first published in 2021 was a Richard and Judy Book Club pick with DEAD OF NIGHT following to critical acclaim earlier in 2023.
URL:https://www.heronbooks.co.uk/event/simon-scarrow-a-death-in-berlin/
LOCATION:Bristol Central Library\, Deanery Road\, Bristol\, BS1 5TL\, United Kingdom
CATEGORIES:Author Talk,Book Launch
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.heronbooks.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Scarrow.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20250303T193000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20250303T210000
DTSTAMP:20260520T093209
CREATED:20250128T063910Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250128T064721Z
UID:26481-1741030200-1741035600@www.heronbooks.co.uk
SUMMARY:Are the Introverts Winning? with Marie le Conte
DESCRIPTION:Heron Books is delighted to support this event organised by the Bristol Humanists. \nFull details and tickets: https://www.meetup.com/bristol-humanists/events/305649303/ \nIn our post-pandemic online world are we becoming more and more socially isolated? If so\, what does that mean for us humans\, the most social of all animals? We have evolved and are genetically pre-disposed to live in large social groups. Social interaction and cooperation is key to our ‘success’ and flourishing as a species. In this talk\, based on a recent article in New Humanist\, Marie le Conte will make the case that the pandemic\, and near universal access to the internet\, has just speeded up a fundamental long-term shift in our social patterns\, leading to reduced social interaction. This in turn reduces diversity\, positive ‘friction’ and the myriad benefits of social contact. Did you know for example that social isolation leads to greater loneliness\, and in turn is actually a bigger killer than smoking cigarettes. She will argue that the outside is where the unknowable can take place\, that chance interactions are a precious thing\, and that a life without serendipity is not really worth living. How can we recreate this vital social interaction that is so vital to our wellbeing and survival? \nMarie Le Conte is a French-Moroccan freelance journalist based in London. She previously worked as media and politics correspondent for Buzzfeed and as political diarist for the New Statesman\, as well as co-host of the Polling Politics podcast and presented a documentary for Radio 4 called Club 18-30. She also co-founded and organised two editions of the Words by Women awards. She writes features\, profiles\, essays\, book reviews\, newsletters and columns for a number of publications\, often on politics but also about everything else! She has written 3 books\, the most recent of which is ‘Escape – how a generation shaped\, destroyed and survived the internet’
URL:https://www.heronbooks.co.uk/event/are-the-introverts-winning-with-marie-le-conte/
LOCATION:Unitarian Meeting Hall\, Brunswick Square\, Bristol\, BS2 8PE\, United Kingdom
CATEGORIES:Author Talk
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.heronbooks.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/9781788705363.jpg
ORGANIZER;CN="Bristol Humanists":MAILTO:bristolhumanists@gmail.com
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20250218T184500
DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20250218T200000
DTSTAMP:20260520T093209
CREATED:20250128T063545Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250128T063545Z
UID:26477-1739904300-1739908800@www.heronbooks.co.uk
SUMMARY:Growing up Human with Dr Brenna Hassett
DESCRIPTION:We are delighted to support this event organised by the Bristol Humanists. \nTracking deep into our evolutionary history\, anthropological science has begun to unravel one particular feature that sets us apart from the many\, many animals that came before us – our uniquely long childhoods. In the Darwin Day lecture Brenna Hassett will look at how we have diverged from our ancestral roots to stay ‘forever young’ – or at least what seems like forever – and how the evolution of childhood is a critical part of the human story. \nFull details and tickets: https://wegottickets.com/event/643698
URL:https://www.heronbooks.co.uk/event/growing-up-human-with-dr-brenna-hassett/
LOCATION:Bristol Folk House\, 40a Park St\, Bristol\, BS1 5JG
CATEGORIES:Author Talk
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20241202T190000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20241202T220000
DTSTAMP:20260520T093209
CREATED:20241011T052244Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20241030T140718Z
UID:24419-1733166000-1733176800@www.heronbooks.co.uk
SUMMARY:Poetry and Science with Michael Malay\, Rebecca Nesbit and Bob Walton
DESCRIPTION:Poetry and Science – the unbridgeable divide that doesn’t exist\n  \nfeaturing Michael Malay\, Rebecca Nesbit and Bob Walton\nBristol Humanists and Heron Books invite you to a mid-winter social\, discussion and performance\, with 3 very special guests\, exploring the unbridgeable divide – that doesn’t exist – between poetry and science. \nhttps://wegottickets.com/event/638412 \n– Michael Malay – is the Winner of the 2024 Wainwright Prize for nature writing for his book Late Light; he teaches English and Environmental Humanities at the University of Bristol \n– Rebecca Nesbit – is a biologist and ecologist at Plymouth University; author of popular science books Tickets for the Ark and Is That Fish in Your Tomato? Rebecca is also a poet\, novelist and painter \n– Bob Walton – is a poet and educator; his books include Sax Burglar Blues\, as well as featuring in numerous anthologies; he is currently writing about earthworms\, and runs poetry events in Bristol and online\, including the monthly poetry night Under the Red Guitar \nIncreasingly\, science is seen as the answer to all questions\, problems & woes. But is it really omnicompetent? Poetry is seen as subjective\, but can it can teach us as much about the natural world as the ‘hard’ and objective sciences? \nMichael\, Rebecca & Bob will explore these different views and approaches\, why we hold them\, and the differing ways that science and creativity can share\, express & communicate understandings. \nMichael\, who uses his creative work to explore migration\, belonging and extinction will be in conversation with Rebecca\, who is researching the behaviour of fish communities\, communicating the insights gained with policy-makers and the fishing community\, and with Bob\, whose work encompasses the natural world. \nAll three will be reading from their work\, as well as exploring together the ‘unbridgeable divide’. \nThis promises to be a very special night! \nThis event is jointly promoted by Bristol Humanists and Heron Books. There will be a bookstall run by Heron Books\, with books from all three guests on sale. \nFood & Drink\nThe cafe/bar will be open beforehand from 6.45pm\, throughout the event and afterwards\, and hot food will be available\, if ordered in advance. Please contact Folk House on folkhousecafe@gmail.com to find out what food is on offer and to place your order Soft drinks\, alcohol and hot drinks will be available throughout. The event itself will start at 7.30pm. \nWe are sorry that the Folk House is not fully accessible. For more details check here https://www.bristolfolkhouse.co.uk/contact-us#venue
URL:https://www.heronbooks.co.uk/event/poetry-and-science/
LOCATION:Bristol Folk House\, 40a Park St\, Bristol\, BS1 5JG
CATEGORIES:Author Talk,Poetry
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ORGANIZER;CN="Bristol Humanists":MAILTO:bristolhumanists@gmail.com
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20241117T130000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20241117T140000
DTSTAMP:20260520T093209
CREATED:20241011T051416Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20241011T052231Z
UID:24416-1731848400-1731852000@www.heronbooks.co.uk
SUMMARY:Noreen Masud – A Flat Place
DESCRIPTION:Lizzie will be interviewing Noreen Masud as part of Clifton LitFest 2024\, organised by the Friends of the Clifton Centre and Library. \nShortlisted for the Women’s Prize for Non-Fiction and the Sunday Times Young Writer of the Year award 2024\, Noreen Masud’s A Flat Place has been described as raw and radical\, strange and beguiling – a love letter to Britain’s breathtaking flatlands\, from Orford Ness to Orkney\, and a reckoning with the painful\, hidden histories they contain. \nNoreen Masud has always loved flat landscapes – their stark beauty\, their formidable calm\, their refusal to cooperate with the human gaze. They reflect her inner world: the ‘flat place’ she carries inside herself\, emotional numbness and memory loss as symptoms of childhood trauma. Robert MacFarlane called it ‘sharp\, subtle and very moving’. Masud is a Lecturer in 20th Century Literature\, University of Bristol\, and an AHRC/BBC New Generation Thinker. \nTickets available using the Eventbrite link.
URL:https://www.heronbooks.co.uk/event/noreen-masud-a-flat-place/
LOCATION:Clifton Library\, 13 Princess Victoria St\, Bristol\, BS8 4BX\, United Kingdom
CATEGORIES:Author Talk
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DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20241030T110000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20241102T150000
DTSTAMP:20260520T093209
CREATED:20241010T073036Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20241010T073036Z
UID:24340-1730286000-1730559600@www.heronbooks.co.uk
SUMMARY:Ultimate Dinosaurs with Ben Garrod
DESCRIPTION:Ultimate Dinosaurs is the hit sold-out stage show starring dinosaur aficionado Professor Ben Garrod. Get ready to go on an exciting pre-historic adventure as Ben talks you through the deadliest predators that ever roamed the planet.  Yes dinosaurs such as Tyrannosaurus rex\,  Allosaurus and Spinosaurus would have walked or swam right where you are now! \nPitting the knowledge of unwitting parents against their all-knowing kids\, Professor Ben presents an interactive\, educational and highly entertaining show.  So come and test your knowledge against Professor Ben in this hit live interactive show which is bigger and better than ever. \nHeron Books cannot wait for this brilliant show from local author\, academic\, conservationist and companion of Jack the dog\, Professor Ben Garrod. There are eight shows over half-term at the Tobacco Factory and we will be there with Ben’s books on extinct creatures\, chimpanzees and his rescue of Jack\, the original dog. \n30th October – 2nd November\, 11am and 2pm each day for one hour. \nAimed primarily at Key Stage 1 and 2 (ages 5-12) but suitable for all ages. 
URL:https://www.heronbooks.co.uk/event/ultimate-dinosaurs-with-ben-garrod/
LOCATION:Tobacco Factory Theatre\, The Tobacco Factory\, Raleigh Rd\, Bristol\, BS3 1TF\, United Kingdom
CATEGORIES:Author Talk,Stage show
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20241018T183000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20241018T203000
DTSTAMP:20260520T093209
CREATED:20240611T102123Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20241014T102724Z
UID:22329-1729276200-1729283400@www.heronbooks.co.uk
SUMMARY:Brad Evans
DESCRIPTION:How Black Was My Valley : Poverty and Abandonment in a Post-Industrial Heartland\nHeron Books is delighted to support this event with author Brad Evans hosted by the Friends of Clifton Centre and Library \nHow Black Was My Valley is a people’s history of the former mining communities of South Wales. Weaving together the personal with the political\, it offers a damning depiction of the hardship and suffering\, the tragedy and pain\, as a politically abandoned people went from powering the British Empire and the Great Wars\, to a broken post-industrial community\, lost in time. It travels with devastating and yet humane insight across the dark shadows of the valley’s history. \nIn doing so\, it deals with disaster and resistance; memory and landscapes of despair; the brutal past and the neglected present; hardship and poverty; unemployment and isolation; lack of opportunity and the normalisation of hopelessness; death and suffering; structural violence and everyday subjugation; onto the crises of white male subjectivity and the exponential rise in drug abuse and personal suicide\, whose troubling effects can no longer be easily contained within its mountainous walls. This is not a story of resilience. Instead\, readers are taken on a journey into an open wound\, whose once silent screams can no longer be ignored. \nBar opens: 18.30\nBrad’s talk commences: 19.00\nFollowed by Q&A and book signing\nhttps://foccal.com/event/238
URL:https://www.heronbooks.co.uk/event/brad-evans/
LOCATION:Clifton Library\, 13 Princess Victoria St\, Bristol\, BS8 4BX\, United Kingdom
CATEGORIES:Author Talk
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20241015T193000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20241015T220000
DTSTAMP:20260520T093209
CREATED:20241009T165002Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20241009T165002Z
UID:24324-1729020600-1729029600@www.heronbooks.co.uk
SUMMARY:Brian Bilston & Henry Normal
DESCRIPTION:Brian Bilston and Henry Normal appear together for the first time in a show which one critic has described as “two people reading some poems”. Along the way\, they will be drawing on their vast catalogue of crowd favourites – and throwing in new poems\, to prevent becoming their own tribute bands. \nWe are delighted to be supporting this event at St George’s\, Bristol. Look forward to seeing you there! \nFull details and tickets here: https://www.stgeorgesbristol.co.uk/whats-on/brian-bilston-henry-normal/
URL:https://www.heronbooks.co.uk/event/brian-bilston-henry-normal/
LOCATION:St George’s\, Bristol\, St George’s Bristol\, Great George Street\, Bristol\, BS1 5RR\, United Kingdom
CATEGORIES:Author Talk,Poetry
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.heronbooks.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Capture.jpg
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