CULTURE CLUB
DEEPEST DARKEST AN ELEMENTAL FORCE From the author of The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas comes the first in a staggering quartet of novellas, titled Water Irish author John Boyne’s body of work can be described as nothing short of impressive. To date, the internationally best-selling writer counts a collection of short stories, six novels for children and 14 for adults among his works – the most celebrated of which, The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas , has sold over 11 million copies worldwide. Yet, despite the prestigious roster of accolades behind his name, John is undertaking his most ambitious project yet – a sequence of four novellas to be published at six-monthly intervals from November 2023 to May 2025. “I’ve written quite a few long books in my life, and I enjoy that, but there’s nothing quite like a novella to force the writer to gather all their themes and characters together and focus on brevity, giving the reader a short but hopefully powerful experience,” he explains. Collectively titled The Elements , the four books follow as Water , Earth , Fire , Air , with various threads interlinking each work. “All four books are standalone stories, but a minor character from each becomes the narrator of the next and they share recurring characters and themes,” he elaborates. Due for publication on 2 November, the first work, Water , transports us to the west coast of Ireland, where we encounter a middle-aged woman changing her identity as she tries to come to terms with the demons of her past, recover from trauma, and find a new path forward. For John, abuse is the theme that binds the series together, seen in each book from a different perspective – whether someone
TOP 5 GIGS
STORNOWAY 1 NOV, CAMBRIDGE JUNCTION
who is complicit, a witness, victim, or abuser themselves. The foundations are hard-hitting and extremely close to home, inspired by an experience suffered by the author as a teenager – at the hands of a former English teacher who was subsequently convicted of the abuse of 23 boys in his charge over several years. “It made me think about this experience and the atmosphere of complicity in both my school and society at large that allowed things like this to happen – which led to the novellas,” he shares with us. A poignant tale that has been lauded as “his most powerful work to date”, our conversation with John takes place ahead of a trip to Cambridge to promote Water ’s release. For him, it will be a fond return, calling to mind his first summer of independence aged 18 spent working as a waiter in one of the city’s hotels. “It was my first time away from home without family; but I loved every minute of it,” he recalls. “It has been a few years since I’ve been back, so I’m very much looking forward to seeing Cambridge again.” An Evening with John Boyne takes place at Waterstones Cambridge on Friday 3 November. Visit waterstones.com to book tickets
FLAMINGODS 8 NOV, PORTLAND ARMS
THIS IS THE KIT 9 NOV, CAMBRIDGE JUNCTION
SOPHIE ELLIS- BEXTOR: CHRISTMAS KITCHEN DISCO 29 NOV, CAMBRIDGE CORN EXCHANGE
FIRST OF FOUR Water marks the beginning of John Boyne’s latest literary project
FUN LOVIN’ CRIMINALS 30 NOV, MASH
14 NOVEMBER 2023 CAMBSEDITION.CO.UK
Powered by FlippingBook