Come along to a special evening in the company of two remarkable nature writers, James Roberts and Jon Gower, as they explore our deep and enduring relationship with the natural world.
In 'Two Lights: Walking at Dawn and Dusk on a Turning Planet', longlisted for the 2024 RSL Ondaatje Prize, James Roberts charts a luminous journey through landscapes and loss. From the Cambrian Mountains to the Pacific Northwest, his dawn and dusk walks become a meditation on grief, connection, and the quiet, redemptive power of the wild.
In 'Birdland', Jon Gower turns his keen journalist’s eye and lifelong passion for birdlife into a rich exploration of the birds that share our skies. From the delicate song of a wren to the drama of a murmuration, he captures their wonder while confronting the urgent threats they face through climate change and habitat loss.
Together, these books provide beauty and insight into what can be found when we pay close attention to the world around us.
This event is part of our Summer at Griffin Books programme. Events will take place in our newly extended shop on Penarth high street.
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'Two Lights: Walking at Dawn and Dusk on a Turning Planet':
Longlisted for the RSL Ondaatje Prize 2024, 'Two Lights' by James Roberts is a lyrical journey through landscapes and loss. From swans in the Cambrian Mountains to wolves in the Pacific Northwest, Roberts finds solace and connection in the wild. Walking at dawn and dusk, he moves through grief toward hope, discovering a path back to life through encounters with the natural world.
'Birdland':
'Birdland' by journalist and lifelong birder Jon Gower explores our deep connection with birds, from the song of a wren to the spectacle of murmuration. Travelling across Britain in search of species like the wryneck and dotterel, Gower celebrates birds as everyday miracles that have long inspired art and song, yet he also confronts the decline in bird populations over the past 50 years, examining the impacts of climate change and habitat loss. This is both a love letter to birdlife and a powerful call to protect it.
JAMES ROBERTS is a writer and artist who lives in the hills of the Welsh Border country. His essays and poems have been published widely, and his artwork has featured in several exhibitions, books and theatre productions. He writes on Substack and shows work on Instagram as @nightriverwood.
JON GOWER is a former BBC Wales arts and media correspondent who has over 40 books to his name. These include The Story of Wales, which accompanied a landmark TV series, the travelogue An Island Called Smith and Y Storïwr, which won the Wales Book of the Year.
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Thursday 21 August | 7.30 pm
Griffin Books, 9A Windsor Road, Penarth, CF64 1JB*
Tickets: £8.00 Event Only / £4.00 Student Ticket / £4.00 Inclusive Ticket
*IMPORTANT: Please be aware that the toilet at Griffin Books can only be accessed via three steps and so is not accessible for wheelchair users or people with mobility issues. Please contact us on
aW5mbyB8IGdyaWZmaW5ib29rcyAhIGNvICEgdWs= if this would prohibit you from attending.
You may also like the following events from Griffin Books:
- This Wednesday, 23rd July, 07:30 pm, Feel-Good Fiction with Santa Montefiore, Cathy Bramley & Georgina Moore in Penarth
- This Sunday, 27th July, 03:00 pm, Life in Spite of Everything - Tales from the Ukrainian East with Victoria Donovan in Penarth
- This September, 3rd September, 07:30 pm, Cecelia Ahern: Paper Heart in Penarth
Also check out other
Arts events in Penarth,
Theatre events in Penarth,
Literary Art events in Penarth.
