Event: Cardiff BookTalk, David Jones, In Parenthesis

In the centenary year of the Battle of the Somme, Cardiff BookTalk returns for 2016/17 with an exciting event considering David Jones’s First World War classic, In Parenthesis.

Based on Jones’s own experiences, In Parenthesis recalls the experiences of Private John Ball and his comrades in the Royal Welch Fusiliers from their embarkation for the Somme to their participation in the deadly assault at Mametz Wood. Considered ‘the greatest book about the First World War’ by W. H. Auden and employing a highly allusive mixture of verse and prose, In Parenthesis is an exhilarating read, which challenges generic conventions and received ideas about war.

In the summer of 2016, the Welsh National Opera staged an acclaimed adaptation of Jones’s epic work, which toured across the country. Inspired by this and in collaboration with the Voices of War and Peace project, Cardiff BookTalk is excited to host an event discussing both In Parenthesis and its recent reworking.

To explore In Parenthesis and in particular the challenges of adapting it, we welcome:

• David Antrobus, co-librettist of the Welsh National Opera’s adaptation of In Parenthesis, as well as a director, actor and writer
• Beth McIntyre, senior curator of prints and drawings at the National Museum Wales and curator of the ‘War’s Hell!’ The Battle of Mametz Wood in Art exhibition
• Dr Toby Thacker, Senior Lecturer in Modern European History at Cardiff University and expert on the cultural, political and military history of the twentieth century in Europe

Event details
Tuesday 11 October
6.30-9.30pm
Cardiff University School of Optometry and Vision Sciences, Maindy Road, Cardiff CF24 4HQ.

All welcome! Book your free tickets here.

Cardiff BookTalk is a University book group with a difference – we discuss expert perspectives and readers’ ideas about the big ideas in a range of classic and contemporary fiction.

Originally established by Cardiff University in 2011, Cardiff BookTalk has been run by the School of English, Communication and Philosophy since spring 2015. BookTalkers listen to diverse interdisciplinary research topics which expand on themes in the very best classic and contemporary literature. Each speaker addresses the books from their own specialism, and this can lead to fascinating insights about the literary, social and cultural implications of the novels we read. The talks, given by University academics who are specialists in their field, as well as other expert speakers, will be followed by an open discussion session with the audience, and we want as many people to share their perspectives as possible. If you’re interested in discussing the big ideas behind great books, and want to discover new ways of looking at novels, then join us for our next session!