Join us for an evening with Keith Kahn-Harris a sociologist and writer, based in London. He is a senior lecturer at Leo Baeck College and a senior research fellow at the Institute for Jewish Policy Research. Keith will talk about his latest book and be willing to answer questions and sign books. Can Jews be allowed to become boring? With Israel and antisemitism constantly in thenews, it seems as though the Jewish people a fraction of a percentage of the worlds population- have become synonymous with controversy, drama and anxiety. But what if there was another side to this persistently interesting people; one that non-Jews often dont know about and Jews rarely talk about? This is the stuff of everyday Jewishness; the capacity to be ordinary, mundane and sometimes just plain dull. Keith Kahn-Harris lifts the lid on this surprising world in a book for Jews and non-Jews alike. Arguing that his peoples extraordinary public visibility today is harming their ability to live everyday Jewish lives, he celebrates themundanity and mediocrity of a people before it vanishes completely. DR KEITH KAHN-HARRIS is a sociologist and author, based in London. He is a Senior Research Fellow at the Institute for Jewish Policy Research and a Senior Lecturer at Leo Baeck College. He also makes time for pursuing other interests outside the community, including extreme metal music and the warning messages in Kinder Surprise Eggs. The author of nine books, his most recent publications are Strange Hate: Antisemitism, Racism and the Limits of Diversity, The Babel Message: A Love Letter to Language (Icon) and (co-authored with Rob Stothard) What Does A Jew Look Like? Find out more atkahn-harris.org [//kahn-harris.org] Light refreshments will be provided.

Join us for an evening with Sasha talking about her latest book The Marriage Contract. You'll have the opportunity to ask questions and have your book signed by the author. A little more about The Marriage Contract: Once she had thought of them, their love, as a fortress that nothing, not giants nor dragons nor men with fists and minds of gore could tear down. She realises now, that their love is malleable, mouldable, breakable. As soft as dreams. Summer in Worcestershire, 1577. Eliza Litton, a talented artist, is in love with childhood friend, Francis. But her tyrannical father, who rules the household with insults and fists, has other ideas. As summer comes to an end, Francis vanishes after a drunken night at the inn and Elizas father forces her to marry a gentleman, Edmund. Thrown into a new, unfamiliar life with her husband who appears distant and cold, Eliza cannot tear herself from the memory of Francis. Yet her feelings for Edmund soften with time; he presents a life to her better than she ever dreamed. He provides her a safety she never had beneath her fathers roof and encourages her to paint, to pursue the things she loves. As she begins to fall for Edmund, Francis is adrift on his own voyage, doing all he can to survive, fixated on returning to Eliza. But as Eliza grows closer to Edmund, she uncovers a deceit she never imagined, causing her to question her own loyalties and commit her own betrayals. After everything, who will Eliza be? And what choices will she make? The Marriage Contract vividly portrays life in the precarious and unforgiving Elizabethan era, exploring loves many forms; how we can betray the ones we love, and how we can find forgiveness; and explores a womans fight to follow her desires and find her autonomy.

Join us to hear Fran talk about her latest book and have the opportunity to ask questions and get your book signed. A bit about The Favourite: Alex, Eva and Nancy. Three grown-up sisters; each wonderful and messy in their own individual ways. And loved equally by their parents, Vivienne and Patrick. Or so they thought . . . Until on their annual family holiday, Patrick accidentally reveals that he has a favourite daughter - causing other long-buried secrets to come to light. Set over a single week, but examining the highs and lows that define a family over the decades, The Favourite is a story about rivalries and long-held resentments, about loss and grief and blame and, above all, about love. Fran Littlewoods debut Amazing Grace Adams was an instant New York Times bestseller, Read With Jenna pick and was published in 17 territories. Amazing Grace Adams was published to huge critical acclaim including: Littlewood writes with ferocity and compassion . . . Read it and weep, then cheer (The Times), A glorious tragicomedy (Daily Express) and Rarely have I felt more seen than by this book (Good Housekeeping). Now and again I read a book which is so FABULOUS I get queasy with jealousy. This is one such book. God, I wish I had written it. 3 sisters in their 40s. Funny, dark, fascinating and utterly UTTERLY convincing. On my QWJ (Queasy With Jealousy) Scale, I award it 16/10. Marian Keyes Fran writes like a wilder, more breathless Claire Lombardo . . . A huge talent. Set over the course of a family reunion that goes very wrong, THE FAVOURITE is a layered, textured story about the reverberations of the past and secrets in a family, and a psychologically astute look at love and relationships. Its wonderful and very funny. Youre in for such a treat. I LOVED it. Georgina Moore, author of The Garnett Girls

Join us in listening to Danny talk about his latest book - The Undisputed King of Selston and having the oportunity to ask questions and get your book signed. The Undisputed King of Selston is a funny, poignant memoir, alive to the unheralded beauty and camaraderie of a village which finds itself on the wrong side of history. Whileset in the small mining town of Selston in the 70s and 80s, I believe anyone who grew up in an industrial, working class area (Doncaster for me!), will recognise characters like Danny Scott's dad, a quiet but resilient man; The Texan, a bloke who thought he was anywhere but the East Midlands; feisty women like Danny's mother whose right-hook was to be feared more than her fondness for house fires; and of course the village itself - the Tin Hat could be any working men's club across the country taking Bingo night far too seriously. All of it is captured so beautifully in Danny's writing, both with fondness and a sense of claustrophobia that's all too familiar for anyone who has grown up in and had ambitions of leaving their own small town. Danny Scott ultimately left Selston and had various jobs as an apprentice engineer, counter (industrial) espionage, private investigator, painter and decorator, before finally becoming a journalist where he interviews the likes of Sir Paul McCartney, Mikhail Gorbachev, Usain Bold and Dave Hill from Slade. Light refreshments will be available.

Join us for a conversation with author Abigail Johnson talking about her book - The Sercet Collector. When an elderly eccentric collector and a troubled teen become each other's only hope of getting their lives back on track, what can possibly go wrong? Alfred is an elderly widower who uses antiques and collectibles to fill the hole in his heart left by his late wife. Kian is a lost teen who has been let down by the care system and finds it difficult staying on the straight and narrow. After Kian throws a brick through Alfred's window, the shock sends Alfred to hospital and a social worker to his home, where his hoarding becomes impossible to ignore. Begrudgingly, and at the request of the authorities, they both agree to enrol Kian on a restorative justice programme, helping to make Alfreds home liveable again. The only problem: Alfred doesn't want to throw any of his treasures away, and he certainly doesnt want Kian for company. What unfolds is a surprising and delightful journey of two characters who help each other more than they ever could have anticipated and, along the way, form the unlikeliest of friendships. An uplifting and warm story about friendship across generations, the power of community and finding hope where it had been lost. Perfect for fans of Sally Pages The Keeper of Stories and Evie Woods's The Lost Bookshop. 'Wonderfully drawn characters you really root for . . . a delightfully uplifting story' - Mike Gayle, author of All the Lonely People 'A complete joy' - Alexandra Potter, bestselling author of Confessions of a Forty-Something Fk Up 'Full of compassion, warmth and insight' - Laura Barnett, author of The Versions of Us

'We are cursed, here at Harfold, whether you believe in it or not.' 1922, Wiltshire.When Vee Morgan accepts the job of gardener at a crumbling stately home, she's hoping for a fresh start where nobody knows her troubled history. But Harfold Manor is shadowed by grief and the memories of long-faded glory, its rooms haunted by the only surviving member of the family, Lady Arabella Lascy. Vee is fascinated by her enigmatic new employer, a woman obsessed with the curse she believes has killed her family one by one. A curse that is coming for her next. As Vee immerses herself in the world of Harfold, she finds herself increasingly entranced by Arabella and the secrets that poison her. But Vee has her own things to hide: secrets that caused her to flee Cardiff, secrets that estranged her from her own family, secrets that might finally catch up to her Carmella Lowkis grew up in Wiltshire and has a degree in English literature and Creative Writing from the University of Warwick. After graduating, she worked in libraries, before moving into book marketing. Carmella lives in North London with her girlfriend. You can follow her on Twitter @carmellalowkis. Spitting Gold was her first novel.

A MEMOIR OF BREAKDOWN, RECOVERY, GROWTH AND LESSONS FROM THE EARTH Please expect and prepare to be getting your hands dirty as we connect to the soil and listen to Kathy's inspiring story. When Kathy was forced to quit her high-flying career in London, she was a wreck burnt out, anxious, consumed by depression. But she found solace in an unlikely place the veg patch. She put her hands in the soil and found a way to grow, to sow some small seeds of hope. In ROUGH PATCH, Kathy draws us into the world of the kitchen garden to reflect on the lessons she learnt from the soil, along with sharing recipes inspired by the land. Weaving together her own story of recovery with the year she spent growing and cooking her harvests, Kathy realises that the two are tightly bound together and that reconnecting with the earth could restore her hope and renew her life. Along the way there are tales of marauding pigs, transformative insights from planting leeks, recipes for an unchecked courgette glut and the discovery of why a radish seed is worth staying alive for. The result is a candid, hopeful and sometimes funny story about the healing powers of nature; a quiet manifesto for a more connected life... 'Kathy Slacks story is transformative. Life-affirming, inspiring and most of all, full of hope, it proves beyond all doubt the miracle cure that is mud beneath your fingernails. KATE HUMBLE An intimate, brave and brilliantly written account of a life restored by the seasons and the soil. MARK DIACONO