Let me say straight off that this was great week littered with literary figures from around the globe and across the country. A truly terrific mixture of writers across all genres.
I was not there for the last two days, and of course I couldn't attend every session on the days I was there, but I managed to fit in a good number and I came away feeling entertained and educated.
Here are my ratings:
Best Performer - Christian Bok (left)
Biggest audiences - Joseph Stiglitz (1900 people in the Michael Fowler Centre), Gala Opening Night (full house at The Embassy).
Biggest sales of books - Ian McEwan - more than 80 people in queue after his address
Most entertaining - Ruth Reichl
Most unexpectedly entertaining - NZ scientists Bernard Beckett, Lloyd Spencer Davis & Hamish Campbell
Biggest star performer - Garry Trudeau (right)
Most appealing speaker - David Mitchell
Best chair - hard call because without exception they were all good but I'll give it a three way tie between Kim Hill, Lynn Freeman and Sean Plunkett
Most effective message deliverance - Alexis Wright & Patricia Grace
Best speech - Owen Marshall at launch of Fiona Kidman's memoir
Bouquets & brickbats - Bouquet to the staff of the Embassy who were pleasant & helpful & provided a good range of quality food & drink at reasonable prices. Bouquet to Unity Books for a well-stocked temporary bookshop and to their knowledgeable staff. Brickbat to the organisers for not having wireless internet available at the main venue.and for not allowing punters into auditorium until a few minutes before each session began thus causing long queues and preventing access to comfortable seating where we could have been quietly reading while waiting. But hey, it was a great week. Hats off to the team responsible and a special mention of Anne O'Brien the former Writers & Readers Manager who put much of the programme together before departing north. I plan to be back in two years time.
I too have just returned home after a great time at NZ Post Writers and Readers Week (well, four days and I loved every minute). Here are a few bouquets I would like to offer:
ReplyDeleteA bouquet to Emily Perkins who steered conversations with Damien Wilkins and Patrick McGrath with warmth and intimacy, and without patronising the audience or hogging the limelight.
A bouquet to the festival for inviting a terrific children’s writer, Ursula Dubosarsky. I couldn’t make her session as I was on next so fingers crossed Radio NZ replays it.
A bouquet to the festival for giving space to poets to talk about their writing (Christian Bok and Paul Muldoon). What a treat!
And finally a bouquet and bubbles to all the finalists in the IIML Prize in Modern Letters. Only one could accept the winning cheque, but they all nailed their performances on stage. Bravo!
I too want to listen again in 2010.
And a big bouquet to you Bookman Beattie, has been wonderful reading your posts from beautiful Wellington, especially liked your salute to readers everywhere. Thanks.
ReplyDeleteLee
I would like to add my very warm thanks to Bookman Beattie on behalf of loads of people like me who couldn't get to Wellington but at least could tune in to his excellent book blog to get his reactions. He brings a refreshing approach to his reporting, excellent.
ReplyDeleteI am going to shift heaven & earth to get to the next NZ Post week at the Festival.
The most enjoyable (and it has to said, sexiest) speaker for me at the festival was Paul Muldoon. The voice, the charm,
ReplyDeletethe wit, the musical language, the perfect timing, not to mention the intelligence and affecting poetry, had me weeping by the end. I nearly threw myself at his feet.
Well done Blogman Beattie - fine coverage of the Festival and I agree with most of your comments..
ReplyDeleteWould add my own thoughts as follows..
Best Chair - John Campbell.
Worst Chair - Rod Oram.
Most delicious Guest - Ruth Reichl.
Author who most made me want to go and read his work - Uwe Timm.
Best Poem - Christian Bok's 'O' for Yoko Ono.
Big bouquets for main sponsor NZ Post and for the amazing Unity Books and their tireless staff and another brickbat for those at the Embassy theatre who thought it clever to make large numbers of people wait in a crowded space for far too long before being allowed into the theatre..
Yes Bookman/Blogman you did us proud with your coverage of the NZ Post Writers & Readers Week.
ReplyDeleteI have a request of the organisers for the next Festival. Could they give us a couple of bio lines on the chairpersons. I had no idea who half of them were, (I am not in the book trade where most people probably know them), and it would be interesting to know their backgrounds, and also it gives them a bit of kudos too because it was clear they had done a lot of preparatory work to ensure a good panel or discussion.
I would like to endorse the suggestion by Jill Brown re adding biograpical notes on the chairpersons.
ReplyDeleteI didn't recognise at all the name Ramona Koval who chaired that wonderful session with David Mitchell, The Perpetual Dream Machine, but as soon as she started talking I recognised her voice from having heard her years ago on ABC Radio when I lived in Melbourne.
Thanks for a wonderful blog which I visit every day.