Ostensibly a launch of the latest Discworld title, published as a children's book, as well as a celebration of 21 years years of Discworld, the event at the Royal Society of Arts' Vaults was much more the latter. Not a single copy of Going Postal was evident and I can't remember it being mentioned in either of the main speeches. But as a celebration of Discworld and of Pratchett's success as a popular cult author it was a tremendous evening, with Shirley Hughes and Jacqueline Wilson amongst the guests. A retinue of professionally got-up fancy dress characters was completely bemusing to those few guests who, like me, knew very little about the Discworld cast.
Pictures to follow Wednesday am, or evening.
The event clashed with a Thames riverboat joint launch for two OUP books, by Gerladine McCaughrean and Tim Bowler. Worried about missing my preferred last train back to base, I had opted for a West End venue. But I did start reading Tim Bowler's Apocalypse on the train.
It is a powerful book; although its stunningly atmospheric opening is somewhat undermined on p43 by the appearance of a girl, whose entry into the story immediately marks this out as a children's novel, whereas the previous pages had been bracingly ambivalent as far as audience was concerned. But I am still only 100 pages in, so may end up revising my judgement on the girl.
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