John Ruskin, best-known and most controversial intellectual of the Victorian age, was an art critic, a social activist, an early environmentalist. He was also a painter, writer, and a determined tastemaker in the fields of architecture and design. By championing JMW Turner and the Pre-Raphaelites, he ensured that their flame continued to burn long beyond his death in 1900, even as his own reputation faded.

Research for his award-winning book Ruskinland: How John Ruskin Shapes Our World took Financial Times columnist Andrew Hill from Herne Hill to the Lake District, from Venice to Florida's Gulf Coast, as he traced the influence of Ruskin and his ideas.

This event is now an in-person event at Carnegie Library! (but if circumstances change and this is not possible, it will be online via Zoom. If the event reverts to online - we will update you accordingly).

Free Registration

Oh You Pretty Thing! with VG Lee

Tuesday 10 August, 7pm
Online Event: Book via Eventbrite

VG Lee is the critically-acclaimed author of five novels and two collections of short stories. In 2012, Lee was nominated for a Stonewall Award for writing. Join VG Lee to discuss her second short story collection, Oh You Pretty Thing!

Lee is also one of the judges for the prestigious LGBTQ+ Polari Prize. Event organised by the Friends of Carnegie Library

When I Ran Away follows a woman's journey from 9/11 over fifteen years, leaving her country, husband and children in search of a new life. It covers themes of friendship, grief, humour in dark times, isolation, dislocation, mental health, motherhood, loss of self/redefining self.

Ilona Bannister is a New Yorker married to an Englishman and raising two young sons in South London. A dual qualified US attorney and UK solicitor, Ilona practiced UK immigration law, and her experiences as a lawyer working closely with families in difficult situations, as well as her life as an expat, have made her a keen observer of people and the struggles of outsiders.

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(Online details will be emailed two hours before the start of the event to all who register.)

Andy Scott reads from his book London's Loveable Villain about his great-uncle Chick "Cocky" Knight aka "the Bear". Described as a real London character, boxer, bouncer, wrestler, lifesaver, villain but undoubtedly with a heart of gold - Chick saved at least 3 people's lives in dramatic circumstances. As a bouncer in Soho he took on four wielding knives and razors. As a professional wrestler he appeared all over the world, fighting all the great heavyweights in a 25 year career from 1932 to 1958, and in 1938 one of the first to appear on television.

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