Final Festival Special podcast episode brings memories, coastlines, crime fiction and community voices together

Final Festival Special podcast episode brings memories, coastlines, crime fiction and community voices together

The third and final Derby Book Festival special episode of A Shared Reading Podcast by Derby Book Festival is now live, bringing our summer Festival podcast series to a close.

Recorded during the Festival in May, this final episode is packed with author conversations, readings, volunteer reflections and voices from festival-goers, all exploring the different ways books, stories and shared moments can connect us.

Hosted by Shared Reading volunteers Ellie and Steve, the episode features interviews with authors Bee Wilson, Sarah Hilary, Sally Coulthard, Rachel Trethewey, and Derby Book Festival volunteer Jeremy.

It also includes responses from festival-goers who answered our question: How does reading bring people together?

In this episode

Bee Wilson, author of The Heart-Shaped Tin, talks about the memories associated with kitchen objects and the stories held in the things we use, keep and treasure.

Ellie and Steve also share their own meaningful kitchen objects, the ones they would never part with, opening up a warm conversation about memory, family, food and the everyday items that stay with us.

Sarah Hilary, author of The Drowning Place, part of her police detective series set in the Peak District. Sarah talks about her writing and shares a reading from the book.

Sally Coulthard, author of A Brief History of the Coast in 100 Objects, talks about coastlines, objects, history and the stories we can uncover through the things around us. She also shares a reading from her book.

Rachel Trethewey, author of Muv: The Story of the Mitford Girls’ Mother, sharing more about the life of Sydney Bowles and the story behind her book.

Jeremy, a Derby Book Festival volunteer, reflects on his experiences of volunteering with the Festival and what it means to be part of the team that helps bring the events to life.

Together, these conversations move from kitchens to coastlines, crime fiction to biography, and volunteering to the many small ways books can help people feel connected.

How does reading bring people together?

Across the Festival, we invited people to answer one simple question: How does reading bring people together?

In this final Festival Special episode, Ellie and Steve read out some of the postcards completed by festival-goers. Their responses capture the warmth, thoughtfulness and sense of connection that have run through the whole podcast series.

Listen now

You can listen to the episode here

The podcast is also available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and wherever you usually listen to podcasts.

If you enjoy the episode, please do follow or subscribe, download the episode and share it with anyone who loves books, conversation and community. It really helps more people discover the podcast and learn about Shared Reading.

Catch up on the Festival Specials

This episode is the final part of our summer Festival Special series.

You can also catch up on the first two Festival episodes, featuring author interviews, festival voices and reflections on books, reading and connection.

Catch up on the Festival Special episodes here

New to the podcast?

A Shared Reading Podcast by Derby Book Festival celebrates local voices, community connection and the conversations that begin when we read together.

Each episode gives a flavour of our Shared Reading programme with warm, welcoming conversations inspired through reading and sharing stories, poems and other short texts. Across the series, we’ve featured local writers, Shared Reading volunteers and participants sharing their experiences of reading, connection and community.

You can also catch up on our previous episodes here, including the first Festival special episode and our pilot episode, which is a great place to start if you’d like to understand more about Shared Reading.

What is Shared Reading?

Shared Reading is a simple, welcoming way to enjoy stories, poems and other short texts in a group. A trained volunteer reads aloud, then everyone is invited to chat about whatever the words bring up - memories, feelings, ideas, favourite lines, or anything else that comes to mind. There’s no prep, no pressure and no need to be a literature expert. You can share as much or as little as you like, or simply listen. We run Shared Reading groups across Derby and Derbyshire, including in community venues, libraries, cafés, healthcare settings and online. Find out more about our Shared Reading groups here.

Could you help bring the podcast to the autumn Festival?

We would love to create another Shared Reading podcast episode at the autumn edition of Derby Book Festival this November, capturing more of the ideas, experiences and conversations that make the Festival so special.

We’re seeking £600 in sponsorship to make the episode possible. This could come from one organisation or be shared between two or more co-sponsors.

This could be a particularly good opportunity for organisations that share our commitment to community, connection, wellbeing, inclusion, or widening access to books and reading.

If your organisation might be interested, or you know someone we should speak to, please contact Katie at shared.reading@derbybookfestival.co.uk. We would be very happy to have an informal conversation about the opportunity and how your support could be recognised.