Welcome to the Summer issue of the Northern Bookshelf, brought to you by New Writing North and Durham Book Festival.
Each season we speak to readers, publishers and producers from across the North to find out what books they are recommending to their friends, as well as focusing on some of the most exciting new books by writers based in our region.
This jam-packed issue features a bumper crop of new releases from Northern authors, a giveaway of a new fiction debut from a previous Northern Writers' Awards winner, our most anticipated summer reads, and more!
And now that our Book Club Live in Newcastle is in full swing, we've got extra bookish content coming to you each season... This edition we're delighted to share a podcast discussion with bestselling author of Greek mythological retellings Jennifer Saint, as well as some book club questions to get you thinking about her new novel.
What are you reading? Join in the chat on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram using #NorthernBookshelf.
Dear Neighbour by Jane Claire Bradley
Alice is a working hard to provide for her daughter, Mollie. But it’s a challenge juggling her job alongside her duties as a single Mum in Leeds: a city she barely knows. Her neighbours keep to themselves and as much as she longs for a friend to rely on, she knows that things don’t work out that way.
When the residents of Leodis Street are threatened with eviction, Alice knows that she needs to make a stand. As she reaches out to her neighbours and learns about their lives, she is surprised to discover that she might already live next door to the friends she has been yearning for. Perhaps together they can build a community to be proud of and discover the true meaning of home. Dear Neighbour, by 2019 Northern Debut Award winner Jane Claire Bradley, is an uplifting book about the power of community.
Dear Neighbour is published on 15 June with Sphere. Read our interview with author Jane Claire Bradley for an insight into her inspirations, her journey to publication, and the themes of the novel.
We have three copies of Dear Neighbour to give away!
For the chance to win, tell us what you're reading on Twitter, Instagram or Facebook using the hashtags #NorthernBookshelf and #DearNeighbour. Winners will be drawn on 19 June 2023.
Summer is always an exciting time for us as we announce the new cohort of Northern Writers' Awards winners, and this year we're delighted to also be seeing lots of books coming out from previous winners. As well as our featured book, Dear Neighbour, here are some more upcoming summer releases from Northern Writers' Awards alumni:
After months of being on the run, Zeina is thrilled when the Smog Rats are invited by ice bears to an infamous festival featuring horned sky whales. But, from an ice palace with crumbling ice structures to the strange behaviour of the new Emerald King, something doesn’t seem quite right. Zeina and Jackson find themselves going up against both new enemies and familiar foes in Zeina Starborn and the Emerald King, Hannah Durkan’s sequel to Zeina Starborn and The Sky Whale.
1589. Scottish housemaid Geillis and Danish courtier Margareta lead opposite lives, but they both know one thing: when a man cries "witch", no woman is safe. A compelling novel of paranoia, accusation and empowerment inspired by the incredible true story that set 16th-century Scotland and Denmark alight. The Burnings is a bewitching debut novel by Naomi Kelsey, a multi-award-winning new star of historical fiction.
Summer, 1972. Sister Francesca Pepitone was found strangled in a parking lot on the outskirts of Boweridge. A week later, seventeen-year-old Minna Larson disappeared. Now, over forty years later, Minna’s niece Maggie learns that days before vanishing, Minna was telling people she knew who had murdered Sister Fran. In The Summer She Vanished, Jessica Smith takes you on a journey to find the truth behind the story of a missing teen, a murdered nun, and the dark secret that connects them.
After years of unexplained health problems, Polly Atkin was finally diagnosed with two chronic conditions in her thirties. She began to piece together what had been happening to her – all the misdiagnoses, the fractures, the dislocations, the bone-crushing exhaustion, the not being believed. From medical misogyny and gaslighting, to the illusion of ‘the nature cure’, Some of Us Just Fall examines how we deal with bodies that diverge from the norm, and why this urgently needs to change.
The 2023 Northern Writers' Awards Ceremony will be livestreamed on our YouTube channel on Tuesday 20 June 8pm. We'd love for you to join us – who knows, it might be your first look at your future favourite author!
As the sun sets on a hot July evening, a young woman spies on her teenage neighbour, transfixed by what looks like an occult ritual intended to banish an ex-boyfriend. Alone in a new town and desperate to expel the claustrophobic memories of her own ex that have followed, the narrator decides to try to hex herself free from her past. Propulsive and wry, Jenna Clake’s razor-sharp debut Disturbance explores all the ways that relationships and trauma can haunt our lives.
1969. Thomas Speake comes to London to look for his father but finds Sanderson instead, a larger-than-life TV presenter who hosts 'midweek madness' parties where the punch is spiked with acid. There Speake meets Marnie and promises to help her find her adoptive child at a hippie commune in the Lake District. James Clarke portrays the moment when British society was unsettled and transformed by the counterculture of the 1960s in Sanderson's Isle.
Aeon, a mixed-up and mixed-race teenager from a leafy Liverpool suburb, is desperate to understand the Black identity thrust upon him. His ambition to find his place in the world takes him to Jamaica. Aeon soon finds that smoking loads of weed, growing messy locks and wearing massive red boots don’t necessarily help him to fit in. A coming-of-age comedy of errors, Locks is an electric debut from Ashleigh Nugent about growing up, wising up, and finding your place in a world of opposites.
This is a story about the scorching summer of 1976 - the hottest in England since records began and the last Catherine Taylor would spend with her parents under one roof in their Sheffield home. The Stirrings: a Memoir in Northern Time, is a powerful personal memoir of love and violence, anger and feminism, the thrills and the terrors of youth - all shot through with poetry, risk-taking and humour.
Seven women stand in shock in a seedy hotel room; a man's severed head sits in the centre of the floor. Each of the women has a very good reason to have done it, yet each swears she did not. Speak of the Devil is a dark and nuanced portrait of love, loyalty, and manipulation. Rose Wilding explores the roles in which women are cast in the lives of terrible men... and the fallout when they refuse to stay silent.
Wendy Mitchell doesn't fear anything anymore. After her diagnosis of young-onset dementia in 2014, all of Wendy’s old fears - the dark, animals - melted away. What more was there to be afraid of when she faced her worst fear: losing her own mind? In One Last Thing, Wendy embarks on a journey to explore all angles of death: how we can prepare for it, how we talk about it with our loved ones and how we can be empowered to make our own choices.
In this fascinating and insightful book, feminist curator Rachael Lennon provides an intimate and accessible examination of the history of marriage, with a focus on the UK. Wedded Wife tells a remarkable story of how this institution has developed from the ancient customs of the stone age through to the modern form it takes today. What compels us to keep making this choice? How can we build on the past to continue to redefine marriage for the future?
In Fragments of a Woman, Emma Venables offers a nuanced and heart-breaking exploration of what it meant to be a woman under National Socialist rule. As their world changes around them, five women - Ingrid, Liesel, Greta, Gisela, and Lore - battle to hold on to their identities and their lives as they know them. An exploration of themes of motherhood, identity, trauma, war, fascism, and survival.
Timely, elegant and passionately argued, Blue Machine presents a fresh perspective on what it means to be a citizen of an ocean planet. The understanding it offers is crucial to our future. Drawing on years of experience at the forefront of marine science, Helen Czerski captures the magnitude and subtlety of Earth's defining feature, showing us the thrilling extent to which we are at the mercy of this great engine.
Work in the countryside ties you, soul and salary, to the land, but often those who labour in nature have the least control over what happens there. Starting with Rebecca Smith's own family history - foresters in Cumbria, miners in Derbyshire, millworkers in Nottinghamshire, builders of reservoirs and the Manchester Ship Canal – Rural: The Lives of the Working Class Countryside is an exploration of our green and pleasant land, and the people whose labour has shaped it.
Immerse yourself in the life of 'Nameless' and his unlikely companionship with fellow vagabond, the fierce and enigmatic Gracie. Beggar Bee Nameless follows Shane Ellis, a Deceased Affairs officer, as she investigates the name of a recently deceased beggar. Her investigation allows her to overcome her own loss in a tale of grief, love and redemption. Stephen K Easterbrook provides a refreshingly honest insight into one of society's greatest failings.
When Rachel Hewitt loses five family members in five months, grief magnifies other absences. The injustices she sees facing women in sport leads her to go in search of a new family: foremothers at the dawn of outdoor sport. In Her Nature is a trail-blazing book about women's fights to access the great outdoors - and a very personal book about how running through the landscape helped the author in her journey from bereavement back to a sense of belonging.
You can view the featured books on our Bookshop affiliate list. All Bookshop links above are affiliate links.
What We're Reading: Summer 2023 Edition
There's something special about the books we read over summer – sunshine and holidays seem to lend themselves to creating the most memorable and magic reading experiences. Here at NWN we're eagerly compiling our summer TBR piles, so read our blog post to find out about the books we're planning to take on our summer holidays.
What are your most antipicated summer reads? Let us know on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram using #NorthernBookshelf.
New and Recent Poetry from the North
The poetry scene in the North is vibrant and eclectic, with writers and publishers based here producing exhilarating and compelling new work. Find some fantastic new poetry to dig into this summer with Will Mackie's top picks of new releases by Northern poets.
Some of these recommendations are available on our Bookshop affiliate list.
Hyde Park Book Club
Hyde Park Book Club is an innovative arts venue, cafe, bar and bookshop in Leeds. A place to grab drinks with friends, hear live music, sip coffee while you write, and hear from a new author. We asked Jack Simpson to tell us about the inspiration and aims behind Hyde Park Book Club, and some of the fun literary events they get to host – read all about it here.
Dogpeople Podcast
Wheatley Hill Greyhound Stadium in County Durham was an independent greyhound racing venue, beloved for its tight-knit community, big races and strong betting ring. Louise Powell's podcast pilot Dogpeople draws together interviews with some of Wheatley Hill's regulars to create a truly heartwarming oral history of the track. Listen to the pilot episode here, and follow Louise for news about future episodes.
BOOK CLUB
Atalanta by Jennifer Saint
At our spring Book Club Live event, we chatted to bestselling author Jennifer Saint all about her new Greek mythological retelling, Atalanta. The full discussion is now available in podcast form – including the formidable story of this oft-forgotten characer, the lifelong pull of the classics on Jennifer's imagination, and some of the books that have made and inspired her. Available here, and on all the main podcast platforms!
When a daughter is born to the King of Arcadia, she brings only disappointment. Left exposed on a mountainside, the defenceless infant Atalanta, is left to the mercy of a passing mother bear and raised alongside the cubs under the protective eye of the goddess Artemis.
Swearing that she will prove her worth alongside the famed heroes of Greece, Atalanta leaves her forest to join Jason's band of Argonauts. But can she carve out her own place in the legends in a world made for men?
Atalanta Book Club Questions
- Had you heard of Atalanta before reading this book? How did you feel about her as a character?
- There's a striking passage in the book when Atalanta reflects upon Herecles who murdered his wife and children and serves his penance aboard the Argo. She asks Meleager: "These labours through, they'll only make him more famous... what was his wife's name, does anyone remember her?". "No," replies Meleager.
How much do you think has changed for women since these myths were created? - How did you feel about the way Atalanta related to the men aboard the Argo? How did this differ from the way she interacted with the women she met on her journey, such as Hypsipyle and Medea?
- Why do you think classical re-tellings are resonating so strongly with readers today?
Rose Wilding in Conversation with Ann Cleeves
Thursday 22 June 7pm, The Biscuit Factory, £10/£8/£20
Our next Book Club Live event in Newcastle will celebrate the launch of one of the most anticipated crime debuts of 2023.
Seven women stand in shock in a seedy hotel room; a man's severed head sits in the centre of the floor. Each of the women has a very good reason to have done it, yet each swears she did not. Speak of the Devil is a dark and nuanced portrait of love, loyalty, and manipulation. Rose Wilding explores the roles in which women are cast in the lives of terrible men... and the fallout when they refuse to stay silent.
Rose Wilding returns to her home city to celebrate the release of Speak of the Devil, a ‘powerful, feminist thriller’ set in Newcastle at the turn of the millennium. Rose Wilding will be in conversation with bestselling crime author Ann Cleeves.
Book your tickets here, and tune back into Northern Bookshelf next quarter for Speak of the Devil book club questions and a podcast recording of the event.
Summer Proof Party with Tinder Press
Wednesday 5 July 7:30pm, The Magic Hat Cafe, £18/£15
We've teamed up with our friends at Hachette UK to host an evening with two of their most exciting new novelists, in-conversation with their editors about their upcoming debut books published by Tinder Press. Come along to sip on fresh fruit bellinis, get your hands on exclusive advance proof books, and get an insider evening with some brilliant up and coming writers. This event will be BSL interpreted. Book your tickets here.
A Sign of Her Own is the debut novel from the Lucy Cavendish Prize shortlisted author Sarah Marsh. Feminist, intelligent and seductively imaginative, this story sheds light on the largely untold history of the role of the deaf community in Alexander Bell's evolution of the telephone.
Spoilt Creatures by Amy Twigg is a dark, riveting literary debut about cults, transgression and female rage. Over the course of a blistering summer, Iris throws herself into an alternative way of life, seizing on new experiences and hidden desires. Until a group of men arrive at the rural commune, and everything is thrown into question...
Northern Bookshelf is published by New Writing North and Durham Book Festival. If you have news about books by northern authors or you would like to recommend books as a bookseller, librarian, book group or reader, please contact carys@newwritingnorth.com. The next issue will be published in September 2023 and will cover September 2023 - November 2023. The deadline for receipt of information for the next newsletter is 18 August 2023.
While every effort has been made to ensure that the information contained in this newsletter is correct at the time of going to press, things do change, frequently at the last minute and very often without our knowledge.
