Page 23 - link magazine

Welcome to the ninth Swindon
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Festival of Literature!

Swindon
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1-13 May2002

Coming to town this year is a terrific line up of `
authors: prize-winning novelists, poets, politicians, storytellers, scientists,
comics, columnists, entertainers, performers, and mischief-makers too.
We even have the story of chimney sweeps.

Between the 1st and 13th May, the Festival is so full that we have
put a number of key events, specifically for schools, for children and r}
teachers, into a series of pre and post-Festival projects. For example, on
Wednesday 17th April, veteran children's author Allan Ahlberg will come
to town to give a talk on good reading and writing. Also in April, there will be
two workshops for teachers, at Lower Shaw Farm, on the use of storytelling I
in the classroom and language development through writing skills. And throughout
March, April, May, and June, authors will be visiting schools and children will be going
on storywalks.

But on the I st May the action kicks off only one way: literary frolics and fun, with the rising sun, at
dawn on that high ridge overlooking the town in Lawn Woods on May Day morning. Followed by twelve days of
literary treats for every age and taste, in one long celebration of things well written and things well said.

Each day there will be three or more events, at midday, teatime, and in the evening, carefully spaced and placed,
to enable you to attend almost every event, should you have the stamina! For the full at-a-glance Festival diary,
turn the page.

And then mark your own diary, so that during the first thirteen days of May you join us, for heaps of happy
exploration, cartloads of cool communication, dollops of dangerous discussion, loads of laudable lectures,
teasing talks and storywalks, comic guff and serious stuff, all of which will help us celebrate life and love
literature, together!

Read on, come along, and surprise yourself, in Swindon!

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