I know it’s been nearly a week since this year’s Edinburgh International Book Festival programme was published – but better late than never, right? And I’m so unbelievably excited that David Simon – the illustrious creator of The Wire – will be there! Anyone who sees me everyday probably got sick of my Wire-related ramblings over a year ago. But in case you want a taste, here’s one of my favourite scenes from the first series (just so I don’t ruin it for Wire newbies).
Hopefully I’ll get a ticket when the box office opens on Monday. I’m really interested hear Simon speak – not just because I love The Wire and the Iraq drama he produced last year Generation Kill (on Channel 4 later this year, I believe), but because I don’t agree with a lot of his comments on the future of internet journalism so it will be great to have the opportunity to ask him about this in person (if I’m lucky).
Other highlights at the book festival this year include disgraced Oxford poetry professor Ruth Padel, who will be opening the show, and Neil Gaiman who will be talking about his fantastic (in every sense of that word) back catalogue of graphic novels and books. He’s doing a second talk too with Ian Rankin, who is launching his first ever graphic novel, and I’m betting that will be one of the festival’s most exciting events.
I also love the look of some of the writers workshops at the book festival, particularly Zinnie Harris’ Writing for Theatre event on August 30th. I’m also going to make an effort to see Lebanese novelist Elias Khoury and ‘Voices of Kolkata’, both of which I think will be useful for my future investigations into postcolonial literature.
But as much as I’m looking forward to these events, I’m also a little sceptical of the set-up of some book festival occasions. Often, they work very well – but a few times, I’ve attended talks in which the ‘chair’ of the discussion between author and audience has been a little too adulatory towards the writer they’re presiding over. I don’t think this is useful for anyone, but hopefully these incidents will be few and far between in 2009. In any case, I’ll simply be grateful for warm, bright weather – Charlotte Square really is beautiful when bathed in sunlight.
What, you like The Wire? Get out of here!
You too will soon share my enthusiasm if you watch the episodes I gave you!