It's a huge thrill to be welcoming the acclaimed poet and author, Holly Pester, back to the shop. Holly will be reading from and discussing her scintillating new poetry collection, Cafés, in conversation with award-winning poet and novelist, Nell Osborne.

Published by indie powerhouse, Fitzcarraldo Editions, Cafés confirms Pester as one of the most inventive and singular poets currently at work.

Here's more on the collection from Fitzcarraldo:

'Welcome to Cafés! Somewhere to eat and forget about work, where we can meet friends and not think about love, where we can meet lovers and be too nervous to eat. In Holly Pester’s unique lyric, the café becomes a structure of fantasy and language exploring life at the pressurized edges.

'In each iteration, the café remakes itself through the people who pass through it. A worker tries to run a café franchise. A lover sits in the corner, waiting. A woman mourns a friendship while contemplating age and childlessness. An artist tries to launch an art café and hosts an open mic. (Cafés is) a stylish political intervention and an elegy for communal space.'

This is a wonderful opportunity to hear from one of the most original poets of the age.

‘Holly Pester is a genius.’
— Kate Briggs, author of The Long Form

'Holly Pester makes the world sing... She reminds us that poetry is a social activity, an expression of faith in the possibility of connection – with other people, with the world, with happiness – that feels, in our historical moment, like a form of resistance.’
— Ben Eastham, author of The Floating World

We are delighted to announce that we will be hosting Booker Prize winner and one of the 21st century’s most acclaimed novelists, Marlon James, in September.

Marlon is coming to Bristol to introduce, discuss and read from his hugely-anticipated new novel, The Disappearers, in what is one of only four UK events the US-based author is undertaking for the book. He will be in conversation with the celebrated author, poet and performer, Vanessa Kisuule.​

The novel marks a return to the territory of Marlon's brilliant Booker winning, A Brief History of Seven Killings; the publication that fully established him as an international literary star.

Set in late 1980s Kingston Jamaica, The Disappearers is an uncompromising, acutely thought-provoking portrait of queer life in an often brutally unaccepting society. Seven gay actors confront bigotry and hate following a deadly attack at a rehearsal. Epic in its scale and awash with an unbreakable humanity, the novel confirms Marlon James’ place at the forefront of modern fiction.

This is an unmissable opportunity to hear from one of the great writers of our time.

'Epic in every sense of that word'
— New York Times on A Brief History of Seven Killings, selected in NYT's 100 Best Books of the 21st Century

‘The way James uses language is amazing . . . Vigorous, intricate and captivating, [it] is hard to put down’
— Ebony on A Brief History of Seven Killings

'Showcases the extraordinary capabilities of a writer whose importance can scarcely be questioned'
— Independent