Cheltenham

What a week! Mad things at work (real work, in the actual library) and a mad weekend away at the Cheltenham Literary Festival for UBG work... I have to admit that Cheltenham was the best - the festival is always gorgeous (especially when the town is basking in unseasonally glorious sunshine - I didn't wear a coat all weekend), beautifully run (thank you Jane Churchill, wonderful organiser of the Book It! children's festival) and probably my favourite of the yearly book events. I even managed to sneak out to the racecourse theatre (yes, there is one) to see Russell T Davis and John Barrowman discussing Dr Who and Torchwood... laugh? I nearly fell off my seat!

Our event was on Monday, and somehow Jane had persuaded Anne Fine to share the stage with us. Yes, we felt totally not worthy, as Anne is not only one of the few truly great writers for children, but is one of the sharpest and most intelligent observers of the way reading is treated in this country. Luckily for us, she also happens to be a great person to share a stage with! We signed afterwards - and spent a while marvelling at the table that held Anne's back catalogue... can anyone else have written so much, so successfully and for so many ages?

It was all great fun, and afterwards Caroline Lawrence was in the green room too, so we spent a while catching up and being amazed that the Roman Mysteries series is almost reaching its end! What are kids going to do now? Let's hope Caroline's next series will be just as long and popular.

Once our event was over (and the adrenaline rush had faded) there was shopping to do and a train to catch. Danny and I shared an otherwise almost deserted carriage home, and read / dozed our way back to the real world.