Another Radical 'Literary' Event in Glasgow

[Ungrateful]

Following on from the Alternative book fair at the CCA last month there's another FREE 'radical' event in Glasgow -

AK PRESS
invite you to the book launch of

Rebel Alliances: The means and ends of contemporary British anarchisms
by Benjamin Franks (Univ. Glasgow)

with an evening of contributions from contemporary activists / anarchists:

Michael Harris. (AK Press)
Kristina Weaver (aka sgt.ina, CIRCA +)
Dek Keenan. (Anarchist Federation)
Jamie Heckert (erotic story teller)
Stevie G. (Industrial Workers of the World)

+ refreshments + bookstalls

FREE EVENT

Thursday 28th September

7.30pm

Street Level Gallery
48 King Street
(1st floor)
Glasgow

Street Level Gallery: 0141 552 2151

If anyone has a spare bed to offer in Glasgow on the Thursday night would you PM me. Many thanks

 

[Col_Buendia]

Why the sarcastic inverted commas? And they are round the "literary" in your thread title, but move to the "radical" in the post. Which bit are you trying to be sarcastic about?



I haven't read Benjamin Frank's book yet, but from the blurb on AK it looks like it should be worth a look.

 

[Ungrateful]

Fair points Col_Buendia. I guess the scare quotes around 'literary' is because I imagine real literary events to full of the intelegentsia eating quails eggs and vol-au-vonts and quaffing vintage champagne. You know Salman Rushdie exchanging bon mots with Will Self and Zadie Smith, as lines of high quality coke are snorted off the buttocks of scantily clad PR girls. Whilst, by contrast, an AK sponsored event is likely to be (as one of the publishing/distributing co-op members told me) a couple of bags of chips and bottle or two of Buckie (and no scantily-clad PR girls, well none provided by AK any case).

However I guess not even real literary events (even with Will Self, Zadie Smith and Salman Rushdie present) measure up to my imagined version.

The scare quotes around 'radical' are, perhaps, equally unfair. As I'm never certain how radical (i.e. fundamentally/systematically re-adjusting power-relationships) such events are ever likely to be.

 

[Col_Buendia]

Well, having met a couple of these people at a conference earlier this year, I reckon this will be a great night for discussion & thinking.

But yeah, shame there'll be no coke off the backside of Ramsey Kaanan's granny or whatever...

 

[Donna Ferentes]

Fair points Col_Buendia. I guess the scare quotes around 'literary' is because I imagine real literary events to full of the intelegentsia eating quails eggs and vol-au-vonts and quaffing vintage champagne.

Having been to a couple, this isn't so inaccurate except that the eats aren't quite that good. However, they do seem to be full of people who spend their whole lives doing this and know absolutely everybody in the room - except the writers.

(I have a grudge here, having been one of the writers at one such event and been greeted by one particuar fuckwit who I knew from my old college days with the words "what are you doing here?" "I'm one of the fucking writers", I said.)

 

[Ungrateful]

I have that book somewhere Donna, I shall seek it out and re-read the essays in a whole new light.

Just to say that there are three other Literary Events (without quotation marks) of varying degrees of radicalism coming up in Scotland in the near future:

First up is RIB - RADICAL INDEPENDENT BOOK FAIR

*titles with which you can make a positive change in the world*

cornerstoned by AK Press: making available radical political books,
pamphlets, media and other materials published by independent presses, not the corporate giants

self-organised bi-monthly events, bringing regular access to independent /
radical publishers and producers back to Glasgow

* stalls at CCA (Venue: CCA, 350 Sauchiehall Street, Glasgow G2 3JD )
13-16 October throughout Document 4 : Human Rights Film
Festival
http://www.docfilmfest.org.uk


Second, The provocative, but often excellent Variant magazine/paper is having a tenth anniversary party...

Variant : 10 years since relaunching
http://www.variant.org.uk
If you're about in Glasgow, join us for a 10 year anniversary get together
Spin round to the sounds of Cosmonaut Petrov
Sunday 15 October, 8.30pm onwards...
CCA bar - Scott St. entrance, off Sauchiehall St.

Third and Finally,
THE 10TH EDINBURGH INDEPENDENT RADICAL BOOK FAIR - THE ALTERNATIVE BOOK FESTIVAL will take place from Wednesday 11th to Sunday 15th of October 2006 in Out of the Blue Drill Hall, 30-38 Dalmeny Street, Edinburgh, EH6 8RG, Scotland, UK. Amongst the many speakers are the omnipresent environmentalist George Monbiot, alternative economist Michael Albert, composer James MacMillan and former publicity director for Sinn Fein Danny Morrison. An itinerary is available at http://www.word-power.co.uk/book_fair

 

[j-bar03]

Prestonpandemonium - Comic Fair

A.K. can't join us this time but you might be interested in Prestonpandemonium which happens next on Saturday 4th November in Prestonpans.

We don't claim to be radical or literary but we are currently the only small press/graphic novel event in Scotland.

More details at http://www.prestonpandemonium.com

Jan B